There’s a scene I like in the movie, Jesse Stone: Lost In Paradise. Police Chief Jesse Stone (played perfectly by Tom Selleck) tries to mend a broken relationship ... but she’s frosty.
AMANDA: “Chief Stone.”
JESSE: “— Jesse.”
AMANDA: “Mr. Fish is waiting for you, Chief Stone.”
JESSE: “I know our last meeting didn't go very well, And I see you're still upset. I'm sorry.”
AMANDA: “I questioned your intentions. You asked me why. And I said I've kissed a few frogs in my day. Are you a frog, Jesse?”
JESSE: “I don't think so. Perhaps you'd let me make it up to you over a cup of coffee.”
AMANDA: “There's no education in the second kick of a mule.”
JESSE: “I see.”
(Key pad beeping)
(Door clicking open)
JESSE: “I'm ... very sorry, Amanda.”
AMANDA: “... ... ... Just coffee.”
What do you think? Should Amanda take Mark Twain’s advice about the mule kick? Or should she take a chance, betting Jesse’s not just another frog with a bogus claim to royalty? In romance, we always want them to be good people. It is our hope they will finally find what they’ve been looking for. But ... experience can be a cruel teacher, and some of us are slow to learn.
That seems to be a theme running in this week’s scriptures. God’s people were supposed to be in a committed relationship with God ... but, over and over, they just kept being drawn away to false gods.
They had spent a lot of years “kissing frogs” before God had Moses lead them out of Egypt. In fact, they kissed frogs for so long, they came to believe that was how things were supposed to be. Perhaps we can understand how they were so easily drawn to those bad boys. It’s a hard habit to break. Still, you have to wonder. It’s not like they did these things in a vacuum. God kept giving them reasons to know that He was the real deal. And, He kept showing how those false gods never delivered; that, at best, they were just frogs claiming a kiss would transform them into princes.
Hopefully, we can read these passages and learn the lessons they teach. There’s no need to subject ourselves to a bunch of lies and liars trying to take God’s place in our lives. We should be able to lean into the teachings of Jesus and the example of the Apostle Paul in this week’s selections.
Because, after all, the saying is true: there really is nothing new to learn in the second kick of a mule.
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PHOTO: Adobe Spark Post
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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Proper 19 (24) (September 15, 2019)
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/texts.php?id=279
Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28
Psalm 14
Exodus 32:7-14
Psalm 51:1-10
1 Timothy 1:12-17
Luke 15:1-10
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DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast meets Friday morning at Our Breakfast Place (formerly Egg and I). The hour starts at 8:00 and includes food, fellowship, scripture, and a robust exchange of ideas. Plus, there’s always the chance of some possibly inappropriate laughter.
Join us.
Steve
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