Tuesday, February 15,

Darva Conger and Rick Rockwell

are wed on national TV on a show called

"Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire?"

Wednesday, February 16,

on a cruise gifted to them by Fox,

Darva and Rick begin to notice they are not necessarily compatible

and find themselves wanting to be somewhere else.

Saturday, February 19,

a web site entitled thesmokinggun.com

posts a copy of a 1991 restraining order filed against Rockwell

by an old girlfriend who claim he hit her.

Rockwell denies those allegations

but admits the relationship was volatile.

Tuesday, February 22,

Rockwell goes on Dateline NBC to set the record straight

about his past and his future with Conger.

Says the Honeymoon was "Real Neat"

Wednesday, February 23,

Conger goes on Good Morning America:

"I am an Air Force veteran.
I am a college graduate.
I don't need anyone else's money.
I just want my life back."

Thursday, March 9,

"I approach it as my destiny.

There are 6 billion people in the world,

and I was picked for that TV show.

I figured God must have a plan for me."

Rick Rockwell -- as quoted in the Phoenix Tribune

Things are not always as they seem.

This week,

in our fair city,

Monday morning Kathy A. Morris called 911 to plead for help

because she claimed she had been shot

in a classroom

by an Hispanic man

in his late teens or early 20's.

Our city held its breath.
Prayers were lifted for Kathy

and the students and faculty of La Cima middle school.

Through the course of the week,

certain pieces of the puzzle didn't add up.

Powder burns on Kathy

that suggested the gun was fired from very close range

even though she claimed the young man was standing 8 to 10 feet from her.

A .35 mm gun

found in a secret pocket in her purse.

She has since confessed to

sending herself threatening letters,

shooting herself

and then calling 911

to report an assault that didn't happen

by an assailant that didn't exist...

concocting the story

to draw attention to lax security at the school.

(doesn't make a lot of sense.)

And so we pray for Kathy

and her confusion

and her upcoming psychiatric evaluation...

and charges she faces...

misdemeanor..

bring a weapon,

falsifying a police report,

federal firearms charges

and we pray for

the teachers and kids at La Cima middle school...

kids were shown on the evening news

tearing up the get-well cards they had made for Kathy.

and we pray thanksgiving for

the administration of the district

who did a decent thing

by being prepared to care for the teachers and young people and parents...

and we pray for

the rift in culture and race relations

that this points out and irritates...

and for the young man

who was taken in for questioning

based on Kathy's accusations.

and we pray for

ourselves

that our anger and frustration

doesn't cloud our compassion

and our ability to offer Christ to another.

And we recognize in our world,

things are not always as they seem.

Today is Palm Sunday....

the beginning of Holy Week.

Read Mark 11:1-11

As they approached Jerusalem

and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives,

Jesus sent two of his disciples, saying to them,

"Go to the village ahead of you,

and just as you enter it,

you will find a colt tied there,

which no one has ever ridden.

Untie it and bring it here.
If anyone asks you,

`Why are you doing this?'

tell him,

`The Lord needs it

and will send it back here shortly.'"

They went and found a colt outside in the street,

tied at a doorway.

As they untied it, some people standing there asked,

"What are you doing, untying that colt?"

They answered as Jesus had told them to,

and the people let them go.

When they brought the colt to Jesus

and threw their cloaks over it,

he sat on it.

Many people spread their cloaks on the road,

while others spread branches they had cut in the fields.

Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted,

"Hosanna!"

"Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"

"Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!"

"Hosanna in the highest!"

Jesus entered Jerusalem

and went to the temple...

and began to drive out

those who were selling

and those who were buying...

and he overturned tables of the money changers...

We know what lies ahead this week,

and we know what's going to happen.

The same crowd that welcomes Jesus

to their fair city shouting,

"Hosanna!"

a Hebrew expression meaning "Save!"

and

"Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"

changes values by Friday to yell,

"Crucify Him! Crucify Him!"

Things are not always as they seem.

Will you pray with me?

Whatever is true and right and just in our world

in your eyes God...

that's what we want.

And we pray for the parts of ourselves

that don't want that.

Amen.

it's a little premature.

But I've decided to take a new job.

And it will be in New York.

I don't believe it is a full time job--

only a couple nights a week

and I think I can do it

in addition to my duties here at Catalina UMC.

Fly out each week.

Let me tell you what it is.

It involves some musical skill.

You didn't know I had any, huh.

I guess I'll show you!

I am multi-talented.

I made a tape and sent it out to New York...

They listened too it and called me this week.

So let me show you what I'm going to be doing...

"mmmmmmmm, ooooooooooooh, aaaaaaaaaaa, mmmmmmmmmm."

I'm going to be a background hummer

for Who Wants to be a Millionaire.

