A Game of Telephone - September 16
Today’s Readings: AM Psalm 72; PM Psalm 119:73-96; Job 42:1-17; Acts 16:16-24; John 12:20-26
Listen to John: 20:21-23 - They came to Philip, Philip went to Andrew, Andrew and Philip went to Jesus and Jesus gave them an answer. It almost sounds like a game a telephone. You know that game where you tell someone something ridiculous, then they tell the next person until it goes around a circle and at the end, the last person repeats the phrase and usually, something has been lost in translation. A random trivia fact: the longest game of telephone according to the Guinness Book of World Records was played in New Zealand in March of 2017 by 1,792 people. The record was attempted to celebrate Hearing Awareness Week in New Zealand. With nearly 1800 people, I guess the record won’t be broken until after the pandemic succumbs.
It also sounds like a game of telephone because what Jesus answers back with seems ridiculous. You must lose your life to gain it? What dies bears fruit? Those who hate their life will keep it in eternity? Come on Jesus! What foolishness are you offering us? This makes no sense!
Which maybe is the point. It has to be so radical to actually change our life. Jesus offers us an alternative way to live and in that, we find the true meaning of life.
There is a documentary out right now called the “The Social Dilemma” just released on Netflix. Some have actually called it a horror film. It is about the design of social media, the origins of Facebook and other platforms, and suggests the shadow side of the way we connect actually harms us. The documentary goes further in suggesting how these apps and our phones are destroying our mental health and maybe even democracy. The irony is social media was created to help us feel connected to one another and find a more meaningful life and yet what we waste so much time on has done quite the opposite. Doesn't it seem counterintuitive?
We are being forced in this time of pandemic to reimagine our lives, and what I keep wanting to know is “When will things get back to normal.” As I read the Gospel today, I wonder just how foolish my answer really is. Why should I want things to get back to normal when much of the life we have lived is not the life that I believe Jesus calls me into? It is a life on consumption, acquiring, and constant frustration. It is a life of making digital connections as opposed to real and personal connections. A better question might be what is now dying that is also giving me life. Maybe the life we are losing will help us inherit something much greater.
John+
Questions for Self-Reflection: What have you lost in the last six months that might be a good thing?
Daily Challenge: Instead of wishing for things to return to normal, make a list of three things you not resume doing when you can. Put your list on your refrigerator or bulletin board.