Seeing Clearly
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"Seeing Clearly" by Keith Wagner
"Close Encounters" by Keith Wagner
Seeing Clearly
by Keith Wagner
Mark 10:46-52
In our story, Bartimaeus was determined to get help from Jesus. The first time he asked for help he was told to keep quiet by the crowd. He was a blind, a beggar, an outcast in society and therefore not important. But, he cried out a second time, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me?” Jesus heard his cry and asked them to bring Bartimaeus to him.
Bartimaeus believed that Jesus could help him. He had faith in his power and grace to restore his sight. But believing wasn’t enough. Bartimaeus had to do something. He had to call out to Jesus and ask for his help.
We live in a society that is becoming more and more automated. Whenever you try to get help you have to listen to a menu of options. Then you have to enter your account number and go through a process of selecting the correct options so you can connect with a real live person.
One time I called our cell phone provider to make a change in our service. After about ten minutes of entering numbers I could not find the right option. Finally I entered “0” and got a live person in customer service. A few minutes into our conversation she gave me an 800 number that I could call. At that point I became very determined. I said, “I have been entering numbers for the last 15 minutes and your system keeps me going in circles. All I want to do is make a simple change. I don’t want to listen to any more automated options. I realize my call is being monitored for quality control purposes but your system is not making this easy for me!” The woman then said, “What exactly do you need? I can help you.” I told her what I needed and finally it was taken care of. Sometimes it takes determination to achieve a goal.
When we see clearly, things like pride, prejudice, selfishness or indifference will no longer have a hold on us. But seeing is only the first step. It may also be necessary for a little humility. When Bartimaeus couldn’t get Jesus’ attention because of the indifference of the crowd, he raised his voice “and cried out all the more.” He had to humble himself and swallow his pride.
About two decades ago I had an appointment with my Eye Doctor and he informed me that I needed bifocals. “What?” I anxiously asked, “My eyes can’t be that bad.” It was a rude awakening for me since my eyes had deteriorated with age. Admitting this was not easy. I have worn glasses all my life but to wear lenses with little boxes in them didn’t appeal to me at all.
At first I was unwilling to hear the news that my eyes had gotten progressively worse. A few tests however enabled me to see that it was definitely time for a lens change. My eye doctor told me about something called, “no-line” bifocals. That meant you couldn’t see lines in my glasses and no one would know the difference. Also, my new glasses were designed to let me read, see close and see faraway. Instead of bifocals I now have no-line trifocals. The new technology has not only helped me to see more clearly, I am now wearing glasses that are less cumbersome.
Sometimes we have to overcome our pride and humble ourselves to see clearly. I’m sure it wasn’t easy for Bartimaeus to reach out for help since he was an outcast. Fortunately, he humbled himself and his sight was restored.
* * *
Close Encounters
by Keith Wagner
Psalm 34:1-8 (19-22)
The psalmist states, “I sought the Lord and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.” In response to his predicament David praised God for delivering him from a near death situation. I believe that we usually attribute our being saved from dangerous situations as good luck. Rarely do we acknowledge that God was watching over us. It’s only in retrospect that we give God the credit for being with us in a dangerous situation.
Over the years I have had several near death situations which enhanced my faith. I will share two of them because they have stayed with me during my life time. I look to them as watershed moments where God was definitely with me.
In 1971 I was in the Gulf of Tonkin on the USS Saratoga. I was a supply officer with the rank of Ensign. It was night and the skies were dark and the seas were rough. We had come alongside a supply ship for underway replenishment. The two ships were connected with span wire rigs which are used to shuttle supplies from one ship to the other. Each ship holds a steady course until the replenishment is complete. Since we were experiencing rough weather the two ships were rocking side to side and up and down. This put a tremendous amount of tension on the wires.
The wires or cables are about one inch in diameter and at the ends there is a brass fitting called a spud. The spud is about four inches long and also about an inch in diameter.
I was standing in the hangar bay observing my men who were retrieving supplies on pallets from the elevator. Once the supplies were dropped on the elevator my men would pick them up with a fork lift and take them inside the hangar bay where they were staged.
I was standing next to an F-4 Phantom jet which was parked about thirty yards from the elevator. It was in the hangar bay for repairs. Suddenly the words, “Emergency breakaway?” were shouted on the loud speaker. That meant the two ships had to separate due to heavy seas. Cables began flying around and I heard a loud “Zing” near my left ear. Sailors hit the deck and men were running in different directions for safety. I too immediately fell to the ground. When things settled down I stood up. I glanced over my left shoulder and a spud was lodged in the F-4 a few inches from where I had been standing. It narrowly missed my head. Miraculously no one was injured including me.
