04/09/2025
Jesus Hears A Who
Few people know that Horton Hears A Who comes from the 25th Chapter of Matthew. Few people know that it is the Jesus story in a nutshell.
Jesus hears the cries of the Whos, but no one else can. They were either too small, or too insignificant. In fact, no one really tried all that hard.
And when Jesus made a stand to protect the Whos--to insist that they were people, no matter how small or how different, Jesus is rejected, imprisoned, and threatened within an inch of his life. And then the tiniest Who in Whoville joined the other voices saying, “We’re here, we’re here,” and the people finally understood that they were in fact, here, and in need of care and protection.
Jesus says to us this morning, look around you and pause. If you open your ears to listen and tune your hearts to me—you will discover a whole group of people that everyone else has overlooked. They are my people, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant. And if they are my people then it means that they are your people. In fact, they might as well be me.
Now that you have heard them, now that you know who they are, you have a chance to stitch back a little tiny corner of the cosmos. You have a chance to be like God and continue to set things right—one act of mercy at a time.
So may we all.
Archived Posts
Prayer Changes Things
Here is a transcript of the prayer I prayed at the end of yesterday’s sermon.
Optimism, Faith, and Hope:
Practical Steps For Increasing All Three
Here are some practical, spiritual, and relational ways to grow faith, hope and optimism:
Listening Heart
It’s kind of crazy when you think about it. Wisdom in the Bible is all about listening. Of course it makes sense that wisdom would start with listening to God, to God’s law and commandments, as well as the promptings and leadings of the Holy Spirit.
Here are some quotes that
didn’t make it into Sunday’s sermon.
(But it doesn’t mean that they don’t offer real insight into the power of risk over the fear of failure...)
Such A Rich Passage (Luke 19:1-10)
I reflected a lot on the passage about Zacchaeus because it has been written off as “been there, read that, little guy in a tree.” But it is so rich in getting to the heart of what it means to be saved by grace through faith—to live our lives out of gratitude rather than obligation.
The Power of Presence
This last Sunday I had so much more to share than time to share it. The last Emotional Management Technique was to stay present in the process. Just as Jesus stayed with the woman who was judged and found guilty by the angry crowd, we stay by our children and our friends, especially when they need us the most. Here a couple of examples...
What’s In A Benediction?
Last Sunday I used one of my favorite benedictions.
It was inspired by a saying from about ten years ago: