Never Alone
Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God who is Creator, Christ and Comforter, Amen
I had never felt so abandoned. I sat in the chair of the Operating Room waiting room, where just minutes – or was it hours? – earlier I had given my child over to the nurses for surgery. As the doors of the OR swung shut and I watched from the window the nurse, with my precious child in her arms, walk into the surgical suite, all I could do was feel the emptiness of my own arms, and somehow trust that scripture that says, “the Spirit intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words to express.” Because I was beyond tears, first our son, and then our youngest daughter – two different times for two different events - were taken from my arms this way. So, I waited…alone - Dave caring for the other two children where they were safe and in a familiar environment – at home.
Jesus came to me those two different days of waiting. I felt his presence around me, his love supporting me as I waited for those OR doors to swing open. Although I was physically by myself, I really wasn’t alone. As I waited, I prayed…prayed for our son, prayed for our daughter, and for the doctors, the nurses and the OR staff as they operated. I knew Jesus was with me, and with our children. I remembered their baptisms and the promises that were made at that font in our church. I knew they belonged to God, were named and claimed by God, but I had such hopes for them yet and I so was NOT ready to hand them back to God! They were so young. As I sat there, I remembered their smiles, their funny ways, and their laughter.
When the doors to the OR finally swung open and the doctor came up to talk with me and to tell me that our son, our daughter, came through surgery just fine, that moment was filled with relief and thanksgiving. The wait for them to get to recovery wasn’t nearly as long or as empty a feeling. They were ok – not out of the woods, but ok! And, to see them, to watch them as they opened their eyes and said, “Mommy” and then to hold their hands, rub their backs as they drifted back into sleep were precious moments of hope - and answer to prayer. The tension in my own body, the adrenaline could begin to dissipate and then elation, exhaustion, thanksgiving, and joy, absolute joy! They were going to be ok.
The two of them walked along the road…dejected, sad beyond tears, hopeless. The events of the past week were still playing through their minds and they hardly noticed the road as they passed from Jerusalem, on their way home to Emmaus. Words had ceased between them and the two of them just plodded along – each lost in their own pain and disbelief. They had believed, they had followed, they were SO SURE that Jesus was the Messiah – the one who would overturn the oppressive Roman government, and re-establish Israel as a major power, in the goings on of the Middle East! And now? He was dead! And,to top it off, the women from the group came back from the tomb and said that the body was missing!
Who would do such a thing? They dared not answer that question aloud -for the answers could bring to them death as well. So, hopeless, and sad and abandoned, they went home.
Jesus comes up to the two on the road and meets them where they are – in their pain and disbelief. The four saddest words in all of scripture were spoken “But we had hoped.” “But we had hoped” they say, as they repeat the story to their Lord, not knowing who he was. Their pain is met and not dismissed as insignificant or unimportant. Their pain is acknowledged. The resurrected stranger, Jesus, does not leave them there, abandoned, rejected, full of sorrow. Oh no! He begins to share with them all of the history of their people starting with Moses and explains to them why all the events of the past few days had to take place.
They came to their home; Jesus was going to go on. The two disciples invited this stranger into their home – as is the custom of people in the Middle East when evening approaches. He joins them for dinner. But, instead of taking a seat as the guest, HE breaks the bread as the host! And it was then, only then, that the two
Do you want to meet Jesus? Then, you are in the right place! It’s here, here in worship that we encounter the living Christ. It is here that we have the Scripture opened to us so that we gain understanding and deepen our relationship with the God of all creation, the ever present Holy Spirit, and Jesus, the resurrected one. And, this resurrected Jesus is not simply a rewind of the Jesus of Nazareth, he’s new – and yet the same. There is something about this resurrected nature that makes him different – so different than what we thought – or would have planned if we had been in charge!
So, we come…here…and try to make sense of the events of the week, as we walk together, talk together, and most importantly, meet Jesus. Or rather, Jesus meets us, where we are, as we are. He meets us, and talks with us, and listens to our pain and hope, and hosts a meal that is a meal of love and acceptance, of forgiveness and life and salvation. Filled with these gifts, it then propels us into the world in which we live that may have no idea that there is someone who loves them – where they are, as they are – and will not know unless you tell them!
It’s Mother’s Day. My mom’s and my grandmothers’ faith is what has brought me to this place. Their witnesses were not the loud, shout-your-faith-from-the-rooftop types, but they were the quiet, consistent and faithful women who in their witness and their practice showed me Jesus. It’s an honor to honor them by living my Christian witness here in this place by serving you.
Like the women whose pictures surround us today, I pray that we will be bold witnesses in the world in which we live and move and have our being. Whether that world be home, school, jobs, you are the only one who has your sphere of influence and acquaintances and friends. Be like Jesus, meet people where they are, as they are. Listen to them. Invite them to come to this place and meet Jesus. It may seem scary at first, but I promise it gets easier. Be bold in your witness, however that looks or feels. And remember, you are NEVER alone! Amen
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