The little boy is scheduled for surgery the following morning. He
is understandably scared. Late that night before the procedure, a nurse
comes in to check on him. He is awake. Seeing the tears in his eyes,
she sits on the corner of his bed and lets him talk about his fears. She
explains not only what will happen but why. She answers his questions
with honesty and assurance. After a while, the little boy understands.
He’s still anxious, but the road is now a little smoother…
He’d be perfect for the sales opening. He has been invited in for an
interview with the sales manager. Before the meeting he calls a friend
who works in human resources. The friend tells him what he knows
about this company and their culture and what they typically look for in
sales associates. They study the company’s website together and the HR
pro points out what to note about the company and what to talk up in the
interview. He also helps his friend update and tune-up his resume. By
the end of their time together, he’s ready for his meeting and a possible
new beginning on the road of his life… She was working on her psychology paper when she got the call
from her mom. Her beloved Nana had died. Though not a complete
surprise, she was still devastated. Her roommate made coffee and took
her up to the dorm roof, where they sat and talked. Actually, she talked
and the roommate listened. The roommate knew what she was going
through because the roommate had lost her grandmother the year before.
Her roommate’s empathy helped her negotiate, for the first time in her
young life, the hard journey down the road of grief…
I would like to leave you with this thought: John the Baptist, that
we hear so much about this week and next, came to fulfill Isaiah’s vision
of the prophet: to “make straight” a highway to God, to create a level
road for all of us to travel to the kingdom of God. We may have
forgotten this, but because of our baptism, we take on that same role of
prophet 2020 to create passageways and entries of hope, healing and
support for all of us to complete our journey on the road to God’s
dwelling place. Road builders: the nurse, the co-worker, the roommate,
every one of us sitting in this church today. Road builders to God!
Archive for the ‘Advent’ Category
Road Builders 12-6-2020
Sunday, December 6th, 2020First Sunday of Advent 11-29-2020
Sunday, November 29th, 2020It’s been a long year of waiting: waiting to determine the depth of
the danger, waiting for a sense of how long, and waiting for clear
directions as to what to do next.
For some, the waiting has been especially excruciating: waiting
and hoping that our loved one will survive – for some families, that hope
crashed into grief.
Many have lost hope that their jobs will ever return and are
desperate for some sense of what to do next.
Now, as winter begins, we continue to wait: for a vaccine, for a
return to normal, for the next crisis.
Yes, the waiting has been painful and distressing. But, for many of
us, this pandemic Advent has also been a time of change and conversion:
We’ve grown closer to our families. We have a new appreciation of
those who work hard – and mostly unnoticed – to keep open the services
we need to function. We’ve realized that God has raised up many saints
in our midst, courageous and brave prophets clad in PPE. And we understand as we’ve never understood before how much we need one
another and can’t wait to re-connect with family and neighbors and
friends and classmates live, in person, not on a screen via Zoom or
Skype.
This year of 2020 has been one long Advent – and it’s not over.
But is has been an Advent of discovery, of awareness, of insight; an
Advent for seeing with new hearts and spirits God in our midst.
The late Father Henri Nouwen wrote that our lives are a continuing
Advent, an Advent in which “the Lord is coming, always coming. When
you have ears to hear and eyes to see, you will recognize him at any
moment of your life. Life is Advent; life is recognizing the coming of
the Lord”. Waiting is often the cost of love: in waiting we realize our
powerlessness; we realize our deepest hopes and wants; we realize the
gift of those we love in our lives. As we struggle through this especially
difficult Advent of 2020, may we open our homes and hearts to the light
of God’s compassion and peace in these dark, difficult days. Amen
Impossible 12-22-2019
Sunday, December 22nd, 2019In a lot of homes I’m sure there are certain words we do not allow
to be used; vulgar words, bad words.
I was in a home where the mom had an allergy to the word “Hate.”
It could be as simple as, “I hate spinach,” or more serious as, “I hate my
teacher.” This word would bring a lengthy dissertation about how
unhealthy that word was.
There is a word I believe God doesn’t care for. It’s not a swear or
a vulgar word; it is an everyday word that people misuse terribly. The
word is “IMPOSSIBLE.”
Yesterday we said,
1. It’s impossible for people to fly.
2. It’s impossible to make boats that travel underwater.
3. It’s impossible for someone to walk on the moon.
4. It’s impossible for the Berlin wall to come down.
5. It’s impossible for Russia and the US to ever be friends.
6. It’s impossible for the Red Sox to win the World Series.
Today we say:
1. It’s impossible for the Jews and the Arabs to make peace.
2. It’s impossible to get rid of gang violence.
3. It’s impossible for California to absorb all these new immigrants.
4. It’s impossible to find a cure for AIDS.
5. It’s impossible to create a society where no one goes without basic
food and shelter.
6. It’s impossible for Father Ron to lose weight.
God scorns that word and the attitude behind that word, God who
alone is wise.
A person might say:
1. It’s impossible for me to get over my grief and move on, especially
during the holidays.
2. It’s impossible for me to deal with my addictions.
3. It’s impossible for me to temper my self destructive vice.
4. It’s impossible for me to make peace and develop as a healthy human
being.
But today these voices who shout the word “Impossible” are
contradicted by an angel flying down from heaven, and the old post
menopausal lady swelling with life, and the teenage Virgin Mary with
the word of God resting in her womb. These three join together to say:
“If it is the will of God, then it’s possible–nothing is impossible with
God. Let us remember! Let us Believe!
