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Dear TSJ Friends,
There are desert times in our lives. Times when we easily lose hope and are tempted to give up. We may be sad, frightened, lonely. Today is time to reflect on what it feels like to be in a desert. It is Ash Wednesday for Christians.
Also at this time in our small church, you would detect a collective sadness should you know us well. And, while It is not exactly related to Ash Wednesday, it profoundly coincides with it.
You see, Ash Wednesday is a day for Christians to reflect, repent and remember who we are as mortals, and who God is – especially as reflected in the life and death of Christ. Ashes are a symbol of life’s uncertainty and of our mortality. It is also a time to remember our faith and hope rests in God alone.
On this day of reflection we turn abruptly from self-indulgence and arrogance to the desert where we are compelled to face our mortal weaknesses. Temptations to escape are strong. We grow hungry and thirsty.
We thirst for the water of life and hunger for comfort food for the soul.
We pause on this day to begin to reflect on Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness when he fasted to prepare for his earthly ministry. He grew hungry and thirsty, challenging his total dependence on God. And in his human weakened condition, he was taunted and tempted by the father-of-lies to show prove who he was.. Not unlike us. However . . . unlike us, he kept his focus on God power over personal power.
The point here is that Jesus was human and suffered many of the things we suffer.
So then, you may be asking …. “Why the collective sadness of your church family?
Simply put, our small congregation has seen a lot of suffering in the last couple of years. Many of us are being reminded over and over again of our mortality. People have had life threatening illnesses, personal tragedies, and many have died. Several are being treated for cancer.
To further add poignancy to our increasing tests of faith, we now are grieving with a beloved family who have just received painful news.
Our dear friend and gentle, kind, humble, intelligent and all around amazing woman (wife and mother) had severe head pain recently that resulted in an eye that will not open. An MRI revealed lesions on her brain. Further testing revealed stage IV lung cancer that had metastasized to her brain. She had no idea she had lung cancer (had never smoked) until the pain in her head and eye. We all are heartsick. The family is having a desert experience and the church family is praying with heavy hearts.
It has made us face our own frailty. It has hung over us like a low hanging cloud. Her faith is strong and she loves well and is well loved, but humanly speaking, this feels very wrong.
So on this Ash Wednesday it seems like we have hunger pangs for comfort and are thirsty for strength.
And while this is a story of suffering with our friend, it is also your story.
We all know those agonizing desert moments that make us bow our heads and call for help and hope. You may be experiencing different desert moments that are just as agonizingly real. You too may thirst for soul hydration.
Solomon, our TSJ muse, reminded me this morning to tell you we do have hope in the Lord, our Shepherd.
We also know that even in the parched desert times, we can find living water to quench our thirst and renew hope. And we must remember the truth that, “You can’t skip the crucifixion to get to the resurrection.” (Marianne Williamson)
Finally, our Bible study group is spending the next forty days in lenten study. Today’s scripture reading was Psalm 63. Perfect for how we feel when we are alone in a desert for a time.
So here are some excerpts that bring comfort and hope to me. Perhaps they will you too.
“O God, you are my God. Earnestly I seek you.
My soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you,
In a dry and weary land where there is no water. ..
Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you……
Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings. My soul clings to you, your right hand upholds me.“
