Mail Archive of the old Santa Clara Valley Lutheran Parish

Subject: Daily devation by and for scvlp pastors

Date: Fri, 19 Feb 2010 09:49:01 -0800

From: "Bea Chun" <pastorchun@cgslc.org>

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From: "Bea Chun" <pastorchun@cgslc.org>
To: <scvlp@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Daily devation by and for scvlp pastors
Date: Fri, 19 Feb 2010 09:49:01 -0800
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Hello everyone,

Here are some thoughts after reading the "Folktale" in Brian Stoffregen's
exegetical notes for this week:
."The Evil Spirit once came dejected before God and wailed, "Almighty God --
I want you to know that I am bored -- bored to tears! I go around doing
nothing all day long. There isn't a stitch of work for me to do!"
"I can't understand you," replied God. There's plenty of work to be done
only you've got to have more initiative. Why don't you try to lead people
into sin? That's your job!"
"Lead people into sin!" muttered the Evil Spirit contemptuously. "Why Lord,
even before I can get a chance to say a blessed word to anyone he has
already gone and sinned!" *
My initial reaction was to think this little tale is cute and silly. and
then it hit me! The same complaint of "before I can even get a chance" can
also be lodged by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was given to us as our
advocate, our counselor, our comforter, our power, and the one to guide us
in all truth. But before the Holy Spirit even gets a chance to do all this,
I have already devised my own comfort measures, found my own counsel, looked
to my own self for power, and followed my own truth. 

Suddenly, this tale no longer seemed quite so cute and silly.

Bea Chun


*The source for the quote as given by Brian Stoffregen:  A temptation story
from A Treasury of Jewish Folklore: Stories, Traditions, Legends, Humor,
Wisdom and Folk Songs of the Jewish People, Edited by Nathan Ausubel
Copyright, 1948, Crown Publishers, Inc., New York