“TUNA FISH WITH GOD?”

I KINGS 2:10-12, 3:3-14

10  Then David slept with his ancestors, and was buried in the city of David.

11  The time that David reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

12  So Solomon sat on the throne of his father David; and his kingdom was firmly established.

3  Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of his father David; only, he sacrificed and offered incense at the high places.

4  The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the principal high place; Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.

5  At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, "Ask what I should give you."

6  And Solomon said, "You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant my father David, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you; and you have kept for him this great and steadfast love, and have given him a son to sit on his throne today.

7  And now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David, although I am only a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in.

8  And your servant is in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a great people, so numerous they cannot be numbered or counted.

9  Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?"

10  It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this.

11  God said to him, "Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right,

12  I now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no one like you has been before you and no one like you shall arise after you.

13  I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor all your life; no other king shall compare with you.

14  If you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your life."

It’s a fantasy that everyone has from time to time. It’s a simple fantasy. What would you ask for if you had one wish and you knew that whatever you asked for would be granted? A lot of people these days would probably ask to win the lottery.  How about you? I don’t think that’s a bad wish at all as long as you take 10% of the money that you win and write a check out made payable to the North Reading Union Congregational Church. If winning the lottery doesn’t interest you how about a better job or a bigger house?  Maybe you’d ask for good health instead.

I think the opportunity for good health would appeal to a lot of people these days.  That’s because a lot of people don’t handle sickness and all that goes with it very well. They’re afraid of pain and suffering and the reality that sooner or later we’re all going to die.  If you’re like that then you can probably understand how one elderly man felt when he went to a wake with a couple of his friends.  As the three of them stood there paying their last respects one of them asked a question.  “If that was you lying there in that casket what would you like people to say about you?”  After thinking it over for a moment the first friend said, “I’d like them to say I was a wonderful husband and a good father.”  The second friend said, “I’d like them to say I was a generous man who was always there to help those in need.”  The third friend shook his head.  “Not me,” he said, “I’d just like them to say, ‘Hey look!  He’s moving!’”

There are lots of different things you could ask for I suppose. When you come right down to it though would you ask for something that you want or would you ask for something that you really need?  They’re not the same thing you know.  Just ask Solomon.

For Solomon that one wish wasn’t a fantasy. It was a reality. It happened when God appeared to him shortly after he became king. “Ask what I should give you,” God said.  How about that? God basically gave Solomon a blank check. Solomon could have asked for riches or power or fame or victory over his enemies. He didn’t though. Instead what Solomon asked for was wisdom; the wisdom to be a good king. Solomon said, “And now O LORD, my God…Give your servant…an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil.”

Solomon had a choice that day. It was a choice between what he wanted and what he really needed. In the end Solomon asked for what he really needed. He asked for the wisdom to be a good king. 

So it’s true. What you may want and what you really need are often two very different things. 

For example, you may want that piece of chocolate cake, but what you really need to do is say “no” and stick to your diet.  You may want to let someone have it, but what you really need to do is forgive and forget.  You may want to make lots of money so you can enjoy the good life, but what you really need to do is work less and spend more time with your family.  So what is it that you really need right now in your life?

Unfortunately, this is an age of satisfaction and instant gratification. So people for the most part are going after the things that they want. They want the good life. They want the material things.  They want the success, the recognition and the pleasure. 

The situation now a days is a little like the one that a man found himself in when he died and went to heaven. Shortly after Seymour arrived at the Pearly Gates God asked him if he was hungry. Seymour replied, “I could stand a little something to eat.” So God opened up a can of tuna fish and got a loaf of bread.  While Seymour was eating his humble meal he looked down into hell and was really surprised by what he saw. All the lost souls in hell were feasting on lobster, steak, pastries and wine. That puzzled Seymour but he didn’t say anything about it. The next day God again invited Seymour over for lunch.  Once again it was a simple tuna fish sandwich. Seymour didn’t say a word even though this time all the lost souls in hell were feasting on caviar, champagne, escargot and truffles. By the third day Seymour couldn’t take it any longer. As soon as God reached for the tuna fish Seymour spoke up. “God,” he said, “I’m really grateful to be in heaven with you and I understand it’s a reward for the pious and obedient life I lived while I was on earth. But here in heaven all I get to eat is tuna fish while everyone in hell gets to eat like kings and queens. Forgive me God, but I don’t understand.”  At that point God let out a big sigh.  “Seymour,” God said. “Let be honest. You and I both know it just doesn’t make any sense to cook for just two people.”

Tuna fish in heaven or lobster in hell? That may sound like a rather whimsical image but it’s an image that helps you understand the difference between filling your life with what you want versus what you really need.

When you fill your life with everything you want, it actually leads you away from God. You end up feeling like something’s missing in your life. When you fill your life with the things that you really need it brings you closer to God.  You feel a sense of joy and peace that the world cannot give or take a way.

So, the smart thing to do is to fill your life with the things that you really need, but how can you know what it is that you really need? The answer to that question is simple. No matter who you are the answer to that question is always going to be the same. It doesn’t matter if you’re young or old, rich or poor, male or female, black or white. The answer is always going to be the same. What you need is whatever brings you closer to God’s grace. It’s whatever leaves you feeling connected to God, the people around you and yourself..

Sometimes what you really need then is wisdom just like Solomon. Sometimes what you really need is courage; the courage to speak the truth even though you know it’s not what someone may want to hear. Sometimes what you really need is humility; a humility that lets others help you when you’re having a hard time. Sometimes what you really need is patience; the ability to be patient with yourself when you mess things up.  Sometimes what you really need is love; the ability to keep on loving someone when that person disappoints you.

What you need is whatever fills your heart with God’s grace and leaves you feeling connected to God, the people around your and yourself.  It’s the feeling that speed skater Dan Jansen probably felt when he got a letter from a young man named Mark Arrowood.  You may remember Dan Jansen’s story from the 1988 Winter Olympics.  He was favored to win a number of gold medals.  Just hours before his first race though he received the news that his sister had finally lost her her battle with leukemia.  Dan Jansen went ahead with his race and dedicated the race to his sister.  Unfortunately, the sorrow was too much for him though and he fell while making his first turn. Four days later in the 1,000 meter race he fell again.  I remember watching his ordeal unfold on television and how people were really touched by his sadness and sorrow. As it turns out many people sent Dan Jansen letters of encouragement and support. According to Sports Illustrated shortly after he got home Dan Jansen received a letter from Mark Arrowood, a disabled 31 year old from Doylestown, Pennsylvania.  In the letter Mark wrote:

Dear Dan,

I watched you on TV.  I’m sorry that you feel 2 times.  I am in Special Olympics. I won a gold medal at PA (Pennsylvania) State Summer Olympics right after my Dad died seven years ago…Before we start the games we have a saying that goes like this. ‘Let me win but if I can’t win let me be brave in the attempt.’…I want to share one of my gold medals with you because I don’t like to see you not get one.  Try again in four more years.

Inside the envelop was a gold medal that Mark Arrowhead won in a track-and-field event. 

That’s what God’s grace is all about.  You feel a deep connection with God, the people around you and yourself.  It’s something you experience when you fill your life with the things that you really need.  It’s kind of like sharing a tuna fish sandwich with God in heaven.  It may not be the best meal you ever had, but it will be the most satisfying.  Amen.

Rev. Dr. Richard A. Hughes

August 20, 2006