Be Vigilant At All Times

 

We continue to try to absorb the devastation and loss of life caused by the effects of global warming. Likewise, we are frustrated that despite the recent meeting of world leaders dealing with global warming, little is said about loss of life among those disenfranchised peoples living in abject poverty. The focus has been on the science and the impact that fossil fuels have had on temperature change. Shouldn’t our efforts be directed to its effect on people as opposed to scientific discourse?  At least we know we can make a difference! It’s no coincidence that this Sunday's Gospel (Luke 21: 25-28, 34-36) asks us to stand up straight, with our heads raised and be watchful. As people of faith we are called to assume a posture of hope in the face of despair. It strikes me that to do so must be an act of determined will, for it runs contrary to our most basic instincts. When we hear of the rising numbers of deaths due to starvation and the lack of water, not to mention the staggering rise of Covid cases in Madagascar, it’s so hard to believe that there will be anything more than what we can now see.  

"How is it that we can stand with our heads raised in hope in the face of suffering and despair? Perhaps our willingness to stand up and be seen and heard in a world that is shaking all around us, and our walking into our own suffering and the suffering of others, is where it all begins? Maybe when we step into the large and small heartbreaks of those who are in pain, we will meet Jesus. For that is where Jesus can always be found: waiting in the midst of the pain to somehow show us the way to new hope and new joy and new life.

And once we've done that for a lifetime and experienced the gifts of God in such unexpected places over and over again, maybe that’s when Jesus does return --- whether it is only to me at the end of my life or to us all at the end of this age? I guess we won't be able to keep ourselves from lifting up our heads in hope to see our redemption drawing near! Because we will have already encountered the source of that redemption in Jesus over and over again!" (adapted from Dancing with the Word, Rev. Janet Hunt)