Today’s Readings: Psalm 76; Joshua 2:15-24; John 5:1-18; 1 Corinthians 6:1-8; Psalm 17
Many people hold a misconception about the relationship between a pastor and the members of a local church. They assume that it is primarily the pastor who teaches and/or guides the parishioners. The longer I’m in ministry, however, the more I’m convinced that the relationship is a mutual one: that the parishioners teach/guide the pastor as much as the pastor teaches/guides the parishioners. Case in point – a woman I was in ministry with several years ago whom I’ll call Patricia. You see lots of folks will read today’s passage from 1 Corinthians – a passage that talks about moving beyond a spirit of litigation into a spirit of reconciliation – and experience them purely at the abstract level as if they were simply meant to be platitudes. Patricia didn’t, however. She took those words at face value. And how do I know that? You see several years ago Patricia lost her husband prematurely largely due to the negligence of her husband’s care providers. Many people in our society would have taken the pain they felt at the tragic loss and directed it toward the hospital in the form of a lawsuit. In fact, the administrators at the hospital were so focused on that possibility that their first words to Patricia following her loss were: “Are you going to sue us?” Thankfully, Patricia knew that no form of acting out the pain of her loss would change the circumstances. Or – to use Paul’s words - Patricia sensed that if she initiated a lawsuit all she would have been doing “is providing fuel for more wrong, more injustice” – so she refused to initiate a lawsuit. Patricia’s unfathomable act of grace reminded me that while it’s easy to talk about word like “healing” and “reconciliation” in the abstract; it’s quite another thing to employ those concepts at moments of our most profound losses. Today, as I sit back and ponder Patricia’s powerful witness, I give thanks for all those folks who continue to teach me what it means to be a person of faith – not just when it’s convenient, but those times when it’s most difficult. Til next time…
Many people hold a misconception about the relationship between a pastor and the members of a local church. They assume that it is primarily the pastor who teaches and/or guides the parishioners. The longer I’m in ministry, however, the more I’m convinced that the relationship is a mutual one: that the parishioners teach/guide the pastor as much as the pastor teaches/guides the parishioners. Case in point – a woman I was in ministry with several years ago whom I’ll call Patricia. You see lots of folks will read today’s passage from 1 Corinthians – a passage that talks about moving beyond a spirit of litigation into a spirit of reconciliation – and experience them purely at the abstract level as if they were simply meant to be platitudes. Patricia didn’t, however. She took those words at face value. And how do I know that? You see several years ago Patricia lost her husband prematurely largely due to the negligence of her husband’s care providers. Many people in our society would have taken the pain they felt at the tragic loss and directed it toward the hospital in the form of a lawsuit. In fact, the administrators at the hospital were so focused on that possibility that their first words to Patricia following her loss were: “Are you going to sue us?” Thankfully, Patricia knew that no form of acting out the pain of her loss would change the circumstances. Or – to use Paul’s words - Patricia sensed that if she initiated a lawsuit all she would have been doing “is providing fuel for more wrong, more injustice” – so she refused to initiate a lawsuit. Patricia’s unfathomable act of grace reminded me that while it’s easy to talk about word like “healing” and “reconciliation” in the abstract; it’s quite another thing to employ those concepts at moments of our most profound losses. Today, as I sit back and ponder Patricia’s powerful witness, I give thanks for all those folks who continue to teach me what it means to be a person of faith – not just when it’s convenient, but those times when it’s most difficult. Til next time…
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