parables

12
Aug
2020

The House of Disposable Souls

A Fable

by David Sellnow


“In the land of spirit beings, there was a house that gathered souls.They sought out souls that were perfectly spherical. Any souls they discovered that were out of round or oddly shaped were quickly discarded. They sought out souls that were unstained and unblemished. Any souls they discovered that had bumps or bruises were passed over and rejected. They sought out souls that were shiny and glowed in a preferred range of colors. Any souls they discovered that were mottled or blurry or too dark in appearance were left behind and ignored.

“Over time, the spirits gathered a small collection of souls that they protected and preserved in their house. If any of the souls developed inconsistencies or loss of clarity or discoloration or dulling, those souls were removed from the house. The spirits would seek other, more impeccable specimens, as replacements. The house became known as The House of Disposable Souls.

“Elsewhere in the land of spirit beings, there was another house that gathered souls. They searched for souls of all shapes and sizes. They included souls that were imperfect, unpolished, irregular. They valued souls that were rough to the touch as well as those that were smooth. They recognized special worth in souls that were differently shaped and of variegated colors. They saw deep potential in all souls they encountered. They labored to help each soul radiate its own unique sheen, coaxing out natural hues and luster. If souls they found or souls in their care suffered cracks or were damaged, the spirits applied balm to heal the wounds. They sought to refresh and develop each soul, nurturing strength as well as tenderness. The house became known as the House of Renewable Souls.”

After concluding the story, the teacher asked her listeners: “Which of these houses cared for souls as the Creator of souls intended?”

The listeners knew they had growing to do in their own attitudes and ministries.


Scriptures to consider:

  • “The Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10).
  • “There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance. … I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (Luke 15:7,10).
  • ”Here is my servant, whom I have chosen. … He will not break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick” (Matthew 12:18, 20).
  • ”Consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:26-30).


Prayer:

Creator of all, teach us to value each human soul in the same spirit as Christ our Savior, who said, “Anyone who comes to me I will never drive away” (John 6:37). Amen.

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Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Posted by David Sellnow
27
Dec
2019

Springtime thoughts

Originally published on The Electric Gospel on March 21, 2015.  March 20th of that year was the first day of spring … inspiring some springtime thoughts for this blog.

Nurturing Growth

by David Sellnow

Spring has sprung … and I’m reminded of all that’s amiss in my yard.  The boulevard is more dirt than grass.  There are bare spots and weeds throughout the main lawn.  The bushes in back and hedges out front are part dead, part unruly and overgrown.  The flowerbeds never got raked out properly before winter came; they are mucky mess.   Much must be done to get things growing and going in the right direction.

When our yards need tending, we tend to labor with springlike eagerness.  Do we work at relationships with human beings with as much energy?

Maybe a connection with a coworker is gnarled and thorny.   Rather than avoiding contact, might you pay more attention to each other and prune away places where you get twisted around each other?

Maybe roots with family have gone dormant and your love has browned.  What watering can you do to rejuvenate family ties and green things up?

Maybe you’re a teacher and a student’s performance has been poor – not much is budding or blooming.  Will you let that student wither away or do all you can to prod her, cultivate her interest, nurture learning and understanding?

Jesus once told this parable (Luke 13:6-9):

“A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any.  So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’ 

 “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it.  If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”

Jesus’ words point specifically to our spiritual condition and the Lord’s patience in dealing with us.  God grant us the patience to be nurturing and supportive with our fellow human beings – first and foremost in regard to spiritual growth, but also in the day-to-day aspects of our relationships as the Spirit strives to awaken new life in all that we do.

Posted by kyriesellnow
24
Dec
2019

Be liberal with your love

Originally posted on the Electric Gospel on July 3, 2018.

Last year for Independence Day, I posted a message titled, “To Change a Nation, You Must Change Souls.”   I thought I’d post something again this year for the national holiday — something that says a little bit about how the culture of politics often differs from how hearts are moved by faith.

Feel free to share this post with others.

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Be Liberal with your Love

by David Sellnow

I want to be liberal, and hope you will be too.  I’m not talking about political liberalism, but the kind of liberality that every Christian will want to espouse.  Our hearts go out to all those in need of spiritual guidance or physical assistance.  Our gifts will flow freely, liberally, in order to bring needed benefits to them.

I fear that some within the Christian community have so adopted the doctrines of political conservatism that they become unwilling to practice liberal Christian kindness, which is eager to assist those in need.  A church member—a dear, dedicated lady—argued against giving aid to struggling families.  Our congregation was providing them with vouchers to the community food bank.  Bear in mind, we paid pennies per pound for the food, and our annual expense for this charitable effort was less than one percent of our congregational budget.  It wasn’t the amount of our donations that sparked this woman’s objection.  It was the principle of the matter.  She was firmly convinced that helping the poor encouraged helplessness and dependency.  This can sometimes be the case, but is not always so. The Bible writer James described a scenario in which an individual is truly in need of help.  You can’t tell him he should budget his income better; he has no income.  You can’t say he should work harder; he has no job and no prospects.  The person James pictured is literally naked and absolutely lacking.  He’s got nothing.  He’s totally helpless.  Will you help him … or will you pass by on the other side of the street?  James’ brother, Jesus our Savior, told a parable that warned against behavior like that.  Jesus’ parable pictured a priest and a Levite passing by on the other side of the road when they encountered one of their countrymen who had been robbed and beaten and left for dead (cf. Luke 10:30-37).  Being a true neighbor means helping anyone that you see in a position of need—as the good Samaritan in Jesus’ parable exemplified.

Along with our inaction toward neighbors in need in the communities where we live, we have allowed ourselves to fall into similar attitudes globally.  We see Third World inhabitants as the concern of international policymakers, not of personal concern to us.  We fear foreigners as threats to our jobs through outsourcing, or we want them as markets for our products through exporting.  We fail to remember that they are, first of all, people.  They deserve our evangelistic concern and Christian compassion.  If love for others—including strangers and foreigners—is not in our hearts, can we say the love of God is in us?  “He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love. … If a man says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who doesn’t love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen” (1 John 4:8,20)?

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“Be liberal with your love” is excerpted from the book, Faith Lives in Our Actions: God’s Message in James Chapter 2.  Get the eBook for your Kindle, or you can download the free Kindle app to read on any device

Posted by Electric Gospel