That experience has always reminded me of God’s saving presence in that dangerous situation.
In November 2013, I was driving home from my church in Central Ohio. It was raining and just about dusk. I was following another car which was about 50 yards in front of me. We were both going about 50 mph in a 55 mph zone. As we approached a light up ahead I noted it was green. The car in front of me passed through the intersection and I was next. When I got in the middle of the intersection I glanced to my right and there was a pick-up truck heading right for me. Before I could react I heard a loud “boom” and everything went dark. The next thing I remember I was sitting in my Civic which was now faced in the opposite direction and not running.
I was numb but realized I was still alive. Amazingly the cab had not been damaged although the front end was totally crushed. My airbags had deployed and there was a poof of dust which I thought was smoke. Believing that my car was on fire I grabbed the door handle but could not open the door. The passenger door was jammed too. I remembered that in a Honda, the window can still be lowered even after the engine shuts down. I lowered the passenger window down since mine was stuck and climbed out the window.
A witness to the accident invited me to get in his car since it was raining. I didn’t appear to be injured although my neck and back were beginning to hurt. When the police arrived they determined that the pickup truck had run a red light and as he passed in front of me I hit him on the passenger side. A witnesses said that the truck was lifted in the air by the impact and rolled completely over. Fortunately the driver of the pickup was not severely injured. Apparently he had suffered some sort of blackout due to low sugar.
Both vehicles were totaled. The fact that I walked away from that accident once again affirmed that God was watching over me. As the psalmist said, “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
Rev. Dr. Keith Wagner is the pastor of St. John's UCC in Troy, Ohio. He has served churches in Southwest Ohio for over three decades. He is an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ and has an M.Div. from Methodist Theological School, Delaware, Ohio, and a D.Min. from United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. He has also been an adjunct professor at Edison Community College, Piqua, Ohio. He and his wife, Lin, live in Springfield, Ohio.
*****************************************
StoryShare, October 25, 2015, issue.
Copyright 2015 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
"Seeing Clearly" by Keith Wagner
"Close Encounters" by Keith Wagner
Seeing Clearly
by Keith Wagner
Mark 10:46-52
In our story, Bartimaeus was determined to get help from Jesus. The first time he asked for help he was told to keep quiet by the crowd. He was a blind, a beggar, an outcast in society and therefore not important. But, he cried out a second time, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me?” Jesus heard his cry and asked them to bring Bartimaeus to him.
Bartimaeus believed that Jesus could help him. He had faith in his power and grace to restore his sight. But believing wasn’t enough. Bartimaeus had to do something. He had to call out to Jesus and ask for his help.
We live in a society that is becoming more and more automated. Whenever you try to get help you have to listen to a menu of options. Then you have to enter your account number and go through a process of selecting the correct options so you can connect with a real live person.
One time I called our cell phone provider to make a change in our service. After about ten minutes of entering numbers I could not find the right option. Finally I entered “0” and got a live person in customer service. A few minutes into our conversation she gave me an 800 number that I could call. At that point I became very determined. I said, “I have been entering numbers for the last 15 minutes and your system keeps me going in circles. All I want to do is make a simple change. I don’t want to listen to any more automated options. I realize my call is being monitored for quality control purposes but your system is not making this easy for me!” The woman then said, “What exactly do you need? I can help you.” I told her what I needed and finally it was taken care of. Sometimes it takes determination to achieve a goal.
When we see clearly, things like pride, prejudice, selfishness or indifference will no longer have a hold on us. But seeing is only the first step. It may also be necessary for a little humility. When Bartimaeus couldn’t get Jesus’ attention because of the indifference of the crowd, he raised his voice “and cried out all the more.” He had to humble himself and swallow his pride.
About two decades ago I had an appointment with my Eye Doctor and he informed me that I needed bifocals. “What?” I anxiously asked, “My eyes can’t be that bad.” It was a rude awakening for me since my eyes had deteriorated with age. Admitting this was not easy. I have worn glasses all my life but to wear lenses with little boxes in them didn’t appeal to me at all.
