Reflection for the 8th Week after Pentecost, 2022
Scriptures: Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23; Luke 12: 13-21
Key Verse: “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” (Luke 12:15)
We have a rich passage from Luke 12:13-21 for this week. Although I know this passage well, the phrase ‘guard against’ caught my attention this time. Have you guarded anyone or anything? In our lives, we all have guarded someone or something in the same way as we also have guarded against someone or something. Jesus asked his followers to guard against all kinds of greed. What can this greed look like?
We guard love, loyalty, trust, or faithfulness to keep our relationship. We guard for our humanity like dignity, freedom, compassion, or equality for a better world. We guard our cultures, traditions, beliefs, or rituals to give a sense of identity. We guard our leadership roles to have a sense of fulfillment. We also guard our material assets like our houses, livestock, cars, or any possessions to create a sense of security. However, when we go too far to the point of hoarding relationships, leadership roles, material assets, or elevating a human race more than others, we see greed for self-righteousness, self-entitlement, and self-indulgence. That is what Jesus warns us to guard against.
When we have a hard time letting go of our own disappointment, anger, hatred, grief, or pride, we risk losing a precious relationship that we have been guarding for. When certain traditions, beliefs, or rituals no longer help build a life-giving community, the decline of the community happens eventually. Or when we don’t invest in a leadership pipeline in our organization, then we shouldn’t be surprised to see talented people leaving or burning out.
So, let me share with you my own guarding story. I can never forget the first refrigerator I bought for myself. Right before coming to the States to study, I gave away all of my belongings but didn’t feel like giving away the refrigerator. It was just a refrigerator, right? Not for me at the time. It was like my baby, the first cute refrigerator I bought with my hard earned money. And it happened that my brother needed it so I asked him to use it and keep it for me. Then on one of my visits back to Taiwan, he told me he gave it to one of his friends. So, I questioned angrily, “Why didn’t you ask me or tell me before giving it away?” Then he commented that it was just a refrigerator. And he didn’t think I would need it by the time I finished my studies. It turned into a childish argument. I couldn’t understand why I got so upset over the refrigerator. After a couple of hours of silence after that unnecessary argument, I said to him, “I trusted you. I trusted that you would have told me before giving it away. You are my brother.” The moment I said the word trust, I realized what and why I was guarding. I was guarding my relationship with my brother, and trust matters the most.
“Vanity of vanities, says the Teacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity” from Ecclesiastes 1:2 What a wise teaching that we all should keep in our hearts while guarding anything that we think matters to us. But do they matter to God who is love and who is just?
Last Thursday, I had a great conversation with 3 colleagues over lunch. We reflected together on our own personal experiences of the awareness of prejudices and biases. Even though each of us belongs to different denominations and have very different ethnic backgrounds, we came to very similar conclusions in terms of what we have accomplished so far as people of faith and also what we have failed to do. One value that kept being mentioned throughout our conversation was intentional building and having reciprocal relationships with all people, not just in our heads or in words.
Transformation begins the moment we step out of our comfort zone to meet someone who is very different from us and intentionally build authentic relationships beyond saying, “Hi, good morning." "Hi, my name is Jade." Or "Hi, it’s good to see you again.” We often miss great opportunities to go deeper, to take interest in others so that we can have the honor to care and love one another as the ambassadors of our Lord Jesus Christ. Transformation also begins the moment we are clear on what and why we are guarding for or guarding against. May we together be the extensions of God’s Kingdom, a Kingdom of love and justice. AMEN.
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