“Dry Bones, Hear the Word of the Lord”

Meditation on Ezekiel 37:1-14

May 24--Pentecost--2015

    

     “The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me all round them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. He said to me, ‘Mortal, can these bones live?’ I answered, ‘O Lord God, you know.’ Then he said to me, ‘Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord.’

      So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, ‘Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.’ I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude. Then he said to me, ‘Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, “Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.” Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act, says the Lord.’”

***

    I am happy to share with you two exciting things that happened this week. The first is that our newly forming “Nurture” group met for the first time on Tuesday night. So far, the group is small--but mighty! They have hearts of compassion and they are generous, giving of themselves and their time to make visits and calls, send cards and bring hope and joy to the sick, elderly and shut in, lonely, and otherwise needy in our congregation. We will meet about once a month for prayer, sharing, and a brief lesson from Stephen Ministry founder Kenneth C. Haugk’s book, Christian Caregiving: a Way of Life. My main purpose for organizing this group is to encourage and help build up the people who have been so faithful to quietly and lovingly minister to others, humbly using their spiritual gifts for God’s purposes. I want each of them to know that they have everything they need to minister if they keep the Word of God in their hearts and allow themselves to be guided by the Spirit that lives within us. They are Christ’s peaceful presence amidst the suffering, a healing balm and tool of comfort as they love and serve the Lord by caring for God’s people.

      Then on Thursday, our confirmation students completed their program by sharing their faith statements with session. And we rejoiced in the Spirit, that rushing, “violent” wind that first came to us at Pentecost and continues to live and move and breathe and work among us. We cannot take credit for this new generation of sheep in our flock. We can only give thanks for the Spirit’s work, leading one lamb at a time to accept God’s mercy and grace and seek to follow God’s Son, Jesus Christ. 

      We expect a lot of our confirmation students--as we do all of our active members. We have all vowed to be Christ’s faithful disciples, obeying His Word and showing his love. We have all promised to be “a faithful member of this congregation,” to “share in its worship and ministry” through our “prayers and gifts” and “study and service,” fulfilling our calling to be Christ’s faithful disciples.  Friends, it is good for us to regularly examine ourselves and consider if we are, indeed, keeping our vows and living out our calling as active members. For we can’t expect our youngest members to keep the vows they made today and live out their calling to be Christ’s faithful if we don’t help them by encouraging them and setting a good example for them to follow.

    Our constitution of the Church tells us the ministry of members, “is a joy and a privilege. It is also a commitment to participate in Christ’s mission. A faithful member bears witness to God’s love and grace and promises to be involved responsibly in the ministry of Christ’s Church. Such involvement includes: proclaiming the good news in word and deed, taking part in the common life and worship of a congregation, lifting one another up in prayer, mutual concern, and active support, studying Scripture and the issues of Christian faith and life, supporting the ministry of the church through the giving of money, time and talents, demonstrating a new quality of life within and through the church, responding to God’s activity in the world through service to others, living responsibly in the personal, family, vocational, political, cultural, and social relationships of life, working in the world for peace, justice, freedom, and human fulfillment, participating in the governing responsibilities of the church, and reviewing and evaluating regularly the integrity of one’s membership, and considering ways in which one’s participation in the worship and service of the church may be increased and made more meaningful.”

***

    Studying the Pentecost Scriptures this week, I began to see the question of fulfilling our calling to be Christ’s faithful disciples as not a question of whether we are doing what Christ has called us to do, but, instead, a question of whether we have the faith to live out the calling. For what we say and do comes from what we believe--not just what we say we believe, but what we truly carry in our hearts and hold so dearly that we cannot help but seek to live it out.

     Our belief in the Holy Spirit is foundational to our faith! We talk about the Spirit’s work and seeking to be guided by the Spirit all the time in the PC (USA). In fact, our denominational logo is a blue cross with three symbols of the Spirit; 2 red flames burst from the base and a descending dove forms the top of the cross.

