I was glad when they said unto me,
Let us go into the house of the Lord.
Psalm 122:1
That verse has never meant more than it did Sunday morning at FBC Murfreesboro. Thirteen months of caution amidst chaos had keep our fellowship physically apart. I spent sixteen Sundays as your pastor without standing in front of you and behind the sacred desk to which I afforded stewardship. Over two and half hundred masked saints came marching in, about as happy as the ones in a Mardi Gras parade. It was good to be together on the Sunday that marked the most substantial next step toward a new normalcy.
The theme for the day was “Chapter 41.” In Genesis, chapter forty tells the story of young Joseph’s confinement, frustration, and divine development. God did his best and necessary work on the soon to be Prince of Egypt during an unwanted, unwarranted season of seclusion. But in that jail, he learned some things. Things that served him well. Things that prepared him for the good days ahead. Lessons, if left unlearned, would have prevented his rise to power, or finding his place in God’s purposeful plan.
The last thirteen months have felt like Chapter 40, sure enough. Some of us got a double dose of its effect, and more through the other challenges that that year brought. Like Joseph, I hope we learned some things that will serve us well as we begin to emerge from the frustrating fog.
I hope we learned what really matters most, and that it rarely has to do with our being inconvenienced. I hope we learned that the church can be, and really is, the church outside the walls we love being inside of. I hope we learned that it’s ok to not be in control. That God has promised to supply all our needs, even if his gifts do not come in the form of all we want. To care about our neighbors, known and unknown who we want to help, and certainly never hurt. I hope we acquired a little more of that precious commodity, patience. I hope we came to believe that our future can be even better than the past, though it may not look and feel the same. I pray we came to keep the forces that appeal to our lesser angels at least at arm’s length, and those that call us to a higher plane within it. And the list goes on.
“I hope we learned that it’s ok to not be in control. That God has promised to supply all our needs, even if his gifts do not come in the form of all we want. To care about our neighbors, known and unknown who we want to help, and certainly never hurt. I hope we acquired a little more of that precious commodity, patience. I hope we came to believe that our future can be even better than the past, though it may not look and feel the same. ”
One thing I don’t have to hope for is to pastor a people who love God, each other, and others. I have seen and felt the evidence of that over these weeks. And I don’t have to hope for a God who wants to do immeasurable more than we can ask or imagine, all in the power and spirit of his Son. I am just waiting to see how it shakes out.
I’m sure you know that the specifics of our return remain a work in progress. We are learning new things at every turn and getting more comfortable with new freedoms and new opportunities. I do ask for your patience and positive spirit as we do. There is much to celebrate and anticipate, and on that our heart and hard work right now reside.
I’ll see you in house or online Sunday as we immerse ourselves in another story of “Resurrection Done Old School.” Till then, keep learning from Chapter 40. And leaning into Chapter 41. It’s almost here.