At first I was unwilling to hear the news that my eyes had gotten progressively worse. A few tests however enabled me to see that it was definitely time for a lens change. My eye doctor told me about something called, “no-line” bifocals. That meant you couldn’t see lines in my glasses and no one would know the difference. Also, my new glasses were designed to let me read, see close and see faraway. Instead of bifocals I now have no-line trifocals. The new technology has not only helped me to see more clearly, I am now wearing glasses that are less cumbersome.
Sometimes we have to overcome our pride and humble ourselves to see clearly. I’m sure it wasn’t easy for Bartimaeus to reach out for help since he was an outcast. Fortunately, he humbled himself and his sight was restored.
* * *
Close Encounters
by Keith Wagner
Psalm 34:1-8 (19-22)
The psalmist states, “I sought the Lord and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.” In response to his predicament David praised God for delivering him from a near death situation. I believe that we usually attribute our being saved from dangerous situations as good luck. Rarely do we acknowledge that God was watching over us. It’s only in retrospect that we give God the credit for being with us in a dangerous situation.
Over the years I have had several near death situations which enhanced my faith. I will share two of them because they have stayed with me during my life time. I look to them as watershed moments where God was definitely with me.
In 1971 I was in the Gulf of Tonkin on the USS Saratoga. I was a supply officer with the rank of Ensign. It was night and the skies were dark and the seas were rough. We had come alongside a supply ship for underway replenishment. The two ships were connected with span wire rigs which are used to shuttle supplies from one ship to the other. Each ship holds a steady course until the replenishment is complete. Since we were experiencing rough weather the two ships were rocking side to side and up and down. This put a tremendous amount of tension on the wires.
The wires or cables are about one inch in diameter and at the ends there is a brass fitting called a spud. The spud is about four inches long and also about an inch in diameter.
I was standing in the hangar bay observing my men who were retrieving supplies on pallets from the elevator. Once the supplies were dropped on the elevator my men would pick them up with a fork lift and take them inside the hangar bay where they were staged.
I was standing next to an F-4 Phantom jet which was parked about thirty yards from the elevator. It was in the hangar bay for repairs. Suddenly the words, “Emergency breakaway?” were shouted on the loud speaker. That meant the two ships had to separate due to heavy seas. Cables began flying around and I heard a loud “Zing” near my left ear. Sailors hit the deck and men were running in different directions for safety. I too immediately fell to the ground. When things settled down I stood up. I glanced over my left shoulder and a spud was lodged in the F-4 a few inches from where I had been standing. It narrowly missed my head. Miraculously no one was injured including me.
That experience has always reminded me of God’s saving presence in that dangerous situation.
In November 2013, I was driving home from my church in Central Ohio. It was raining and just about dusk. I was following another car which was about 50 yards in front of me. We were both going about 50 mph in a 55 mph zone. As we approached a light up ahead I noted it was green. The car in front of me passed through the intersection and I was next. When I got in the middle of the intersection I glanced to my right and there was a pick-up truck heading right for me. Before I could react I heard a loud “boom” and everything went dark. The next thing I remember I was sitting in my Civic which was now faced in the opposite direction and not running.
I was numb but realized I was still alive. Amazingly the cab had not been damaged although the front end was totally crushed. My airbags had deployed and there was a poof of dust which I thought was smoke. Believing that my car was on fire I grabbed the door handle but could not open the door. The passenger door was jammed too. I remembered that in a Honda, the window can still be lowered even after the engine shuts down. I lowered the passenger window down since mine was stuck and climbed out the window.
A witness to the accident invited me to get in his car since it was raining. I didn’t appear to be injured although my neck and back were beginning to hurt. When the police arrived they determined that the pickup truck had run a red light and as he passed in front of me I hit him on the passenger side. A witnesses said that the truck was lifted in the air by the impact and rolled completely over. Fortunately the driver of the pickup was not severely injured. Apparently he had suffered some sort of blackout due to low sugar.
Both vehicles were totaled. The fact that I walked away from that accident once again affirmed that God was watching over me. As the psalmist said, “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
Rev. Dr. Keith Wagner is the pastor of St. John's UCC in Troy, Ohio. He has served churches in Southwest Ohio for over three decades. He is an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ and has an M.Div. from Methodist Theological School, Delaware, Ohio, and a D.Min. from United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. He has also been an adjunct professor at Edison Community College, Piqua, Ohio. He and his wife, Lin, live in Springfield, Ohio.
*****************************************
StoryShare, October 25, 2015, issue.
Copyright 2015 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