     The Spirit in God’s Word opens our hearts and minds to the truth, convicts us of our sins, and transforms us into new creatures in Christ. At Pentecost, the Spirit is poured out on the whole assembly --not just select individuals-- as they gather for worship and prayer. The Spirit enables the disciples to proclaim the gospel in the native languages of the devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. The Spirit that enters us at baptism continues to dwell with us as God’s people, uniting us in Christ. The Spirit empowers us with gifts, such as love, joy, gentleness, kindness and patience. The Spirit reveals God’s will; and enables us to obey.

     But a major problem in congregations today is that so many have lost faith in the power and presence of God’s Spirit with us. We are tempted to place our trust in worldly things, such as our own logic, experiences, or worldly wealth and ideas that lead us to measure congregational “success” by number of members or children in Sunday school.

    But the biggest temptation of all for churches, I believe, is focusing too much on MONEY, giving money too much power and importance to the ministry of our congregation. As human beings, we are rarely satisfied with the money that we have--no matter how much we have! We always want more and think we need more. This is how money can become an idol in the church. Yes, we need to be good stewards of God’s resources. And we are called to give generously and joyfully to the Lord! But we can easily move from good stewardship to idolatry if we stop relying on the guidance and power of the Spirit and begin to rely on our own ability to provide for ourselves and make ourselves “successful” by worldly means! Likewise, if we place our trust in the power of money to secure our future as a congregation, we have turned the Church of our Risen Savior into a human organization. We have quenched the Spirit and failed to be God’s faithful disciples! We are as lifeless and barren as Ezekiel’s vision of dry bones in a desert valley.

***

     Ezekiel is a prophet and priest living in Jerusalem when the Holy City and the Temple are utterly destroyed. He is one of many whom King Nebuchadnezzar exiles to Babylonia in 597 B.C. Ezekiel dwells on the question of why God allows such bad things to happen to God’s people. He concludes that it is because the people have been unfaithful to the Lord. He wonders what the future holds if God has abandoned God’s own people. Is all hope lost?

     And then the Spirit of the Lord carries Ezekiel to the valley of the dry bones, a battlefield graveyard filled with the bones of dead soldiers, symbolizing the death of Israel. When God speaks to Ezekiel, the Lord calls him “mortal”-- for that is what we are! We are only human. The Spirit leads Ezekiel all over the valley and the bones are “very dry.” And God says, “O mortal, can these bones live again?” Ezekiel replies, “O Lord God, only you know.” And the Lord tells Ezekiel to preach--“prophesy over the bones!” Say to them “O dry bones, hear the Word of the Lord!”

    The promise of life is there for Israel, friends--and for the Church. We are just dry bones if we try to be the Church on our own, solving our problems by trusting in our own skills and abilities, logic, or worldly possessions. Let go of any fear for the future and stop worrying about money. Be more like our newly forming Nurture group that focuses on loving and serving the Lord through prayer, visitation, and other compassionate acts for members in need. Be a good example to our newest, youngest members--our confirmation graduates. Be Christ’s faithful disciples by giving generously and joyfully, trusting that the Spirit of God that was poured out on the believers at Pentecost still lives and moves and breathes amidst the assembly of believers, gathered for worship and prayer.

    Remember Ezekiel’s words of hope to God’s people in their suffering. “O, dry bones! Hear the Word of the Lord!... I will put breath into you, and you shall live again.  And you shall know that I am the Lord!”

Let us pray.

Holy One, thank you for your Spirit that continues to dwell in our hearts and amidst the assembly of believers today! Thank you for the Body of Christ, the Church in every time and place, and for this congregation in this small, rural community. Lord, we want to be Christ’s faithful disciples. Remind us that we are only mortal and that we need you for our very lives. Help us to hear your Word and obey! Forgive us for our worldly attitudes, for our love of money and desire for more, and for when we have given into the temptation to trust too much in ourselves, our own abilities and our own reasoning rather than fully trusting in your Spirit to be our wisdom, power, protection and support--our hope for the future. We pray your Spirit will strengthen our newest and youngest members, as well as those of us who have been members for many years. Change us all into the likeness of your Son and remind us often that we Church belong to you. And that without faith, we are merely dry bones in a desert valley. In Christ we pray. Amen.

“Lord, is this the time?”