Background music is so important...

it really sets the tone,

the mood,

the flavor

of what's happening...

so often in movies

it's not what's happening visually

that has me freaked out...

it's the background music...

If I were to identify background music

for Jesus' message...

something that incorporates

every beat and rhythm and lyric...

and repeats it again and again...

Read today's text... Mark 8:31-38

Is that your final answer?

That's the question Regis Philbin is asking you.

You're a contestant on the hit show

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

You're trying to decide whether

the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded

in Stockholm

or Oslo.

You know that Alfred Nobel was Swedish.

So you go with Stockholm.

But Oslo has a familiar ring to it.

You stay with Stockholm.

It's your final answer.

You lose.

The correct answer is Oslo.

The Nobel prizes for

Physics, Economics, Chemistry,

Medicine and Literature

are, in fact, awarded in Stockholm.

But not the Peace Prize.

It's presented

by the Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee

in the presence of Their Majesties the King and Queen of Norway

and an invited audience.

In Oslo.

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

which debuted last August for a two-week run on ABC,

is a knockoff of a similar UK version

that had Brits glued to the telly.

The effect has been much the same in the United States.

When the show ran again in the fall

for the November sweeps period,

it attracted 26 million viewers on its first night

eclipsing its largest audience during its August run.

The Fox network,

sensing people's need-4-greed,

quickly introduced a similar show in November

called Greed

with a $2 million jackpot.

A team of six people

tries to move up the "Tower of Greed,"

rising from $25,000 to $2 million questions.

Chuck Woolery,

the host,

treats the cash like eye candy.

Along the way

they are encouraged to smell and feel the money.

One wrong answer

and the team loses everything.

As the prize money goes up,

"terminator rounds" pit contestants against each other.

On the Thursday night Greed was introduced,

Fox doubled its normal viewing audience.

The greedstakes are on.

Industry bottom feeders are now trying to cash in.

For example,

So we've got Greed,

one of the Seven Deadly Sins

on the Fox network.

What's next?

Lust?

Gluttony?

Sloth?

Don't be surprised.

We're suffering from millionaire angst

and we're not sure what to do about it.

We seem to be obsessed with getting and having much money...

and toward that end...

Today we are gambling more than ever.

We often know the exact amount

of the Saturday night state lottery drawing.

And when we can't afford to the things we want,

we whip out the credit cards.

U.S. consumers have racked up its largest credit card debt ever.

In our state alone,

there were 22,609 bankruptcies filed in 1999,

and that is in a state with a booming economy

(for more info see the Department of Justice site: www.usdoj.gov/ust).

In Oregon,

six people are indicted in a "phantom cow" scheme,

selling cattle that don't exist

and bilking a $100 million out of investors.

In San Francisco,

a 15-year veteran police officer is jailed

for stealing Elvis memorabilia to furnish his already crowded Elvis room.

In New York,

a man is shot in a dispute

over Halloween candy.

In Florida,

a teenage boy puts bleach in some orange juice

and roach poison in hamburger patties

and feeds it to his 69-year-old grandmother,

hoping after her death to cash in on his inheritance.

And now Toyota,

for the Camry,

advertises them as a symbol of achievement and status...

yeah...

let that car tell the world how rich we are...

Jesus says we've got it all wrong,

and poses a question contestants on Greed

might find hard to answer:

"For what good is it

for a man to gain the whole world,

yet forfeit his soul?" (Mark 8:36).

That's a tough one.

Final answer?

Jesus,

rather than making the Christian life easy,

seems to make it hard.

"For those who want to save their life will lose it,"

he says,

"and those who lose their life for my sake ... will save it" (Mark 8:35).

Jesus knew what we know.

We know that

we're often too busy greeding each other

instead of greeting each other.

The Old Testament philosopher says:

"The greedy person stirs up strife,

but whoever trusts in the Lord will be enriched" (Proverbs 28:25).

He goes on to say

"Those who are greedy for unjust gain

make trouble for their households" (Proverbs 15:27).

We know this.

Up here.

We understand the selfish nature of avarice.

the greedy will not inherit the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:10; Ephesians 5:5).

We can even agree with

the lyrics of Justin Tubbs when he writes:

Lost in the trap of selfish greed,
I ignore my friends who are in need.
I'm building my kingdom,
Brick by brick.
But all of my treasures
Are making me sick.

But that's not us, we say.

Perhaps.

we may be getting sucked in

without our own permission.

How much grief do you suffer over money...

either you have it

and are paranoid of losing it...

so you store it,

you make it work for you...

I bet Friday's dip in the market was painful...

Or you don't have the money you want...

and are in pain about being not rich...

and some of us have gone to feel entitled to wealth...

which leads to bitterness, and anger...

