Isaiah 35:4-7a
James 1:17-27
Mark 7:31-37
A long time ago, a friend I'll call Rachel, came to that proverbial place in life called "rock bottom". She was hesitant to follow the good advice given to her but did, finally agree to attend a meeting at the local chapter of AA (Alcoholics Anonymous). She was nervous and a bit scared but managed to put one foot in front of the other and walk into the room.
At the beginning of the meeting, a basket was passed around the table for voluntary donations to defray meeting costs. When it stopped in front of my friend, all Rachel could do was fidget because she had not only hit rock bottom with a thud but she had also arrived there broke with not even some loose change in her pocket.
As she started to slide the basket to the person on her left, she heard a friendly male voice break the silence with these words: "If you have it, put it in; if you need it, take it out." Rachel looked toward the voice, obviously that of the group facilitator, and was certain that she had misunderstood. But the words came again, "If you have it put it in; if you need it, take it out."
This didn't sound quite like the words she was more familiar with: "It is better to give than to receive!" Those were the words she had learned as a child - the words that most of us remember.
It is a good truth to live by; however, it is only a half truth. And, hearing only half of a great truth, can leave us all coming up short. I wonder about the people who have labored over feelings of guilt when they felt they had nothing to give, or nothing nearly as special as the person down the street.
Maybe it's time to take another look at the words, "It is better to give than receive."
In the Gospel of Mark, Chapter 7, he tells us: "they brought to him (Jesus) a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him." Mark doesn't tell us who "they" are but we can probably assume they were family or friends of the deaf man. Also, Mark does not tell us how many people accompanied the man. It could have been as few as two, but could have been many more - Mark tells us that Jesus took him aside in private away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue.
After the man was healed, Jesus ordered them to tell no one but they were astounded and zealously proclaimed it to everyone as they went.
Now, here is the question we are left with: In this story, who gave to whom, and who received? We know that Jesus gave healing to the deaf mute and the man, in turn, received the gift of hearing and speech.
Could the act of giving and receiving really be that simple, or can we find some blurring between the lines here? It seems to me that there were a lot of givers in this story and, likewise, there were many more who received.
First, we have the friends and family of the deaf mute who wished for him the precious gift of hearing and speech. And did not they, who asked Jesus to heal, also receive by the act of having their petition granted? What about all the people the witnesses proclaimed the miracle to, did they not also receive the gift of hope?
And what about God? Is He not the one who gave the gift through Jesus, His chosen son? Did not God, who gave the gift, also receive the precious gift of His children's faith?
It's not such a simple thing to determine who really gives and who receives - but it is certain that there can be no gift given with no one to receive it. Likewise, there can be no receivers if there is no one to give. In James' letter to the twelve tribes in the dispersion, he writes: "Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change."
Shadows have a way of distorting the truth of things which come between the brilliant light of the giver - notably God, the Father of Lights. and those in need of the gift.
But, here James is saying that the gifts from the Father of Lights, produces no variation or shadow due to change. With God there is no distortion of the act of giving nor the gift itself.
But as we stand facing the light, we ourselves do leave a shadow. That shadow has not changed the gift or the act of giving but it does change in its' perceived form according to the individual needs of those who are close enough to see the shadow.
We all produce shadows when we stand between the brilliance of the Father of Lights and someone in need. We cannot make a shadow in a dark room - in a room without God. Will you make a shadow today?
Amen