God saw all that he had made, and it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning — the sixth day. ~ Genesis 1:31 "I hope that God will forgive him," a mother shared with me this week after her son was found dead in a hotel room over the weekend. The young man had struggled with many demons, including a severe drug addiction.
She continued, "I don't want to know how he died. I just want to know if God will forgive my son?" Her words are a mother's cry. It's not just the untimely death of a child, or the reality that she will bury her child, it is also filled with such pain that her child died alone. As we talked the familiar hymn, "In the Garden," began to come to mind, and I asked her if she knew the song? "It is one of my favorites," she replied. We began to say the first verse together, "I come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses..." She stopped and began to cry. "He wasn't alone." There seemed to be a renewed sense of peace. I came to the chorus and she joined in with me, "And he walks with me, and talks with me, and tells me I am His own..." When tragedy strikes, our human condition struggles to understand the "Why?" We live in an imperfect world where we try to remember that in Genesis that God proclaimed that the creation was "Good," but that mamy generations later, that "Goodness," has evolved into imperfection. Recently someone shared with me, "And that's why God inserted Jesus into the world, so that we may once again have an example of what goodness can look like." It is a journey for all of us. Coming to the garden alone, in search of a place where we can once again discover goodness, while realizing that even when we enter the garden alone, we carry all that the world has taught and given us. It is there, however, that we will once again know that goodness, "And the joy we share, as we tarry there, none other, has ever known." Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2018
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Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord. As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy. ~ James 5:10 - 11 "Patience is a virtue," are the immortal words all of us have come to know. Even before I had any knowledge of what a virtue was, I had already been told this. For those who know me, patience is a virtue I still struggle to understand.
So often while at the bedside of a patient, I will hear family members comment, "What are they waiting for?" Especially if the process of dying seems to be taking a long time. It happens on the other side of the life-spectrum as well, when an overdue expectant mother breathes heavily and looks to the heavens and asks, "How much longer?" Recently a person shared with me that, "Patience is learning to live within God's timing." The words came, as the disease she has struggled with for ten years, has slowly caused her to decline, and caused her to become dependent on others. In the book of James the writer reminds us that over the years there have been many who have persevered, and at the same time, learned to be patient. I must admit, I am not so certain that I will ever fully understand what it means to be patient. I suppose with age, and some wisdom, I have learned that for some things we must simply learn to wait. To wait upon the Lord is something the Psalmist penned centuries ago, and remains something that we all must consider when it comes to our lives, and the things that we experience each and every day. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2018 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; ~ Romans 12:6 - 7 Do you ever look at a crowd of people and realize how unique each person is, but that we are all created in the image of the same God?
Last week while I traveled on vacation, I found myself sitting at the airport and doing this very thing. Even in my own family, the diversity of humankind is varied, but go to a place like an airport, and the possibilities are endless. I find that the older I get, the more I seem to understand this reality. As children we sing, "Red and yellow, black and white, we are precious in his sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world." That doesn't change as we grow older. It seems that we just can't seem to make it our reality. I always try to make Thomas Merton's experience, my daily experience. Merton, a trappist monk and theologian, is remembered for having stepped off a bus in Louisville, Kentucky, and suddenly realizing that every person he saw was his brother and sister, and that he loved each person. It was an experience that changed his life. Imagine a world where we all lived our life with this reality. How different would our world be, as well as, our own life? When we begin to look at the world this way, then I believe we begin to get a glimpse of what the Kingdom of God really looks like. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2018 Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.” ~ Mark 6:4 This morning as I prepare to head down to Galveston to speak at Westminster Presbyterian Church, I keep thinking about today's text.
Jesus returns home after time away, calling disciples, performing miracles, and teaching about the kingdom of God. The people are amazed at the knowledge that he now possesses and they wonder where this hometown boy has learned all of this. Additionally, Jesus struggles among these folk who remember him as a "carpenter" and "son of Mary." Going home is not always easy for most people. There will always be those who will have a story about you. The "remember when's" can sometime overcome who you are currently. I haven't been home in many years. It's not that I don't have a sense of home, although only my sister remains remotely close to where we grew up, I guess it is just that I recognize that I am very different than the kid that spent most of his childhood on a farm. The lessons I learned as a child have helped me to foster a sense of who I am today, but as I shared with someone about eight years ago after an attempt to return home and find that "inner child" I seemed to have lost, all I found was an "aging middle-aged man," instead. Jesus knew who he was and what people thought of him. Referring to him as "Mary's son," without mention of a father proved to place him in a category of those persons without a father. A scandalous statement. I think we all will admit that this was unkind, and that even though his wisdom was great, the faith of those he grew up around was simply limited. I always was told, "If you just want to be reminded of who you are, go home." Like Jesus, we all struggle at times with our past. I'm grateful for Jesus and his reminder that grace and mercy are always following after us, and that no matter where we have been, or who we think we may be, God always sees beyond that and knows who we are now and who we will be. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2018 Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young-- a place near your altar, my King and my God. Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you. ~ Psalm 84:3 - 4 This week I attended a friend's wedding and then took some additional days to relax. Yesterday before leaving the San Diego area, I stopped at Mission San Capistrano, made famous by the song, "When the Swallows Return to Capestrano."
The aging remains of a mission built over two hundred years ago, that fell victim to an earthquake that killed worshipers when the mission tumbled in on them, in later years, became the annual nesting habitat of swallows. So predictible, they even have a specific feast day for their return. During an attempt to secure the ruins and to protect the structure, the nests of the swallows were removed during the process, and because the securing of the structure took a period of time, the swallows relocated themselves to neighboring bridges and structures. For the last few years there has been several attempts to get the swallows to once again build their nests at the location. Only recently have a few of the birds returned, but they remain hopeful. It is almost as if the birds are symbolic of us and our attempts to bring people back to the church. Even one attempt included the hanging of "plastic nests," resembling the nests the swallows build. It had been over forty years since I last visited the structure as a youth with my sister and grandparents. I remember sitting under an awning in the garden area, just watching and listening to the birds that seemed to be so happy. In my mind, I thought it wonderful that they had found a place where they could flourish. Like most of us, I realize that things change, and that also like many people who have grown up in or around a faith community, we often talk about our experiences and "remember when." I'm so glad to see the efforts by those caring for the church are slowly bringing the swallows back to the Mission, but as they have learned, it takes more than just the "look of the nests" made of plastic. It takes the efforts by actual dwellers to make the return a reality. It is the reminder to all of us that God has a place for each of us, but it takes more than us just showing up and being among "plastic" or in places that resemble God's community. It also takes us to be willing to make it our home. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2018 |
AuthorRev. G. Todd Williams is the author of the book, "Remember Me When..." and is a former hospice chaplain and pastor. Archives
February 2024
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