Perspectives by Rev. Sue McCullough

June 6, 2012 Editor Opinion

 

Sometimes It Just Works

On November 13, 2011, the Gospel story that was shared with the people of my parish was the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30). 

Just to refresh your memory, here’s a synopsis of the parable: there was a landowner who had business away from his land. He entrusted three of his workers with some money (talents). A talent is the equivalent of 60 mina and one mina is equal to 60 shekels. . . I’ll let you do the math. At any rate, one worker was left in care of five talents, one was responsible for two and the last, one talent. When the landowner returned he asked for an accounting of the talents. Two of the workers had been bold and ended up doubling the money left with them. The person with one talent didn’t do anything with it and just handed the money back to his boss.  Things didn’t turn out so well for him.

I decided that I would conduct a small experiment that Sunday. I called three people from each of the congregations that heard the story. I gave an envelope to each of the three people. I upped the ante a bit and in one envelope there was $10, in another $5 and the third $2. 

I told the people who received the envelopes that as the “landowner” I was “going away” for six months, and when I returned there would be an accounting of the “talents” that they had been given. So, I left nine envelopes with a total of $51 to be cared for by these trustworthy “workers.”

This is not the first time I have ever conducted this experiment. But I must say that it is the first time when the people who received the “talents” actually grasped what I was attempting to do. 

There have been people who were paralyzed with fear wondering what they should do with the money. There have been people who simply ignored what was asked of them and kept the money. But these “stewards” of my money actually managed to figure it out. 

Many people believe that the story is about money. Many believe it’s a story about talents as we understand the term today. 

I believe that the core of the story is about relationships. It’s about the relationship that the workers had with their employer. 

Metaphorically it’s a story about the relationship that we have with God. If we use what God gives us with the best of intentions, it shows that we want to be in relationship with God. If we do nothing with the gifts that God gives us, then we tend to ignore not only our gifts, but God as well.

When we had the accounting of the “talents” on May 13, 2012, I was so impressed. I felt that I needed to share it with you.

My initial $51 was returned and along with that there was $496. The stories that were shared were varied. Each story, as it was told, involved telling about the person being in relationship with me but more importantly, they thought about their relationship with God.

That’s what it was about – being in relationship with God and using what they had been given to the glory of God and the benefit of the world.

The Dundas County Food Bank received from this “landowner” a donation of $547 thanks to the faithful relationships of the “workers” of my parish.

Sometimes, it just works!!!

Cheers,

Sue+

Rev. Sue McCullough

Anglican Parish of Morrisburg, Iroquois & Riverside Heights

 

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Perspectives by Rev. Clarence Witten

April 29, 2015 Editor Opinion

 

A Farewell Perspective

We’ll be driving down the Trans-Canada soon on our way to serve a church in B.C. As we go, we’ll be taking tons of great memories with us; actually we’ll be taking lots of South Dundas with us.

From the moment we arrived here late one February evening, we knew we were in a special place. Not only had our good church people cleaned the house we bought from top to bottom, but they’d unpacked the moving van, set up all our furniture, and even made the beds for our family of four!

 Since that day, we have been touched by how friendly and neighbourly the people of this community are. Like the time my neighbour across the street let me run over a hundred feet of my extension chords from his generator to my sump pump in a power outage. Or the time one half of my maple tree split away and came crashing down while we were on vacation, and I came home to only a few small branches. All the rest was cut up and taken care of by another dear neighbour.

Mostly we’ve just appreciated all the good ‘salt of the earth’ type people we’ve rubbed shoulders with here. Like at South Dundas Soccer or at my Tuesday night hockey. Or the many business owners and trades people who we’ve dealt with. Just good people. People who will be hard to replace, like a carpenter who consistently goes the second mile, or a plumber whose service is amazing, or a mechanic who just treats you right.

South Dundas’ greatest asset is its people, but there’s so much more that we’ve enjoyed like its beauty, history, and of course the St. Lawrence. I don’t think we realize how unique it is to have so many beaches, parks, and access points along the river. I have spent countless hours up our road at Duncan Park. It’s a gem.

It will be difficult to say good-bye as we end our ministry here at the end of May. I’ve been blessed to serve a wonderful church. My wife has enjoyed (usually) driving a school bus for most of our time here. Our children attended the first 12 years of their schooling here and have made some super friends.

So hopefully you can see why I say that we’ll be taking much more with us down the highway than just our stuff. We’ll be taking something of this community. And as we move on I hope that we also leave something behind. More than just the stuff we’ve given away. I hope that we’ve had an impact. 

It’s my hope that some of us have come to see their need to know God’s love and the salvation that’s available in Jesus. Nothing would thrill me more than that we’ve left behind people who have come to know Jesus or have grown closer to him. 

Whether it was through the Perspectives articles that I’ve written, the work done with Love South Dundas or my work through Community Christian Reformed Church, when all is said and done, nothing matters more in life and for eternity than that we come to receive Christ as our Saviour and Lord.

Thanks for being a fantastic community to live in these past 14 years. Thanks for being part of our lives and thanks for letting us be part of yours.

[…]

No Picture
Opinion

Perspectives by Rev. Norine Gullons

December 21, 2011 Editor Opinion

 

I was visiting a senior member of my parish this week. She told me that she has felt blessed her whole life. I asked her why she felt that way. 

She replied that no matter what was going on in her family, either good news or bad news, that they stuck tight together through that time. A good  philosophy for any type of family.

Our compassion for people in the world around us is an important human value. 

Perhaps Christmas time provokes us to do this more than any other time of the year. We reach out to others to offer them hope.

We remember those who have experienced a loss in their family over the past year. We visit the lonely, and the ill and we help out those who need food, shelter and clothing. We may donate our time, money and talents to an agency that needs support to help others.  

Our “good will” extends out from us as we reach into ourselves to be more compassionate toward others.

Perhaps it is because we acknowledge that we have been deeply blessed in our own lives.

Although we as Christians no longer wait for Jesus Christ in the physical form of an infant, He is still the source of our hope. 

As Christians we can look forward to the future because the baby in the manger was and still is, the promise of good will and hope and peace on earth. 

May God bless you and yours this Christmas season and may Hope and Joy lead you into 2012.

[…]

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