Gentleness and Humility
The servant said to Laban, “I am Abraham’s servant. The Lord has greatly blessed my master, and he has become wealthy; he has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male and female slaves, camels and donkeys. And Sarah my master’s wife bore a son to my master when she was old; and he has given him all that he has. My master made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live; but you shall go to my father’s house, to my kindred, and get a wife for my son.’
“I came today to the spring, and said, ‘O Lord, the God of my master Abraham, if now you will only make successful the way I am going! I am standing here by the spring of water; let the young woman who comes out to draw, to whom I shall say, “Please give me a little water from your jar to drink,” and who will say to me, “Drink, and I will draw for your camels also” —let her be the woman whom the Lord has appointed for my master’s son.’
“Before I had finished speaking in my heart, there was Rebekah coming out with her water jar on her shoulder; and she went down to the spring, and drew. I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ She quickly let down her jar from her shoulder, and said, ‘Drink, and I will also water your camels.’ So I drank, and she also watered the camels. Then I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him.’ So I put the ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her arms. Then I bowed my head and worshiped the Lord, and blessed the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me by the right way to obtain the daughter of my master’s kinsman for his son. Now then, if you will deal loyally and truly with my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so that I may turn either to the right hand or to the left.”
And they called Rebekah, and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” She said, “I will.” So they sent away their sister Rebekah and her nurse along with Abraham’s servant and his men. And they blessed Rebekah and said to her, “May you, our sister, become thousands of myriads; may your offspring gain possession of the gates of their foes.” Then Rebekah and her maids rose up, mounted the camels, and followed the man; thus the servant took Rebekah, and went his way. Now Isaac had come from Beer-lahai-roi, and was settled in the Negeb. Isaac went out in the evening to walk in the field; and looking up, he saw camels coming. And Rebekah looked up, and when she saw Isaac, she slipped quickly from the camel, and said to the servant, “Who is the man over there, walking in the field to meet us?” The servant said, “It is my master.” So she took her veil and covered herself. And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent. He took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.
Genesis 24:34-38,
42-49, 58-67
Rebecca and Eliezer at the Well
MARATTA,
Carlo
1655-57
Indianapolis
Museum of Art
Indianapolis,
Indiana
United
States
http://collection.imamuseum.org/artwork/41166/
This
painting depicts the Old Testament story of Eliezer, sent by Abraham to find a
wife for his son, Isaac. He meets the future bride, Rebecca, at a well outside
a distant village and rewards her kindness in giving him water with a gift of
jewels.
Maratti
was the most successful and influential painter in Rome during the second half
of the 17th century. He was trained in the studio of Andrea Sacchi, whose works
epitomize the classicizing tendency in late baroque painting. Like Sacchi,
Maratti adhered to the classical principle of composing pictorial narratives
with as few figures as possible, rendering them with grandeur and clarity.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebecca_and_Eliezer_at_the_Well
I have three precious things which I hold fast
and prize.
The first is gentleness; the second is
frugality; the third is humility,
which keeps me from putting myself before
othere.
Be gentle and you can be bold;
be frugal and you can be liberal;
avoid putting yourself before others
and you can become a leader among men.
~ Lao Tze
While traveling our separated roads through life,
we are also either road signs or potholes on the roads of
others.
~ Eugene J. Martin
Holly
and Jeff Brekke, Jim Kreider (with a rainbow in the background)
Holly
and Jeff hosted a Jamaican Dinner for the Communications Committee.
Conversation
around the fireplace.
It
was Laurie Davis’s birthday.
The
next morning Jeff Brekke, along with Al Stecklein, was our speaker at Rotary.
Jeff and Al were both employed by the Gates
Corporation (formerly Gates Rubber)
in senior global roles; both became Global
Aftermarket Presidents.
President
Larry Caine presided over his first Rotary Club meeting
of
his term as president.
My body has certainly wandered a good deal,
but I have an uneasy suspicion that my mind
has not wandered enough.
~ Noel Coward
July 9, 2017 Fifth Sunday
after Pentecost; Proper 9
Jesus said to the crowd, “To what will I
compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and
calling to one another,
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon’; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”
At that time Jesus said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
Agnus Day, by James Wetzstein
Agnus Day appears with the permission
of www.agnusday.org
Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67
Psalm 45:10-17 or Song of Solomon 2:8-13 or
Zechariah 9:9-12 with Psalm 145:8-14
Romans 7:15-25a
Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
…