Remembering what matters . . .

Photo from our son's school where they honored Sandy Hook with Kindness Day.

Rev. Molly F. James, PhD
Chapel of our Lord, Episcopal Church Center
December 17, 2019
Dorothy Sayers

May God’s Word be spoken. May God’s Word be heard. May that point us to the living Word, who is Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


“I preferred her to sceptres and thrones, and I accounted wealth as nothing in comparison with her. Neither did I liken to her any priceless gem, because all gold is but a little sand in her sight, and silver will be accounted as clay before her. I loved her more than health and beauty, and I chose to have her rather than light, because her radiance never ceases.”

I kind of wish I could make a Christmas ad out of this passage. It would be such a nice contrast to all the messages about what we need this time of year is some new furniture, jewelry, gift card, or gadget. Our passage from wisdom offers us such a valuable opportunity to reset and realign our priorities. Maybe you all are really good at keeping them in line, but I know I certainly have my moments of get sidetracked and losing my focus.

It is one of the things I value about worship and reading Scripture. Somehow God always finds a way to nudge me, and say, “Remember?” Remember to slow down. Remember to take a deep breath. Remember what matters. Remember that relationship, love, laughter, the intangible blessings of life are what matter. Remember that if we focus on what really matters the other stuff really does sort itself out.


This past weekend, we marked the seventh anniversary of the shooting at Sandy Hook elementary school. I was on our bishop’s staff in CT when that happened. I spent that terrible afternoon with our bishops, helping our parish of Trinity, Newtown to host hundreds of people for a vigil service that evening. And I returned to Trinity the following week to help at the funeral service for one of the victims.

As I am sure you all have experienced, there is nothing like the tragic death of a child to make you sit up and pay attention. It highlights the stark reality of just how precious and fragile life really is. There are no guarantees.

Now when something like that happens, we have a choice. We can be overwhelmed by our own fear and sadness. We can feel as though the darkness is all consuming. Or we can choose to have the experience be talisman we carry with us to remind us what really matters. Of course, this does not mean we don’t still feel pain and sadness we do. Every time I go to visit my children’s elementary school, I have to ring a buzzer and stand in front of a camera before the door is unlocked. Before Sandy Hook I could have walked right in. I think of those kids every time I push that button. The pain is there. The fear is there. But I can’t let them overwhelm me.
They need to be a galvanizing force. A motivating force. They help me to keep my focus and my priorities.
Of course, I also fail at this on a regular basis. I lose my patience. I get sidetracked or frustrated. I get to thinking that my To Do List is the most important thing today. But blessedly God doesn’t seem to let me stray too far. Someone or something will help me remember where my priorities ought to be.

So, I hope that today you can hear the profound and beautiful truth at the heart of our readings today. The most important things in life are not things. Life is beautiful, fragile, and precious. We are meant to cherish it and to make the most of whatever time we have. So I hope that in this Advent season, I hope you will find lots of ways to cherish all that is beautiful in your life. AMEN.