Dear friends in Christ, whatever a man experiences, he should learn something from it.  Whether it's doing a hard day's work, or going on a vacation, he should bring something back with him, a lesson, a souvenir of life not bought with money but born out of the day-to-day things he does that makes earthly life what it is.  One of my passions in life is to try to put that lesson into words that I can pass along onto you.  Our Lord Jesus taught with stories.  It still seems the best way.

          I learned two lessons this past week and neither are new or original.  The first is that a broken link can stop everything, and the second is that people are always more important than things.  I re-learned both of these by observation.

          I own a small red motor scooter, and it runs on battery power.  I don't know why, but I have always been fascinated by riding two wheeled vehicles, whether it's a Panterra electric that goes 20 mph or a Harley Davidson that goes 120 (No, I don't have one of those).  This little scooter runs on battery power and is made in China.  It didn't cost much, but then you get what you pay for.  The tiny battery charger that came with it burned out after a few days, so I ordered another one.  Several months later it came so I was eager to get things charged up and get riding.  But the charger wouldn't work.  The power light wouldn't even come on.  I tried several things, but to no avail.  Finally I called the people who sold it, and the man on the phone said, "Oh, you have one of those!"  (Now that's not what you like hearing on the phone.)  But he continued, "That's a Chinese make, so you have to reverse the polarity to make it work.  He told me how to fix it, and, sure enough, the charger worked - for about ten seconds - and then it quit again.  Light on, light off, light on, light off - no work!  So I called him back, described the problem, and he said, "Oh, you have that problem!  One of your batteries is bad.  Your have four batteries and they're linked in a series.  If one of them is bad, none of them will work.  Replace the bad battery and they'll all work."  Again he was right.  I not only found the bad battery, I actually found the exact new one to replace it.  When it was all back together again - and in the right order - which often takes several tries - the charger worked, the batteries charged and away I rode!  Oh what fun it is to ride on a one horse open scooter!  So I learned that if there's a weak link in the chain - or if wires are backwards - the machine won't work.

          Now I suppose some of you are thinking how ridiculous your distinguished pastor would look riding on a red scooter, and why does he have such a silly hobby.  But to others, our hobbies usually look silly.  Hobbies are personal.  They're fun and they're basically nobody else's business.

          A second thing I learned was a bit more serious and helpful: people are always more important than things.  Our grandson had his first birthday and it was a fun evening.  He tore through the wrapping paper and played with each toy a few moments before going on to the next.  Mom and Dad, Grandmas and Grandpas, baptismal sponsors - all were all present.  I never heard so many ooohhs and aaahhs as each treasure was opened - treasures at least until he grows out of them and they all get tossed into the next garage sale.  And then there was the fun of watching him eat chocolate cake and ice cream for the first time.  It was truly a fine evening.

          All the love and joy reminded me of James J. Braddock, a professional boxer during the 1920s and 1930s.  A wealthy man who provided well for his wife and children, Jim Braddock went broke in the 1929 stock market crash, and later lost his boxing license due to poor performance.  He and his family ended up in a basement hovel, barely staying alive on his day jobs here and there.  They had little money for anything and once even had the electricity turned off in midwinter.  But in all his troubles, Jim Braddock stayed faithful to his family and kept his dignity.  He went on welfare to keep food on their table, but only as a last resort.  One day his manager came by with good news - he'd found him a fight - though only because another boxer backed out, it was still a fight.  And so, after years of hardscrabble work, near-starvation, a lot of fear and no workouts, Jim Braddock went into the ring on a moment's notice and to everyone's amazement, he won the fight.  He won because he kept thinking about his starving little ones, and how he was determined to give them a better life.

          In time, James J. Braddock, a real person, made such a remarkable comeback that he eventually defeated the killer fighter Max Baer for the world heavyweight boxing title, and regained all he'd lost.  And though later defeated by Joe Louis, Jim Braddock served honorably in WWII, became a successful businessman, and lived long with his wife and saw his children grow into fine adults.  And amid all his troubles, James J. Braddock was a man of honor.  He loved his children, worshipped God often, prayed regularly, and he even repaid the $312 given him by the welfare office.  And to all the underdogs of the Great Depression, he was the island of success amid an ocean of uncertainty.

          The theme for today is "Dealing with Uncertainty."  Uncertainty is familiar to all.  We can't escape it.  We humans live in a world affected by sin, with its desert of uncertainty.  Some say the only things certain in life are death and taxes.  I once heard of a man who died of a heart attack while doing his taxes.  That's certainty we'd all rather avoid.

          But actually, there is much that is certain.  God's love, for example, is very certain.  God never leaves us nor forsakes us.  He created us as His dear children and so He loves us no matter what.  Like a good father, God never turns his back on His children.  He never breaks His chain of mercy and forgiveness.  We may fail Him, but He will never fail us.  Of that we can be certain.

          And forgiveness in Jesus Christ is certain.  When we repent of our sins and trust Christ as our Lord, forgiveness is as certain as eternal life itself.  And eternal life is a certainty.  Jesus said in John 6:47, "He who believes HAS eternal life."  God forgives us, so we can forgive each other.  God forgives us so we can forgive ourselves.  That's a certainty we can all hang onto.

          Another certainty is that God changes people, sometimes even miraculously.  Back in the 1980s I lectured many times on the dangers of Rock Music.  I researched groups like Kiss, Carlos Santana, Meatloaf and Alice Cooper for their open dabbling in satanism.  That all seems long ago now.  Well, last week my son told of a man who came into his classroom for parent-teacher conference at Christ Lutheran School in Phoenix.  His given name at birth was Vincent Furnier, but in the early '70s he changed it to Alice Cooper.  Yes, the rock singer Alice Cooper is now a Christian, and Chuck is his daughter's teacher.  The man who used to bite heads off live chickens and throw blood all over the crowd is now a Christian.  That's a miracle.  God changes people - of that we can be certain.

          Money, or fame, or pleasure, or work, or even family - all those can fail us.  They leave us when we need them the most.  Possessions, health, even people come and go, like in an airport.  Now and then someone talks with you, but they'll disappear when the trip is over.  Only God lasts forever.  Only Jesus never fails us.  That's for certain.

          In our Bible text, St. Paul tells Timothy, "Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment."  It isn't just the rich who put their hope in wealth.  In fact, I'm not sure who the rich are these days.  Compared to three-quarters of the rest of the world, we all here today are rich.  If wealth is measured in things, we are rich indeed.  Thus, we must avoid arrogance, for these things will pass away.

          Jesus said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words will never pass away."  (Matthew 24:35)   Our hope is in the Lord, who made the heavens and the earth.  Hoping only in things will disappoint us.  People and things can break your heart, "For we daily sin much and indeed deserve nothing but punishment," says Luther's Small Catechism.  Praise God for His mercies new to us every day!

          Our hope is in the Lord, "...who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment."  Life is not just sweat and toil.  God gives rest and pleasure.  He gives us enjoyment, even in our battery-powered gadgets.  (We just need to remember to keep them connected properly.)  And we must always rank people above possessions.  A wise man once said, "Love people and use things, not the other way around."  May God grant us all joy in the certainty of His love, amen.

Copyright © 2006 by Pastor Bob Tasler.  All rights reserved.