Meditation on Acts 1:1-11

Ascension Sunday

May 17, 2015

  “In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over the course of forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. ‘This’, he said, ‘is what you have heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’

       So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. They said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up towards heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

***

      Sometimes people get to talking about the past and what they would do differently if they had the chance to do it all over again. Some say they wouldn’t change a thing. They remember their youth as “the good old days” and long for those days to return. But I remember how hard it was to be a teenager and a young adult. I would never want to be facing all those choices again as I was graduating from high school—and feeling more than a little frightened and uncertain about the future.  

       As a high school senior, I didn’t know what career I wanted to pursue, only that I wanted to go to college. I knew some things that I liked to do--I liked to write, but I had heard that it was difficult to find jobs, and I was troubled by the adjective “starving” that was often linked with the word “writer.” That sounded bad! And I liked to teach and had done well in school, but I knew that teaching would be stressful. I remembered all those naughty kids in my classes! And I imagined that parents and administrators would not always be nice to teachers, who may be blamed when students receive poor grades or earn low scores on standardized tests.

    My parents, though they were college grads, offered me very little advice about college and career, except to pursue a major that would lead to a “good” job, meaning one that would allow me to earn enough money to support myself. I didn’t think to ask advice from the church or a pastor or even to ask the Lord what He wanted me to do. We were not involved with a church at the time. We had moved away from our small town when I was a teen and had not found a new worship home. In truth, we had not looked very hard. There were many other things to do besides church and Sunday school in our new community, a suburb northwest of Washington, D.C.

   Looking back—this is what I wish I could change. I wish that my family had been active members of a loving congregation, that I personally had had a stronger faith and had hung out with Christian friends as a teen. I wish that I had gone to church regularly, read the Bible more and prayed! When I was a teen, church seemed “uninteresting” and “irrelevant.” But there were some tough years ahead—years in which the support of a loving church and a strong faith would have made all the difference!

      It wasn’t until after my first two years of college, when I transferred to a university in Baltimore to pursue a teaching degree, that I came face to face with who I really was (without the Lord) and how selfish I had been. The Spirit nudged me to that conclusion, convicting me of my sinful attitudes and revealing to me God’s amazing love and mercy for sinners—for me!! But the first step toward spiritual health was choosing to respond to a personal invitation to an ice cream social, sponsored by Intervarsity Christian Fellowship. The ecumenical group, led by volunteer youth leaders and funded by donations from local congregations, met on campus for worship, small group Bible study, prayer and spiritual encouragement.

   I can’t “fix” the past now. The time machine from the Back to the Future movies has not yet become a reality. But there is one thing I can do as a pastor and a sincere believer who wishes she had always known that Jesus Christ is the answer for all people. So many folks today, young and old, choose to walk in darkness and despair rather than in the hope and promise of our Lord! The one thing I can do is to encourage families and young people, such as the two graduating seniors in our church family.

   Lexi and Logan, don’t forget about your church and all that you have learned from God’s people! Especially, don’t forget about the Lord—and the call to be His disciples! Remember always God’s love for you! He wants to help you carry your burdens and teach you His ways. Wherever you are, whatever you do, keep on asking the Lord to guide you and give you courage to do His will. You can trust that God will do this—if you stay close to Him! Seek God in His Word and through simple daily prayer. You don’t need fancy words! Speak to the Lord from your heart! God’s will for you is what is best for you—and for all of us!

   To Lexi and Logan’s families, I say this: don’t forget about your church and all that you are learning here. Just because your children have reached young adulthood, your work of raising them in the nurture of the Lord is not over! Continue to be good models of a Christian family—praying, attending worship and meditating on God’s Word. Seek to be the people God wants you to be. Don’t think that you know God’s will, without asking Him! This next one is maybe the hardest of all; don’t love your children more than you love God. Don’t hold onto to them too tightly—so that you keep them from finding the Lord’s will for their lives. Pray for them and trust in the Lord. Remind them that His will shall be revealed to them, if they are faithful to seek Him. Reassure them, especially if they feel confused about what path to take in the future, that when we seek to follow Christ, God will make something beautiful of our lives. In His time.

