A Lifetime Winner! -- FPC sermon excerpt
The golden cork.
That’s what wine-drinkers are hoping to discover when they buy a bottle of Browns Brothers Pinot Grigio. This Australian winery has placed five golden corks in five bottles of wine. If you are lucky enough to find one, you’ll win a lifetime supply of wine!
But maybe you’re not a wine-lover. Maybe ice cream is your passion.
If so, you really should have submitted an application for the job of Chief Executive Officer at Ben & Jerry’s. This ice cream company announced a contest called “YO! I’m Your CEO.” Don’t you love that? “YO! … I’m your CEO.”
Ben & Jerry’s invited people to send in 100-word applications. First prize in the contest was the job of CEO. Second prize: A lifetime supply of ice cream. Not bad for a consolation prize.
Exactly what is it that you would like to win for life? Underwear? Toilet paper? Vitamins? Pantyhose? Advil? Diet Coke? Groceries? Vacation rentals? Mortgage payments? The answer can say a lot about what we treasure, what we place at the very center of our lives.
Ever since Willy Wonka put golden tickets in his chocolate bars, we’ve been dreaming of being lifetime winners. Problem is, lifetime offers are grounded in a lot of wishful thinking, and for them to do us any good they have to be grounded in someone — or something — that is truly trustworthy. After all, a lifetime offer is only as good as the person or company that stands behind the offer. If the company goes out of business, you lose your benefits. If Ben & Jerry’s suffers a meltdown, no more ice cream. If Browns Brothers has a bad grape harvest, no more Pinot Grigio.
All of which brings us to the widow of Zarephath, one of the great mothers of the Bible, and an appropriate character to think about on Mother’s Day. The prophet Elijah promises that her “jar of meal will not be emptied and [her] jug of oil will not fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth” (1 Kings 17:14).
The widow of Zarephath becomes a lifetime winner. In a time of need, the Lord really does provide for her.
That’s what wine-drinkers are hoping to discover when they buy a bottle of Browns Brothers Pinot Grigio. This Australian winery has placed five golden corks in five bottles of wine. If you are lucky enough to find one, you’ll win a lifetime supply of wine!
But maybe you’re not a wine-lover. Maybe ice cream is your passion.
If so, you really should have submitted an application for the job of Chief Executive Officer at Ben & Jerry’s. This ice cream company announced a contest called “YO! I’m Your CEO.” Don’t you love that? “YO! … I’m your CEO.”
Ben & Jerry’s invited people to send in 100-word applications. First prize in the contest was the job of CEO. Second prize: A lifetime supply of ice cream. Not bad for a consolation prize.
Exactly what is it that you would like to win for life? Underwear? Toilet paper? Vitamins? Pantyhose? Advil? Diet Coke? Groceries? Vacation rentals? Mortgage payments? The answer can say a lot about what we treasure, what we place at the very center of our lives.
Ever since Willy Wonka put golden tickets in his chocolate bars, we’ve been dreaming of being lifetime winners. Problem is, lifetime offers are grounded in a lot of wishful thinking, and for them to do us any good they have to be grounded in someone — or something — that is truly trustworthy. After all, a lifetime offer is only as good as the person or company that stands behind the offer. If the company goes out of business, you lose your benefits. If Ben & Jerry’s suffers a meltdown, no more ice cream. If Browns Brothers has a bad grape harvest, no more Pinot Grigio.
All of which brings us to the widow of Zarephath, one of the great mothers of the Bible, and an appropriate character to think about on Mother’s Day. The prophet Elijah promises that her “jar of meal will not be emptied and [her] jug of oil will not fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth” (1 Kings 17:14).
The widow of Zarephath becomes a lifetime winner. In a time of need, the Lord really does provide for her.
posted by Henry Brinton | 7:35 AM
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