[media presentation below] GospelThink Tuesday, January 16 MARK 2:23-28 I point out that people are more important than any law that is set up for the common good. Prayerthoughts a. Our Sabbath day is Sunday. In general, have I kept holy our Sabbath Day by spending time with prayer and with family?   b. Jesus could see that an exception was given in the past to accommodate people, showing that people were more important than law. Have I shown a sincere love for all people in my immediate circle? How can I be better at it? c. Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath. What does the statement mean to me? d. In general, what does Jesus mean when He says that the Sabbath was made for man? e. My prayerthoughts….   Today I will read Hebrews, chapter 6, and write an important thought from it. Some Thoughts on the Liturgy  THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD “RUSHES” UPON US  + The historical book of the first book of Samuel of the Bible from which the first reading is taken uses a phrase in English that captures what we want to happen in our spiritual lives           – speaking of what happened when Samuel anointed David, the book says that “the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon” him                      – we want the Spirit of the Lord to rush upon us in our lives  + We believe that we have received the Spirit of the Lord—what might be called in our theology, “the Holy Spirit”—we have received that Spirit in our Baptism, and therefore we have the possibility of eternal life with him           – but receiving and working with the Spirit of the Lord extends into our lives right now                     – and a couple things come from these readings today as we think about that:  + 1 – from the thoughts of the first reading,           – it is obvious that the Lord singled out David, choosing him directly to be the king of the Israelites, even though Saul was still alive,                      – we believe that in a sense the Lord singles us out as individuals chosen for the special life of a Christian                      – each one of us is a chosen one by God                                – chosen for an eternal reward                                          – but at the same time, chosen for the obligation of living after the manner that Jesus suggests that we live  + 2 – a most important part of how to live after the manner that Jesus suggests is given in the Gospel           – Jesus is making a radical statement about the Sabbath saying that human needs are more important than the law set up by humans                      – in terms of the situation of the Gospel, satisfying hungry human beings is more important than any man-made law                                – this is an important part of Jesus’ doctrine—maybe the most important part—                                          – people are even more important than any specific law set up for the common good  + By the fact of being chosen to live as a Christian, you and I have the Spirit of the Lord rushing upon us in this life and in the next           – that is both a privilege and an obligation. MEDIA PRESENTATION Song: “Shivers” — Ed Sheeran DANCING TILL THE SUNLIGHT CRACKS The Gospel LUKE 5:24-26 Jesus said to the man who was paralyzed, “I say to you, rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.” He stood up immediately before them, picked up what he had been lying on, and went home, glorifying God. Then astonishment seized them all and they glorified God, and, struck with awe, they said, “We have seen incredible things today.”

Gospelthink: When you believe in me, you will see incredible things. Do I recognize that the Lord has given me unbelievable things because of my faith?

“I took an arrow to the heart. I never kissed a mouth that tastes like yours—strawberries and then something more. I want it all. Lipstick on my guitar, fill up the engine, we can drive real far, go dancing underneath the stars. I wanna be that guy, I wanna kiss your eyes, I wanna drink that smile, I wanna feel like my soul’s on fire. I love it when you do it like that, and when you’re close up, give me the shivers. You wanna dance till the sunlight cracks, and when they say the party’s over, then we’ll bring it right back.”

It is not too difficult to get into the minds of the people that Jesus cured. Their lives were not happy before they met Him. In fact, there were no doubt many difficulties that their ailments caused. The man who was paralyzed for some reason in Luke’s Gospel could not do anything on his own, and had to rely on the generosity of others to help him. Suddenly, his whole life changed, bringing about good things for him, and astonishment for the people who witnessed the miracle. The man expressed it by glorifying God, perhaps keeping his stretcher as a remembrance of the good feelings that he had. There was no doubt a deep love for Jesus as he lived the rest of his life. Perhaps one of the things about feelings that we should concentrate on is that feelings are just that—feelings. They may not even match the realities of life, but we are experiencing them—that is for sure. And so, what must happen is that we control them a little. If the feelings are good and make us feel good, we have to put them into proper perspective, and realize that life will go on. Likewise, the bad feelings must be put into some type of perspective—some general view of what is going on in our lives—and also realize that life will go on. That is, in both cases, we have to work with our feelings, understand why we are feeling them at this particular time, and then go on with life, not allowing them to be such a major force in our lives, but controlling them so that we choose what we want our lives to be. Ed Sheeran’s song is a love song, of course, and certainly the feelings that he has toward his fiancee are love feelings. He is very much in love. Of course, she must respond if the love is to last and in the video of the song, she does. When a man or woman loves another, whether romantic or otherwise, it will mean great feelings, good feelings that will be expressed in various ways. The man that Jesus cured had a good feeling about what happened to him. His expression of the feeling was to glorify God. Our reaction to the good feelings that happen to us ought to be one of helping others to see our joy, and share it with them in a good way, maybe even by dancing with them.

PRAYER Good and gracious God, Your Son gave many people reason to have good feelings in their lives. Continue to give us the opportunity to turn to Your Son, and then show our feelings with a deeper love toward ourselves and others. Be with us, we pray.

+++++ GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT Theme: To love someone is to have strong feelings for him/her. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 1. What are some incredible things that we have seen in the lives of others? 2. Text analysis: “Lipstick on my guitar.” What do you think he means? 3. Why is dancing a good way to express our concern for others? 4. Why do people often express their good feelings by doing things that are not good? 5. Why do people tend to dwell too much on negative happenings in their lives? 6. What are some good ways to share our good feelings with others? 7. What does the song “Shivers” teach young people?