     

***

    Today, along with being “Graduation Sunday,” is Ascension Sunday in our church year. God’s Word transports us back to those precious final days and moments that Christ’s followers spend with their risen Savior, before he ascends to be with the Father. Acts describes this period as lasting 40 days, and the teaching to have come through the Holy Spirit, though the Spirit had not yet descended on the crowd on Pentecost.  During these 40 days, the Lord persuades them that He has, indeed, risen from the dead! What exactly Christ says and how he persuades them is not known, except that it is through “many convincing proofs” and “speaking about the kingdom of God.”

     Jesus had spoken about the kingdom of God throughout his ministry on earth, urging hearts toward repentance and showing the way to the Father and faithful living. He taught His followers to reveal the Kingdom to the world by speaking God’s Word and engaging in acts of kindness, mercy, healing and love. He taught the disciples to pray for God’s Kingdom to COME and “THY will”—God’s will!—“be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  So, when the apostles hear of the promise of the Holy Spirit sent in “not many days from now,” they think, “This MUST be it! This MUST be the Kingdom we have been waiting for!”  

     But they still don’t understand what the “Kingdom” is. They are “stuck” in the past, still hoping for the “good old days” of ancient Israel, before the first temple and the Holy City were destroyed and God’s people were exiled from their home land and held captive by their enemies. The apostles ask Jesus, “Is this it?? Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?”   Jesus answers, “It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.” What he is saying is, “Trust God for what you don’t know and cannot see. Have faith! The Father will bring about His Kingdom, in His time.” The Lord promises that when the Spirit comes, the apostles will have all the power they need to be Christ’s witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to all the earth. This is his final word to them—before He is lifted up. And they stand there gazing at the sky until “two men in white robes” appear and urge them to stop standing around, looking up. They assure them that Jesus IS coming back! In the meantime, they have work to do! Their work will begin with gathering for prayer in their most holy place—Jerusalem—and preparing for a mighty act God. The promised Spirit will transform and empower them to be what the Lord wants them to be—Christ’s witnesses to all the earth.

***

     Friends, we have the promised Spirit with us now! By faith and the power of the Spirit, we are the Church, the Body of Christ. We have been called and empowered to be His witnesses, carrying His message of hope to the world. Sometimes, we just want to get comfortable and stand around looking at the sky, doing nothing while we are waiting for the return of Christ and His coming Kingdom. But we have work to do! Be faithful to the Lord’s call! Let us live out the gospel, working together to build up our faith community. Let us pray for and trust God with all the children and youth of our congregation. The Spirit will lead them on the right paths, if they seek God in prayer and keep His Word in their hearts. It is also important that, if our young people do leave the community, they continue to worship the Lord wherever they live. Help them find a loving church or Christian group like Intervarsity that will strengthen them in the faith and support them through the challenging years ahead! And may we all bear witness to the love and grace of Christ and the coming Kingdom of God. And as we trust in Him and seek to follow Him, God will make something beautiful of our lives. In His time.

Let us pray.

Heavenly Father, we gather now to praise you and pray for your present and coming Kingdom, though we cannot yet imagine how wonderful it will be! May your will be done through us, Lord! Send your Spirit, again and again, to fill and empower us and transform us into the people you want us to be. Thank you that we can trust you to make something beautiful of our lives, if we only submit to your will. Thank you for your love and the sacrifice of your Son so that the world may be saved through Him. May we be faithful to be Christ’s disciples, bearing His hope every day to our communities and world. Keep us firmly in your grasp, Lord, not allowing any of us to be lured away from the church and the faith. Strengthen us to confess our sins daily and to forgive ourselves and others as you so kindly forgive us. And we pray for our children and youth in this community—that you will grant us wisdom to train them up in the way they should go—so that when they are old, they will never stop loving and serving you. May we learn, more and more, to entrust our children to your tender care and not to worry about them when they are away from us. Lead them to right paths-- to be witnesses of your gospel of love and grace and pass on the faith through word and deed to the next generation. Draw us all, Lord, to find a “holy place,” a quiet place to pray and find refreshment in the Spirit of our living Christ, through whom we pray. Amen.

