GRACE NOTES, by Pastor Pat
FEBRUARY, 2010
I
have to admit I was feeling more than a little sorry for myself. . . the diagnosis was getting
progressively worse: first a foot
sprain, which became multiple fractures and then the possibility of a lisfranc
dislocation and another surgery and with it the potential for life-long pain when walking. I came close to crying out, "Why
me, Lord?" . . . . And then the earthquake hit the island nation of
Haiti. As I am writing, we know
that the devastation is total, the death projections exceed 200,000, and the
pictures of the suffering are almost more than we can bear. Suddenly, my problems seem pretty
small.
I
am humbled by the resilience of the Haiti people. There was a video feed from the 2nd day of the
quake, a sort of impromptu worship gathering in the safety of an open
place. The people gathered and
raised their hands in prayer, and sang.
They sang in the midst of their terrible suffering. By the time you read this newsletter
article, we will know much more about the devastation. It will surely be more heart-breaking
than any of us can imagine.
One
of the questions that always comes to mind in the midst of tragedy is an
age-old question: Where are you
God? I am reminded of the
teachings of the Apostle Paul, words that have carried me through many a
challenge in my own life. "In
everything God works for good for those who love God and live according to his
ordinances" (Romans 8:28) I also am reminded of the words of the
prophet Isaiah who promised, "Those that wait upon the Lord shall renew
their strength. They shall mount
up with wings like eagles. They
shall walk and not be weary. They
shall run and not faint."
(Isaiah 40:31)
.
. . So, God, where are you in the
midst of this tragedy? How
are you working for good? Can you
really help the helpless of Haiti to renew their strength? When will they run, or even walk
again?
Whenever
I ask these questions, I am also reminded of a story told by Elie Wiesel, out
of his experience in the Nazi internment camps in his book, 'Night': "Then came the march past
the victims. The two men were no longer alive. Their tongues were hanging out,
swollen and bluish. But the third rope was still moving: the child, too light,
was still breathing... and so he remained for more than half an hour, lingering
between life and death, writhing before our eyes. And we were forced to look at him at close range. He was
still alive when I passed him. His tongue was still red, his eyes not yet
extinguished.
Behind me, I heard the same man asking:
'For
God's sake, where is God?"
And
from within me, I heard a voice answer:
"Where
is He? This is where--hanging here from this gallows...'
That night, the soup tasted of corpses."
Where
is God? God is here, right here,
in the midst of the chaos and pain and suffering. God is here when a 2 year old toddler is pulled from a pile
of concrete after 3 days, alive and beautiful. God is here, right here, in the unimaginable outpouring of
financial and other forms of support from nations around the globe. God is here, right here when, for once,
we can mostly put partisan interests aside in this country and work together to
do good. God is here, right here
when our relief organization UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief) is
one of the first organizations to hit the ground in Haiti, and will be one of
the last organizations to leave, years from now when the reconstruction is
complete.
And
God is here, right here, when you give of yourself to this terrible need, in
your giving through our congregation:
Simply write 'Haiti Relief' on the memo line of your check and 100% of
your dollars will go to meet the needs of the helpless in Haiti. God is here, right here, when you pray
for people of Haiti: those who
have lost their families and what few earthly possessions they have, those who
are thirsty, those who are hungry, those who have no place to sleep but the
streets. And God is here, right
here, when you realize that your troubles are really very small when you
consider the enormity of pain in this world.
THANK YOU . . .
THANK YOU . . . THANK YOU
You
all have been so patient, understanding, and encouraging in this 'down' time as
I recover from a fall on the church steps. Thank you for the cards and encouraging phone messages. Thank you for the groceries and home
cooked meals and the take out from Cecil's. Thank you for helping run errands for me and taking me to my
doctor appointments, and your company as you visited. I am now non-weight bearing in a cast for 6 weeks, and then
if all is well, I can gradually increase weight bearing in a boot for 6 more
weeks. I will not be able to drive
for 3 months.
If
you are able to help with driving, please give me a call. I will be working at
the office several days a week. Please call the church office for my
schedule. The rest of the time I
will be working at home. Feel free
to call me anytime on my cell number, 651-246-8460. While I will not be preaching on Sundays, with the
inaccessibility of the pulpit, I will be helping Peter Boehlke lead worship by
doing the Greeting, Prayers, and Benediction. I miss you all, and look forward to being with you in
worship.
*
* * * * * *
FEBRUARY SERMONS AND
SCRIPTURES
Rev. Peter Boehlke,
preaching
February
7, 2010
Caught Isaiah
6:1-8
5th
Sunday after the Epiphany Luke
5:1-11
February
14, 2010 Unveiling 2
Corinthians 3:12-4:2
Transfiguration of the
Lord Luke
9:28-36
Feb1ruary
21 Near
You Romans
10:8b-13
1st
Sunday in Lent Luke
4:1-13
February
28 Imitation Philippians
3:17-4:1
2nd Sunday in Lent Luke
13:31-35
reformatted
for hamlinechurch.org from monthly newsletter THE LIVE WIRE