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!
Road Builders 12-6-2020
December 6th, 2020First Sunday of Advent 11-29-2020
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
Lucky Thing 11-22-2020
November 22nd, 2020Ever had the experience – I know I met this person somewhere
before but I don’t remember where or when. Then it all clicks, I
remember.
Somewhere in heaven. When they first crossed paths, they didn’t
notice one another. It was only after sitting side by side at the same
dinner table several evenings in a row that they started turning their
heads a second time so as to almost say, “Don’t I know you from
somewhere?” Neither said anything. Then one evening they found
themselves facing one another across the table. Their eyes could not
help but meet and their faces had similar scars.
Finally, one said, “I’ve been noticing you for some time now. You
look so familiar, but I can’t place where we may have met. I thought
maybe it was in prison somewhere, but it wasn’t, because I never forget
a face I knew there.”
“Funny you say that, I had a similar feeling about you, but I can’t
place you. Anyway, my name is Joseph” – and he reached out across the table to shake hands. When they clasped, they both remembered
immediately. The scars on the hands from the imprint of the nails – they
remembered their crosses!
“Now I remember you,” Joseph said. “We were crucified with that
fellow, Jesus.”
“That’s right,” Samuel piped in. “I’m surprised to see you in
heaven. You said some pretty rotten things to Jesus.”
“I know. I was scared senseless, but didn’t want to let go of my
macho image, so I took it out on Jesus.”
“Well, how did you get in here saying those things?”
“When I heard you admit your crime and ask for Jesus’ help, I
knew that’s really how I felt in my heart, but couldn’t find the words.
Lucky thing for me Jesus paid more attention to my heart than to my lips
that day.”
On this Feast of Christ the King, We are All very lucky people.
That Jesus, our Lord and God, pays more attention to our hearts than to
our lips. Lucky thing!
