Opening

Next, the doctor took a tongue depressor and looked down her throat.  He asked, "Do you think I will find cookie monster down there?"  The little girl was silent.

Then, the doctor put a stethoscope to her chest.  As he listened to her heart beat, he ask, "Do yo think I will hear Barney in there?"

"Oh no!", the girl replied, "Jesus is in my heart.  Barney's on my underpants."

• Regardless of our religion, we want to accept the principles into our hearts and see them in our actions.
• How often does that really happen?
• Watching the news I see Jews and Moslems fighting each other over religious differences in the Mid East.
• I wonder, what part of "Love thy neighbor" don't they understand?
• I also see Protestant and Catholics fighting in Ireland.
• My bible says "Love God" not "Love God only one way"
• When these two areas look like they might settle their differences, the wars in the Balkins break out.
• My examples are Christian because that the religion I at least hope I understand.
• I have several examples from Jesus's life.  These were picked to show him as a role model rather than an a religious leader.

Body

• Background
• Lepers, sinners
• Eating a meal created a bond
• You had to deal squarely with someone after sharing meal
• If something bad happens, must be because you are out of favor with God
• Lepers were unclean
• Unclean meant they weren't with God and should be avoided
• Women
• They weren't allow in services at synagogues
• At a meal, women came in to serve and didn't join conversation - They weren't part of the meal
• Jesus's love was inclusive
• He put loving your neighbor right behind loving God - Matthew 22:36 -  "Teacher what is the great commandment of law?"  And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.  This is the great and first commandment.  And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
• Love everyone - Luke 6:32 - "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you?  For even sinners love those who love them.  And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you?  For even sinners do the same."
• Put into action
• Ate at the house of a leper & a woman was part of the meal - Mark 14:3 - And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at table, a woman came in with an alabaster jar of ointment of pure nard.  [..., could I fill a hole speech with did they care about the cost of the ointment or that a woman would come to their meal?] Mark 14:6 - But Jesus said, "Let her alone; why do you trouble her?"
• Ate with tax collectors and sinners - Matthew 9:10 - And as he sat at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples.  And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, "Why does your teach eat with tax collectors and sinners?"  But when he heard it, he said, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick".
• Healed the servant of a non believer - Matthew 6:5 - As he entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him and saying, "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, in terrible distress".  And he said, I will come and heal him."  But the centurion answered him, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant will be healed."  [...] When Jesus heard him, he marveled, and said to those who followed him, "Truly, I say to you, not even in Israel have I heard such faith."
• He put people above the rules - Matthew 12:9 - And he went on from there, and entered their synagogue.  And behold there was a man with a withered hand.  And they asked him, "Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath?"  He said to them, "What man of you, if he has one sheep and it falls into a pit on the sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out? Of how much more value is a man than a sheep!  So it is lawful to do good on the sabbath."

Conclusion

I think loving your neighbor -- all of your neighbors -- is valued in most religions and philosophies.  Many people don't try because they are worried because the reach the ideas set by Jesus, Mother Tersa or Gaundi.  A proverb says, "We may navigate by the northern star, but we never expect to reach it."  How would this world change if everyone just did their best to their neighbor?

Objectives

• Prepare a speech that opens with a humorous story
• Personalize the story
• Deliver the story smoothly and effectively
• 5-7 minutes 7-9 minutes

• Open a non humorous speech with humor
• Present my beliefs with out preaching
• Present a difficult subject to a mixed audience