       

    

    

    

“The God Who Knows Us”

Meditation on Psalm 139 for Audrey Stomberg’s Funeral

May 11, 2015

“O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
   you discern my thoughts from far away.
You search out my path and my lying down,
   and are acquainted with all my ways.
Even before a word is on my tongue,
   O Lord, you know it completely.
You hem me in, behind and before,
   and lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
   it is so high that I cannot attain it. 

Where can I go from your spirit?
   Or where can I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there;
   if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
If I take the wings of the morning
   and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
   and your right hand shall hold me fast.
If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall cover me,
   and the light around me become night’,
even the darkness is not dark to you;
   the night is as bright as the day,
   for darkness is as light to you.
For it was you who formed my inward parts;
   you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
   Wonderful are your works;
that I know very well.
   My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
   intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes beheld my unformed substance.
In your book were written
   all the days that were formed for me,
   when none of them as yet existed.
How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God!
   How vast is the sum of them!
I try to count them—they are more than the sand;
   I come to the end—I am still with you.……
Search me, O God, and know my heart;
   test me and know my thoughts.
See if there is any wicked way in me,
   and lead me in the way everlasting.”

***

     God was always with her--and Audrey knew it. When she and Lester lived in their house in Clara City, she saw the Lord in the sunlight that streamed in her living room window--and in the shadows when the sun dipped low in the sky at night. She sensed God with her when she cultivated flowers in her garden or nurtured her indoor, potted plants. She felt God’s comforting presence as the wind bent branches on the trees and rustled the leaves. She knew God’s goodness when the rain fell and the snow swirled from the sky or the birds burst into song. And she remembered God’s loving provision for her as she watched her feathered friends nibble seed from a tray on the great, big rock in her front yard.

     Audrey was proud of her rock! Do you know the story? When the city was digging up Audrey and Lester’s yard to install new sewers or storm drains, they encountered an enormous rock, too large and heavy for human hands to lift. It was in the way and slowing down progress. What should they do with this rock? Audrey heard about the rock, went out to look at the rock. She saw “treasure” and “opportunity” while others saw “nuisance” and “obstruction.” She worked out a deal; the rock stayed. Now she could look out her window and see yet another reminder from Creation of God’s everlasting presence and faithfulness.

    “Blessed be the Lord, my rock, my strength and my shield!” Audrey would say, quoting from the Psalms. “My heart trusts in him.” She was still reading from the Bible every day when she lived in her home. She often quoted Bible verses. I admired that! It truly was God’s living Word to her. She was always listening for His voice, and ready to share something the Spirit had whispered into her heart. She was an evangelist, ready to share her faith with friend, neighbor, and stranger.

       Audrey warmly welcomed me to Ebenezer when I arrived about 4 years ago. She invited me to her home and tried to fatten me up with cookies from the Clara City bakery or cake she had iced that morning. She took me on tours throughout their house, including downstairs where Lester kept his collection of toy tractors and she had oodles of fabric, thread, cotton batting for quilts, foam for stuffing pillows and many other sewing and weaving supplies. She shared stories as she showed me photos on the wall of her “3 boys” and their families. She gave great hugs and giggled when I came. She hugged me again when I left and sang out, “I love you!” while she waved goodbye.  

     Audrey attended worship at Ebenezer with Lester regularly, along with Friendship Circle--the church’s quilting group-- and Presbyterian Women --until about 3 years ago, when Lester grew increasingly weak and struggled to get around. Audrey had been raised in the faith at Trinity Lutheran church in Sacred Heart, but became a member of Ebenezer after marrying Lester in 1950 when she was only 17. Over the years, she taught Sunday school, was ordained as an elder, and served as clerk of session.

      She had many gifts, in addition to teaching and administration, especially when it came to needle and thread, fabric and a sewing machine. Her quilts were not just blankets or bedspreads; they were beautiful family heirlooms. She took on complicated projects others wouldn’t dare attempt, sewing not only everyday clothing and items for household use, but also prom gowns, bridesmaid dresses, and wedding gowns! In addition to quilting and sewing, Audrey knitted, crocheted, embroidered and did hardanger, a form of intricate, Norwegian white needlework. Up until relatively recently, Audrey had made the personalized keepsake hankies embellished with hardanger that we gave to parents when their infants were baptized.

