Hello,
I have a new job….ESPN Commentator…..well, not really.
Let me tell you what happened.
This morning, I was watching Mike and Mike on ESPN2 as I usually do when
drinking my morning coffee. They
were talking to someone about potential changes in the game of baseball….my
forte of my younger years….., and the guy said that he thought there should be
a clock out in center field counting down the time between each pitch: 20
seconds. “The game is too slow,”
he said, “we need something to keep it moving.” This clock, in his opinion, would cut down on the pitcher’s
walking around the mound, the batter’s playing in the batter’s box sand, and of
course the mandatory self-adjusting that pitchers and batters do.
“What do you think,” said Mike Greenberg, “let us know on e-mail.”
So, since I had a strong feeling about this topic, I picked up my
computer and wrote this e-mail.
Terrible idea. Only reinforces our clock- captive society….as
they say in Africa, "You Americans have all the watches, we have all the
time."
As I
was writing it, they went to commercial, and when the show returned, Mike Greenberg
says, “I like what this e-mailer says.”
Mike
Gollick then says, “Jerry says, …..”, and he reads my e-mail.
Excitement shot like lightening through me as I heard it being read and
they went on to discuss it….basically saying that although they were drawn to
my comment, baseball, after all, is entertainment, and by virtue of that it is
shaped by our societies values…a society that values (trapped in….my words) the
constraints of time.
When
their discussion was over, I jumped out of the couch, ran upstairs to tell my
wife about my new found occupation, ESPN commentator. She, too, was excited….just not as excited as me!
As I
consider this morning’s excitement, it seems very timely to me. During this
impending time of Holy Week (Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and
Easter), the clock will clamp down on many and they will not find the time to worship. With only so many hours in a day, and
so many days in the week, many will be entrapped by time and will not find any
time to worship…karate lessons, favorite shows, exhaustion from work, a family
meal to prepare….all the teeth grabbing jaws of the trap of time, will clamp
down, tight and secure, ravenously clenching, refusing to let go.
The
good news, however, is that the One who is eternal and completely free from
time has stepped into time to pry open time’s trap. Born into time, crucified at a particular time and place,
stepped upon and crushed time transversing a once stone-closed tomb, and opening
up all time ascending from a time constructed hill….Jesus, God incarnate, has
opened the jaws of time’s trap and freed us to live, now in this time, and even
when time is no more.
So…freed
from time’s clasp, let me invite you to take part in God’s time prison
breakout. Take your place this
Sunday, Palm Sunday, in the shouts of Hosanna as Jesus humbly rides into your
life. Take your place around the
table of God’s grace with the 12 disciples and hear Jesus say to you, “This is
my body, given for you. This is my
blood, shed for you.” Take your
place at the foot of the cross and hear Jesus cry out in victory, “It is
finished.” And take your place
inside the empty tomb and here the angels say, “You look for Jesus, but he is
not here. He has risen from the
dead.”
I am
sure of this; it will be worth your time!
Worth your time every Sunday, in which we experience the power of God’s
grace, the joy of Christ’s victory, the transforming divine forgiveness, and
the rock solid hope of being held in the hand of the one who is not held by the
hands of time.
Have
a great week.
God’s grace and peace, (ggap)
Pastor Jerry Nuernberger
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