Hello,
Regular readers of the Bungee Cord know that on Sunday mornings before
our two services I stand out in front of the church on Main Street, greeting
people and waving at cars as they go by.
Why do I do it? Well, it seems to me that God’s grace is not
meant to be kept inside the walls of the church, and so as people drive by I
wave at them as a gesture of grace.
In a world where people are all too often forgotten or ignored, I wave
at everyone in hopes that they will discover from me that there is one who
counts them important, important enough to die for: God. Maybe my
wave, through the power of the Holy Spirit, will be the catalyst for a life
filled with divine hope, peace and love.
Who knows?
This Sunday as I was waving, up Main Street from the south came an old,
blue paneled van. As it came hissing
and squeaking my way, I issued a wave to its passengers. The driver’s window was lowered, so as
the van passed me I could clearly see his arm returning my wave and a rugged,
polite smile on his face. As he
was waving, the man who was in the passenger seat leaned toward the driver, and
he yelled at me, “Party down!” through his scraggly beard and lifting a cup
(ironically it looked like a coffee cup from a gas station) as if it were a
stein of beer my way.
Quite a greeting to a pastor draped in liturgical robes and garb
standing out in front of a church on a Sunday morning. “Party down!” True enough, I usually have my traveling mug of coffee with
me as I stand on the sidewalk, but I haven’t yet thought to raise it as that
man’s cup of coffee was raised toward me and shout, “Party down!”
But maybe I should. After
all, that really is what every Sunday morning is all about. It is about “partying down” in celebration of the victory of all
victories when God hit sin with a breath suffocating blow on a Good Friday
cross, and sent death to an eternal grave as Jesus walked out of an Easter
tomb. Every Sunday, we who live on
this side of God’s victory gather together to celebrate: celebrate that the mess
that we have made of our lives does not have the power to determine the future
of our lives because our futures are empowered by the forgiveness of God;
celebrate that there is nothing in all of creation (Romans 8)…nothing in life,
and nothing in death that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus;
celebrate that God Almighty….yes, God Almighty…deigns to inhabit our lives.
We don’t gather every Sunday morning to learn about how to be a good
person. We don’t gather every Sunday morning to adopt principles for a happy
life. We don’t gather every Sunday morning to find out how to be successful and
rich. We don’t gather on Sunday
morning to get away from “bad” people (truth is, we who gather on Sunday
morning are just as sinful as those who don’t).
We gather on Sunday mornings to…….Party Down! Every week as the world tries to beat us down, as the
pressures of life try to bring us to our knees, as our failures try to engrave
their tattoo on us, as the world trembles in fear and wobbles in
hopelessness…..we gather together to Party Down….not to inebriate ourselves and
become numb to the world, but rather to be inspired (in-Spirited) by God to
take God’s victory into the world.
So, as this Bungee Cord comes your way, envision it as a gesture of
grace to you, and imagine that as you read it, I am raising a cup of wine,
inviting you to come on in and “Party Down!”
Have a great week.
God’s grace and peace,
Pastor Jerry Nuernberger
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