It's easy to spot the face of greed

on game shows

or in casino parlors.

But greed has a much softer look, too.

Consider the doyenne of domesticity,

Martha Stewart.

She may not look like the goddess of greed,

but after her IPO in October, 1999,

she became an instant billionaire.

Her far-flung omnimedia empire includes

a magazine with a circulation of 1.2 million,

a syndicated column,

and a TV show

with an audience of 5.3 million.

Being rich does not necessarily mean that one is greedy.

Still,

while traditional values related to homemaking

suggest that we make due with less,

Martha's millions have been built on Martha's motto:

"Just have more."

And Jesus says,

"For those who want to save their life

will lose it

and those who lose their life for my sake ...

will save it

For what good is it for a man to gain the whole world,

yet forfeit his soul?" " (Mark 8:35-36).

What I hear

around the edges

of what Jesus is saying

is this...

When all is going well for you...

and you are the praise of the world...

When you are riding into our fair city

on your virgin calf-skin seats

and you are convinced

you have heard and fulfilled God's call

into your life

and that God is blessing you real good

with six speakers surround sound...

and a cd-changer in the trunk...

Things are not always as they seem.

Conversely,

when it is your child or you

who is on the cusp of life and death

and you are wandering the halls of the hospital

feeling so lost and out of control,

wondering if anyone is in control...

When it is you

who is downsized,

living in a van or a shelter,

told by the world

you are no longer important enough

to hold onto...

Things are not always as they seem.

Perhaps a good idea would be

to take a cue from

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

When a contestant is not sure of the correct answer,

he or she has three lifelines.

The 50/50 option

removes two wrong answers

thus improving one's chances;

the "Poll the Audience" lifeline

allows a contestant to ask the audience for help;

the "Call a Friend" option

allowing the player to contact someone for an opinion.

It is possible that the question the gospel text poses

is one we can't easily answer.

But God has also given us three lifelines to use

when we are not sure of our final answer.

Lifeline One (50/50): Scripture.

When we want to have some wrong answers removed,

Scripture is where we start.

The word of God gives us guidance,

helping us to avoid bad choices

and make good ones.

Lifeline Two (Poll the Audience): The church.

We can poll the community of faith for support

when we are facing the challenges of life.

The ChristBody is there for precisely that reason:

to warn us when danger lurks

and affirm when we're exercising our gifts.

Lifeline Three (Call a Friend): Jesus.

Jesus Christ himself is our Lifeline Friend

who models for us the right answers and,

on his way to the cross,

shows us how to live a greedless life.

The world's got the Seven Deadly Sins.

The church has the Seven Fruits of the Spirit.

(See Galatians 5:22-23 --

Love Joy, Peace,

Patience, Kindness, Goodness,

Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self Control.)

That's why FOX and ABC are not going to produce a game show

called Love, Joy or Generosity

any time soon.

For that show,

the church is the only game in town.

You may be wondering why I'm bringing this up today ..

greed

on the day we are to celebrate

the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem.

Sorry, I know the story too well to get too happy.

I know what happens next...

Jesus goes to the Temple to address greed in its worst form...

and I know what happens later in the week

because of what happened in the Temple

when people decide Jesus is threatening

to the way of life they enjoy.

Things are not as they seem.

I want to raise a soul-deep question.

A question I would ask of the city-folk of Jerusalem

who on Sunday laid palms before the unridden donkey

Jesus rode into town...

and who on Friday yelled to have him disposed of

so they could gain their world...

A question I would ask of us.

"What life do you want?

And who are you willing to sacrifice to get it?"

Jesus offers his final answer.

"For those who want to save their life will lose it

and those who lose their life for my sake ...

will save it

For what good is it for a man to gain the whole world,

yet forfeit his soul?" " (Mark 8:35-36).

What is your final answer?

At Saint Paul School of Theology in downtown Kansas City,

the commuter dorms under Kresge chapel

are somewhat of a monastery for a silent retreat.

Meals are provided by the school.

The grounds are sided with several acres of a park,

some wooded land and a walking trail.

Some rooms have carpet.
Each room has

a bed,

a desk,

a chair,

a lamp

and no more.

The atmosphere is one of silence and peace.

One afternoon

as I was attempting to read in my room

I found this question in my heart,

"If I knew that everyone in the world would have enough

if I had only this much,

would this be enough for me?"

(a bed, a desk, a chair, a lamp and no more.)

I want you to break into groups and discuss two questions.

1. What things might you add to support

   not only your spiritual nature

   but your work and sense of community as well.

   A telephone.

   Certain books.

   Certain files.

   Another chair for a guest.

   A computer?

2. Where does necessity end

   and excess begin?