If the River Comes, Will It Hold?
Today’s Readings: AM Psalm 106:1-18; Hosea 14:1-9; Acts 22:30-23:11; Luke 6:39-49
This past week our news has been literally flooded with bad news. Forgive the pun but it’s the truth. You cannot turn on a local or national news program without seeing coverage of the damage Hurricane Helene perpetuated on the Western panhandle of Florida and up into Western North Carolina. Friends and family members are digging out of the worst Hurricane damage since Hurricane Katrina. Pictures of familiar cities and towns from family vacations are unrecognizable.
Every day the number of lives lost goes up as loved ones continue to search for missing relatives and friends. In the midst of so much devastation it’s not hard to see how someone whose faith is built on shaky ground might lose their faith all together. It’s also not hard to find generous, caring hearts, people who lost everything helping others who have nothing. People whose faith is the bedrock of their life - what they have lost and what they have left.
The gospel reading for today is one of those that might leave us more confused than enlightened. The verses from Luke are rich with metaphors that can be clear as mud. However, Jesus’ intent is clear, a life following Christ results in a life that is changed forever, and for the good.
In the reading from Luke, Jesus makes three points: 1.It’s hard to lead if you have no idea where you’re going; 2. Only those who have lived and learned, and are open to being changed can teach; and 3. No matter what you believe, if you do not profess your beliefs in the way you live your life, your beliefs will fall on rocky soil that will not find purchase.
The people of North Carolina and the other areas impacted by Helene will be changed forever. But they shouldn’t be the only ones. We can all be changed and changed for the better. They’re a visual image of what Jesus is preaching and it’s an image that is hard to ignore. We can all learn from it. As they begin to look for ways to move forward, a faith metaphor might serve us all well. Build your house on a strong foundation; know your community, your family and build on your strengths, those things you can count on, like God, faith and family. Always maintain an image of God’s kingdom front and center in your mind. Be open to being changed by your experience, try to learn from past mistakes and be open to taking a new path, to seeing yourself in a new light.
And no matter what, practice what you preach. Kindness, begets kindness, generosity begets generosity and forgiveness begets healing. Never forget, “The church must be hard in the center and soft at the edges.” (The Rev. Peter Gray.) We must be firm and certain at the core of our beliefs and loving and open-hearted to all those people with whom we intersect.
Faithfully,
Sally+
Questions for Reflection: Are you open to recognizing your own blind spots? On what have you “built your house?” If the river comes, will it hold?