Greetings, Easter People! We still feel the thrill in our spirits as we celebrate the Resurrection! Thanks be to God for the amazing worship, sermons, and music, the people coming together to praise God for this beautiful and eternal gift of life. I’m grateful to the clergy and laity of the Harbor District, who continues to offer their gifts to the building of the Kin-dom!
As I reflect on the Resurrection, I have also found my mind focused on the mission of our church: transformation. We seek to: make disciples for the transformation of the world. And yet, what do we know of transformation? To transform is to make a real change, a dramatic change in form or appearance (according to the dictionary). How often do we transform or see transformation? The only kind of real transformation I have seen happen “all at once” is the metamorphosis of a caterpillar into a butterfly.
A caterpillar, in order to change in this way, undergoes change and the most basic of levels. Once in the chrysalis, the body of a caterpillar becomes more or less a soup of tissues, limbs, organs – parts and pieces – that allows the drastic change to occur. Once the soup is “stirred” around, the new pieces and parts begin to form and take the shape of a butterfly. The creature emerging from the chrysalis looks and acts nothing like the creature who went in; truly, this is a new creature! The few weeks offer a dramatic change or transformation. And yet, I can’t think of many other transformative changes like this.
Thanks be to God, we are offered transformation over a lifetime; the world might be transformed bit by bit, one person at a time. The first Easter tells us that we don’t always recognize the miracles or transformative experiences happening right before us. We don’t see what or who may be staring into our eyes or the significance of that individual. Mary didn’t recognize Jesus, even though she was one of his closest friends. Maybe it was the grief. Or the fear. Or the disorientation because people just DON’T walk out of their graves! But Jesus did. And when he calls Mary’s name, she knows then and only then who Christ is. He is her Savior, and he is risen, he is risen indeed! And I believe she was transformed a bit that day. Her faith and her understanding leveled up; she loved God in a new way, with a stronger love, that day.
I pray that in this season of Eastertide, we will be open to the miracles before us, we will be open to leveling up. If we aren’t open to the work God is doing, we often miss it. When we hold onto the grief and fear, our ability to see what’s right in front of us is greatly diminished (if it works at all). Preachers preach to self – we need to hear our own words. I confess I need to hear these as well: open yourself to the miracles, to new creation, to renewal and excitement which is all around us! Congregations around us are finding peace as they strike out anew in mission and ministry, thanks be to God. Newly formed congregations are finding homes in their communities and partnering with sister congregations, thanks be to God. Groups of faithful disciples are finding homes within Lighthouse Congregations who are welcoming, with open arms, these wanderers. Clergypersons are finding one another, and eating around the table together, as they share in sorrow, find strength in connection, and are listening to Christ’s call, and sharing ideas with one another as they begin again.
Thanks be to God for the Resurrection of his son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Thanks be to God for the created world, which shows us how to move from winter to spring. Thanks be to God for our sisters and brothers who are our companions along this bizarre life journey. May we level up in our love of Christ. And may the peace of Christ be with you all.