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March 2008
The healing of
people by Jesus is a theme woven throughout our scripture passages this
Lenten season. Jesus heals the man blind from birth. Lazarus is raised
from the dead. The healing that takes place is two-fold, both physical
and spiritual. When Nicodemus came to see Jesus in the dark of night he
was actually seeking understanding as to who Jesus was. The woman at the
well also sought to understand who Jesus was. Do we also seek that
understanding, even 2000+ years on this side of the cross? Well, I think
we do.
As we seek Christ we
are transformed by the experience. As we ask the “why” questions about
life our emotions are on edge. We don’t understand why a dear friend has
to deal with a disease that is life altering. We see our loved ones,
spouses, and friends leave this physical life. They leave us behind and
perhaps alone. Our faith, our Christian belief system tells us that God
is in charge, but often the lenses through which we view are too dark to
see this. The changes we go through challenge our senses. Who do we
really trust? Who can we honestly open our hearts to?
As we struggle with
these questions, there is one true constant in our lives that will never
change. That is God’s love for us. The gift of His sacrificial death,
the gift of the open tomb that first Easter morning, calls us into the
eternal presence of Christ. He is the constant in our lives that will
never change. The promise of salvation is truly ours.
We look through the
jungles in which we live. There are the jungles of guilt, fear, anxiety
and anger. How do we find our way through? What path do we take? Where
in the world is the path?! In his book “Traveling Light” Rev. Mac Lucado
shares this interesting story.
“The story is told of a man on an African safari deep in the jungle. The
guide before him had a machete and was whacking away the tall weeds and
thick underbrush. The traveler, wearied and hot, asked in his
frustration, ‘Where are we? Do you know where you are taking me? Where
is the path?!’ The seasoned guide stopped and looked back at the man and
replied, ‘I am the path.’”
The path of life we
are on is one of familiarity and the unexpected. As the “why” questions
come, and they surely will, do not be distraught or dismayed. Express
them to God and to those you love. Christ has called us together as His
body in this place and time. Lift each other up in prayer and show your
caring through kind acts. Most of all let your life be a witness to the
One who rose that Easter morning so that death would be defeated
forever. Healing, both the physical and spiritual does happen. The
jungles of our lives seem to never change, be we can change.
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