Buck Up

In 1999 my father told me that the world was going to come to a screeching halt as the calendar rolled over into 2000. He was prepared. He made lots of bullets and stored them in his basement along with a bunch of canned goods. Bullets would be the new currency and if we wanted to survive we could come live in his basement with the rest of the family. This was not the first time the world was supposed to collapse. I vaguely remember in fifth grade being told the world was running out of oxygen and we would all die like fish laying on a hot sunny dock. There were other examples but I think you get the point.

Since the pandemic hit, I've been hearing others talk about global warming, pestilences and plagues, economic collapse and political

unrest. Some of it is even true.

Again, I return to the scriptures for clarity. People have been predicting the world's end practically since its inception. Consider Luke 21. It happened like this. A bunch of people were standing around admiring the Temple and Jesus took the opportunity to tell them that it was all going to end up in a heap of rubble. Jesus continues to hold no illusions. The crowd wanted to know when this would happen. I can only presume that wanted to know how long they had to make bullets and buy canned green beans.

Instead of sharing the date of destruction, Jesus reframed the problem. He told them to watch out for "doomsday deceivers" (The Message translation). He told them not to fall for such foolishness and said this specifically, "When you hear of wars and uprisings, keep your head and don't panic. This is routine history and no sign of the end." Routine history. Scary and painful and confusing history.

Nonetheless - do this. Keep your head. Don't panic. Buck up. Seems like good advice for 2021. Funny and wonderful and miraculous how timeless Jesus' words are for us.

My Awesome Friend, Who Was Awesomely Miss-Informed

My friend did reluctantly agree to enter the church with the steeple and receive baptism. It was the last time we ever baptized in a church; today, we head down to the river. I learned from my friend that sustained sobriety serves as a kind of holding tank for folks as God gently, ever so slowly, heals them. Over time, the shame that clung to her sloughed off. Today, she attends a “regular” church and is a vital part of their congregation. Her fear of God and steeples has dissipated as her time in recovery has lengthened and the lessons learned have become more true and real for her.

Recovery is rarely an instantaneous moment of glorious clarity (although it happens); mostly, it is faithfully putting in the time, doing the work, showing up and waiting as God does his part.

“The good news is, this is the hardest part, and every hour, every day, every week the process will get easier, more or less, if you stay the course and take toward this new life that you don’t want and can’t yet imagine, a life that will someday seem so much more valuable and hard-won than the life that came before.”

Stienberg and Bader, Out of the Wreck I Rise

Hold on just a minute. And then two. Breathe.