 |
| Bogart in 2020 |
Rev. Molly F. James, PhD
DFMS Noonday Prayer via Zoom
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.
"The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand for ever." So says the good news of Isaiah today. The prophecy we celebrate on this nativity of John the Baptist. It has gotten me thinking about what fades and withers and what lasts.
Our freshman year in college my roommate bought a plant. She named it Bogart. She cared for it all through college. After graduation, it was decided that Bogart was not going to make the long car trip to Miami, so he went to live with my wonderfully green thumbed mother. That was in 2002. Bogart is still thriving at my parents house, eighteen years later. It is a reminder to me that things (like grass, flowers, and plants) may wither, and it is also possible to care for and cultivate something to make it last.
So, my friends, as we are in the midst of these tumultuous times, our Scripture for today invites us to think about what we should let wither and what should last - in our lives, in our Church, and in our society. In recent weeks, we have come to realize more fully just how many things must wither and die for God’s kingdom, God’s dream for this world to be realized. The realities of systemic racism and white supremacy need to die. The complicity of people in positions of power in the structures and the sin of racism, needs to die. This means we have hard work to do. This withering will not happen by us sitting and waiting. This requires action. It requires us taking a hard look at our systems and structures and figuring out how to do things differently. No doubt there will be challenges and loss in that work. It will be painful at times, and yet it is work that is essential to realize a future where we are all free and thriving.
There are structures that will need to die in order for us to move forward. There will also need to be withering in our hearts and minds. Building a new future requires us to be doing our own internal work with colleagues and friends with whom we can be honest and vulnerable. We need people who can hold a mirror up and help us to realize all the racism we have been taught and caught without even realizing it. We need to be looking at the world with an analytical lens. We need to be asking ourselves in all facets of our lives, personal and professional, what we can be doing differently.
The fact that so much in our world is changing right now means that we have an opportunity. A remarkable opportunity. An opportunity to pause and reflect - to decide what we are going to carry forward. What from the old way of living and doing things are we going to keep and what can wither? From here on out, how can we cultivate habits that are life giving?
Which are the facets of our lives that need water, need more sunlight, need a little bit of fertilizer? Which are the ones that no longer serve us, that are in fact, pulling away nutrients from where they are needed most?
What might it look like for us to look at our lives with that question in our hearts: Is this of God? Is it something I want to last? If so, then cultivate away. If not, then cut it off or at least stop feeding it valuable nutrients.
What might it look like for us to cultivate the kingdom, to cultivate God’s dream in our hearts and our communities? It think it might look a lot like this chapel group. I think it looks like taking time for prayer and reflection. I think it looks like prioritizing relationship and community as an equally important “task” in our workday. I think it looks like cultivating the habits of curiosity and kindness, so that they are our first reactions rather than judgment or fear. I think it looks like choosing to follow the Way of Love, to seek joy, to seek that which is life giving and to be willing to stand up and speak the truth when we experience or witness actions that are not life-giving for ourselves or for our siblings in Christ.
May today be a day that we focus on cultivating the things that endure. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment