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Devotion

On Sunday, we looked at Matthew’s account of Jesus walking on water as he came to the disciples, whom he had sent off on a boat. You will recall that when the disciples first saw Jesus walking on the water, they assumed it was a ghost and were afraid. But then Jesus told them, “Fear not! It is I!” Peter responded, “If it is you, then, let me come to you.” Jesus beckoned for Peter to come. Peter jumped out of the boat and began to walk on the water! It was only when he took his eyes off Jesus and realized there was a storm around him that he began to flounder and sink.
This story speaks to how hard it is to keep our eyes on Jesus in the storms we face; how hard it is to not let our fear or ego grab for control, how hard it is to let God be God. Recently, I remembered something Henri Nouwen wrote.  

A famous German circus was visiting the town that Nouwen was living in. In this circus was an internationally acclaimed troupe of trapeze artists called “The Flying Rodleighs.”

Nouwen was able to have a conversation with the leader of the troupe, and they talked about the dangers of the work. Rodleigh said, “As a flyer, I must have complete trust in my catcher. The public might think that I am the great star of the trapeze, but the real star is Joseph, my catcher. He has to be there for me with split-second precision and grab me out of the air as I come to him in the long jump.”

Nouwen asked him, “How does it work?” “The secret,” Rodleigh said, “is that the flyer does nothing and the catcher does everything. When I fly to Joseph, I simply have to stretch out my arms and wait for him to catch me with his hands and pull me safely onto the platform.”
“You do nothing?” Nouwen asked, surprised. “Nothing,” Rodleigh said.

“The worst thing the flyer can do is to try to catch the catcher. I’m not supposed to catch Joseph. It's Joseph's task to catch me. If I grabbed Joseph's wrists, I might break them, or he might break mine, or  we could fall, and that would be the end of both of us.

“A flyer must fly, and a catcher must catch, and the flyer must have faith and trust, with outstretched arms, that his catcher will be there for him.”
Nouwen said, “When Rodleigh said this with so much conviction, I realized, life is like that – one must trust the catcher. Trust that God will be there when you are forced to make a long jump - or even when you're going through the storm. Don't try to grab him; he will grab you. Just reach out your arms toward him with faith and trust.”

Yours in the journey,

Pastor Kristen


Announcements

We’re Baaaaaaack! This Sunday at 10am. Doors off the parking lot will be opened at 9:45 to begin seating. And this Wednesday night, August 19th at 7:00pm. Doors off the parking lot will be opened at 6:45pm. We look forward to seeing you!

Church Office: Currently and until further notice, the church office is closed. If you need building access, please call the church office @ (708) 672-8353.

Want to meet with Pastor Kristen? Please give her a call @ (224) 628-9128 to set up an appointment. She would be so happy to meet with you.

 

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