The Bungee Cord   4-29-19

Hello,

     Back some time ago when I was the pastor of a church in a small town with a major two-lane highway going through it, on which the church stood, I took to the streets before the service to wave at those who were driving by.  Why? Well, in this time and age when people are not flocking to churches to experience the grace of God, we, the people of God, need to get out of our churches and bring the grace of God to the people.  (That is not to say that going to each church is unnecessary, for if we are to be people of God’s grace in the world, we need to regularly refill our tanks so that we have the spiritual energy to accomplish our goal.)

     Anyway, ever since then, when the weather permits, I have been taking my place outside the church before worship and waving at people, a wave that is meant to carry a gesture of God’s grace.  It is my hope that when people see my wave, though the world may have them spinning in life on an ever-whirling hamster wheel, that they see that God’s love for them is spinning with them.  It is my hope that when people see my wave, though a person might feel like an invisible nobody in a world that tells you that you have to be somebody to be cared about, that they are noticed by one, the Lord, who would give his life for them.  It is my hope that when people see my wave, though the world might shun them for the mess that they have made of their lives, that there is one is never ashamed to call them “friend”.  I hope that my street waving just might make a dent of God’s grace in the lives of those who drive by….a dent that I hope will grow.

     I am now the interim pastor of a church in Ligonier, Pa., a medium sized town settled in the rolling hills.  The church sits on the main street, and so there is always some traffic going to and fro.  Last Sunday, Easter, was warm enough for me to venture out to the street and do some resurrection waving.  As is always the case, some people waved back, some people gave me a gentle honk in return, some people were so consumed with their driving that they didn’t see my wave (I think that some people just acted that way because they didn’t know quite how to respond to some white-robed guy waving at them on the street), and some people actually did roll down their windows and return a greeting of God’s grace.

     One who drove by on Easter Sunday morning was a panel van that was the travelling workshop of a lock-smith.  I don’t remember the name that was written across it’s sides, but I snickered a bit when I saw the characature of one applying his unlocking trade.  It was an old van that had obviously made many an emergency call to open a locked door.  As it drove by at 7:30 on that Sunday morning, I gave a wave to the guy who behind the wheel.  He didn’t wave back, but I could see his face through the windshield.  He was wearing an old weathered baseball cap, the hair that came from under the hat was disheveled and frayed, his shirt was a well-worn sweatshirt, and a slight scowl was on his face.  I imagined when I saw him that he wasn’t very thrilled about this early morning trek to rescue someone from the foolishness of their ways.

     I couldn’t help but recognize the parallel to the one who early in the morning on this very day many years ago had rolled the stone way and unlocked a three-day-death-sealed grave.  Although I wasn’t there to see the face of that divine locksmith, I doubt that there was even a hint of a scowl on his face.  Instead, I bet that there was a snicker of delight as he pushed that boulder away as if it were a mere pebble, and a burst of laughter when out of that tomb walked the one who was crushing death under his feet.  It occurred to me as I waved at that Easter morning locksmith, that on Easter morning (and every Sunday) we celebrate the work of a locksmith that has come to rescue us from the locks that entomb us from the foolishness of our ways….locks of our deeds, and even the lock of death.

     The job that that panel-vanned locksmith had been called to was apparently not too difficult, because within 10 minutes he passed me again, going the opposite way.  I waved at him again.  He still had a grumpy look on his face, and he still did not wave back.  But I hope that my wave might have jiggled the tumblers of his life and the lives of all who caught my wave, and that they might hear the snicker of delight coming from the divine locksmith for whom even the toughest of locks is no contest to his unlocking love.

Have a great week.

God’s grace and peace, (ggap)

Pastor Jerry Nuernberger