Psalm 126:1-6
When the Lord brought back his exiles to Jerusalem, it was like a dream! We were filled with laughter, and we sang for joy. And the other nations said, “What amazing things the Lord has done for them.” Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us! What joy! Restore our fortunes, Lord, as streams renew the desert. Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy. They weep as they go to plant their seed, but they sing as they return with the harvest.
This past Sunday Elizabeth and I
attended a worship service of the outdoor sort, the final Sunday for my friend,
Nathan Snyder, as pastor of Fairgrove UMC in Thomasville. He is retiring from full time service, and it
was good to be there as the congregation celebrated his four decades of
ministry; it was a time filled with remembering and celebration, a time of
joy. They even had a Nathan-parade in
lieu of a covered dish, as Nathan and his bride, Margaret, stood at the
outdoor shelter and all the members drove past to wish their retiring pastor happy
trails!
During the last 3 months we have
been enduring an exile of sorts. Congregations
all over the world have refrained from meeting in their gathering places, the
place where worship is so familiar, and the hugs, handshakes, and conversations
flow like refreshing streams of God’s glory.
Now we meet via pixel-resoluted screen times, flat-screened, and absent
of the pulses of our brothers and sisters.
As for me, all I hear and sense of a live body in the room is my furry
friend, Wellie, snoring beside me when I write, or record the latest
sermon. Stout Methodist as he is, Wellie
is no match for the living, breathing human souls I long to be with.
I have gained a new appreciation of
what it meant for the Israelites to be captives in a strange, foreign land…and
then, they got to come home; it was a big deal.
They came singing, with joy-filled hearts and souls. Their joy was so full other nations took note
with amazement – what wonderful things the Lord has done!
And so, it is natural, as I look to
the future, to relish that time when we get to come home – home to God’s spiritual
body, gathered in joy and worship, instead of this drought-ship,
dry, parched, quarantined existence. In
my mind there is a picture of God’s house, full of joy-filled faces, glad to be
back – happy to be singing, praying, giving, loving, planning, serving….together!
Of course there will be some new
flies in the ointment, so to speak. Some
will wear masks and gloves; hand sanitizer will be on order by the gallon, and
some of it might feel strange for awhile.
It’s like that after a long absence; you want to get back, but what will
it be like beyond just that first rush of joy?
I think I know; there will be sharing of our lives again, sharing all
the stories of what has happened, guessing at why it all happened, and the catching-up that always happens. And, somewhere
past the strange uneasiness of discovering that change has happened,
and the discomfort of knowing our world is different, we will find ourselves
strangely renewed, hearts strangely warmed (as Mr. Wesley might say); we will
awaken to the dawn of a new day of possibilities. We will begin to open to a new moment, an era
of letting the petty differences to which we may cling, evaporate like the
unimportant wisps of selfishness they really are. Song preferences, perceived slightings,
unwelcomed change or tedious repetition, will all be somehow so insignificant. In my sanctified imagination I imagine the
refreshing of just raising our voices together to sing, our hands lifted to
praise, heads bowed to pray, and hearts and souls opened for hearing God’s
voice to lead us into deeper, fuller relationship…this is what will come for
God’s people. Because this is what God always
does for grateful, humble people. And I
cannot think of a time when I have been more grateful, or humbled, by the
realization that I may have been taking corporate worship for granted…and I
sense that I can’t possibly be the only one who feels this way.
Let’s
Pray Together:
Father, your pilgrim children, exiled from the buildings and routines we sometimes worship, are longing to go home. We know you do all things well, and in your time. As we wait on your hand to guide, may we wait with our sandals on, staff in hand, ready for your direction.
For You Today
You
chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.
Have a blessed day!
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