        What most impressed me when I first visited Audrey and Lester was watching them work at their loom in the spare bedroom. I discovered that they had taught themselves to weave after they had retired from farming and their children were all grown. Lester built the loom himself from a kit with modifications --later he made 2 more!--and they got busy making rugs, mostly to give away.

      Audrey was sad when they could no longer make it to church every Sunday. She missed her friends and the fellowship, but assured me that she could still worship God in her living room! They listened to services on the radio and TV and sang along with the good, old-fashioned hymns. She could worship God anywhere because God was always with her.

***

    The writer of Psalm 139 asks the Lord, “Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?” Then he answers his own question--nowhere. We can go nowhere in this world that the Spirit of the Lord won’t already be there ahead of us. God is everywhere. In this world and the world to come, in life and in death, the God who lovingly created us is always with us. And God isn’t just present--the Lord is our help, our guide, our rock and refuge in times of trouble. The psalmist writes, “If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me and your right hand shall hold me fast.”

     But you know, God’s everlasting presence with us would not bring us comfort and peace if we were not sure that the Lord loved us and truly knew us as we really are. Psalm 139 reassures us that no one else understands us quite like the Lord, who loves us, despite His intimate knowledge of our being. Our God knows and “searches” our hearts and discerns our every thought. The Lord knows every word we are going to say. The Lord is “acquainted” with all our “ways.”

      While the psalms provide a variety of images of our Lord, such as God as king, shepherd, father, and mother, God in Psalm 139 is, very appropriately when we consider Audrey’s passions, the “knitter” and the “weaver.” “For it was you who formed my inward parts,” the psalmist says. “you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; that I know very well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was being made in secret,”---and now listen--“intricately woven in the depths of the earth.”    

***

     The knitting, weaving, sewing and Bible reading gradually slowed, then ceased for Audrey. Lester died a year ago last December. Though she seemed strong at first in his last days, her condition deteriorated until she was eventually moved to a special unit at the nursing home for patients with dementia. While she had moments of clarity and continued to tell stories mixed with fleeting memories, she no longer recognized friends, family or pastor. She retreated into herself, moving ever closer to her life in the world to come.

    One of my last visits with her was on a Thursday. I was preparing to leave town to see my family when I stopped by the nursing home. I found her fast asleep in a recliner in a common area not far from the nurses’ station. A woman holding a stuffed, yellow “Big Bird” upside down approached me when I sat next to Audrey. She smiled when I said, “Hello.” I leaned in close to Audrey, touched her hand and called her name. When she continued to sleep, I waited quietly, taking in my surroundings. I was disappointed that I didn’t get to speak with Audrey and remind her of God’s love--and how the church missed her. But I saw God in the warm sunlight streaming in through the window. I remembered the Lord’s faithful provision for me as I listened to birds chirping and nibbling at seed in a nearby cage. I sensed God’s presence amongst some of the Lord’s neediest children, who seemed at peace. And I began to pray aloud for Audrey and my new friend, who joined me in the “Amen.” 

***

    Friends, God will be with us always throughout our lives of faith -- as the Lord was for Audrey. We will continue to experience times of joy and sorrow. Times of confidence, but also times when we are anxious. We will have times when we feel spiritually “full” and “whole” but also times when we will feel broken, empty and maybe even lost, especially if we are mourning our loved ones. Our feelings will change, moment by moment. But the God who wonderfully made us and knew all our days when none of them yet existed will remain the same loving, gracious, merciful Lord our God has always been. Blessed be the Lord, our rock, strength and shield! My heart trusts in Him!

      The Spirit that dwells within us will continue to draw us nearer to our Lord and stir a yearning in us to know God more. May we be like the psalmist who exclaims in wonder, “How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! I try to count them--they are more than the sand.” May we come to realize, also like the psalmist, the most important thing of all: “I come to the end--I am still with you.”