WATCHWORD:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.[a] Because of the joy[b] awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. 3 Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people;[c] then you won’t become weary and give up. 4 After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin. 5 And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children?[d] He said, “My child,[e] don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you.6 For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.”[f]7 As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Hebrews 12:1-7, Proverbs 3:12.
Meditation:
In my manuscript, Middle of Nowhere, there are parallel narratives: a mortal and a heavenly. There has just been a collapse in the mine with loss of life, and the tragedy that has been observed in Heaven…
“Far above the valleys, the thunder rolled on and on, and clouds gathered, illuminated by flashes of lightning. In the midst of the chaos in the Heavenly Vast, a voice; a voice that said, “Do not surrender to discouragement, my little ones. The Great One reminds us that for lo these many years we have been on the glorious mountaintop with the believers, gathered in Living Light. All those happy years were meant to teach and to strengthen our faith. Put all doubt aside.”
“What happened? Those poor Mortals, and those poor, sad children. Why would Great One do this? We don’t understand.”
“My little Watchers. This may cause us to wonder, doesn’t it? How could this be part of Great One’s plans, you ask. You may not understand this, but I would remind you of something that is written in The Heavenly Vast Notes and Narratives, it says:
‘The Great One disciplines the ones he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son’. “What does that mean, Watchers?”
The Watchers were very quiet for a long time, and Wise One let them think about the question and the passage quoted.
“Wise One, we are not sure what it really means. I remember when I was a Mortal, my daddy would sometimes spank me when I was naughty, or sometimes I had to sit in a chair. Then, later, he would come to me, and hug me and tell me he loved me, and I know that he did.”
Some of the Watchers nodded at this.
“That is such a good thing to remember, because the Great One is much like the Mortal father that some of you remember, who loves you.”
(Excerpt from Chapter 2, The Middle of Nowhere, manuscript currently being edited. Stan)
Do you remember the book, When Bad Things Happen to Good People? I’m not recommending it, except to say in Harold Kushner’s thesis, he raises the question how a loving God could possibly allow bad things to happen. In the minds of some critics, Kushner seems to ignore forgiveness, and the matter of the depth and breadth of God’s love.
We may consider his thesis, as well, as we look with sadness at the number of people afflicted with the virus and the number of fatalities. We could easily be overwhelmed by the numbing sense of this evil.
The other night, while violating Carol’s admonition not to watch the news, which I did, and I had a reaction, especially to the 45,000 deaths that US had tallied to that day. Then, later that same evening, watching an episode of West Wing in which there had been a shooting in a church, and a nine-year-old girl was killed. The episode was wrapped up in the grief that was so evident within the storyline and the characters. I couldn’t help contrast the emotionless reporting of a large number of deaths, against visible grief for the loss of a single person, in that episode.
You may not have thought of it quite this way, especially if you are one who has experienced the loss of a loved one, and walked that road of grief of your own, but, we are going through a period of grief, a period of loss. Loss of our comfort zone, human contact, freedom, etc. And, in the same way, we show some of the same distinct emotions.
Stages of isolation grief? Well, at the start, most of us would admit to some anger, denial, blame, emotion, maybe even disorientation. But, I believe that something is happening to us over these past several weeks. We are changing, and it may be more obvious once our isolation is lifted. I would like to believe that we have been drawn closer in our understanding and application of love, God’s love. I would guess we have broadened it, made it more inclusive.
We started lifting up heroes in the medical profession, back in March, but, now, we realize we must broaden it to include moms, dads, teachers, grandparents, police, the unemployed, the employed and generous, families of loss who carry on, etc., etc., right down to each one of us. Working it out, reaching out, praying, praying, praying. God’s love at work. Good job, heroes! Amen.
Scripture lessons for Today, Third Sunday of Easter: Acts 2:36-41, 1 Peter 1:17-23, Gospel – Luke 24:13-35
Bulletin Board:
From Pete Gano – I ran across the item written by John Stonestreet:. “The lesson for anyone who wants to find and follow God’s will is pretty clear. God’s will isn’t so much about what He wants to do through us someday, it’s about what God wants us to do next. God orchestrates small acts of obedience and advances His Kingdom. We do our best. The results are up to God. Or as T.S. Eliot said, “For us there is only the trying. The rest is none of our business.” Pete
From Lee’s friend, Dave, to us – If you thought toilet paper was crazy…Just wait until 300 million people all want a haircut appointment!
From Shirley in Colorado – My sister offers ‘One word essays’: Determination. Hope. Contemplation. Love. Excitement. Faith. Security. Friendship. Adventure. Contentment. Longevity. Curiosity. Heroism. Aspirations. Honor. Accomplishment. Perseverance. Whimsy. Companionship. Humor. Beauty. Caring. Relating. Fruitful. Awe. Loneliness. Tenacity. Friendship. Can you add to this list?
Also from Lee’s friend, Dave – Anyone else’s car getting 3 weeks to the gallon at the moment?
Gentle Reminders:
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23
He has told you, oh mortal, what is good; what does the Lord require of you
but to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8
Closing Prayer:
Lord … remind us today that You have shown us what is good in what You require of us; to do justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with You, our God. We ask that as a people, we may humble ourselves before You and seek Your will for our lives and for this great nation. Help us to work as never before to strengthen our families and to give our children hope and a moral foundation for the future. So, may our desire be to serve You, and in so doing, serve one another. This we pray in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
