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Posted by on Jun 23, 2024

Power Over the Storms

Power Over the Storms

Two winters ago, we had a series of atmospheric rivers on the West Coast. They began in November and continued well into March. Storms are normal at that time of year, but these were far more powerful and destructive than regular winter storms.

Living just a block from the ocean, we are used to hearing two days in advance when a big storm is coming. The waves crash on the beach, water splashes up over the cliffs, and we can hear them from our home. We don’t hear the waves except in winter.

That year, the winds howled, the waves crashed, trees fell across paths in the state park across the street from our home. In fact, the park was closed after a falling tree killed a man walking through one afternoon. The road along the cliffs above the water washed away a few blocks from our home. Fences along the sidewalk by the field were toppled and seaweed landed across the street, clear over to the field on the other side. Two parts of the cliffs, in areas where people are warned to stay away, slid off the rest of the cliff. One slid into the ocean. One slid down onto the beach. To my amazement, a day later, all of that rock from the cliffs had been washed away into the sea.

As it happened, in mid-March I needed to go to a nearby city to help care for a baby. The family lives near the bottom of a hill, one house removed from the road to the top. Electric buses go up and down the hill day and night. There is a distinctive whine from the engines as they go up the hill. More than once during the time I was there, I woke with a start in the night as I heard the bus go up the hill. It sounded very much like the whine of the wind as the storms blew from the ocean, across the field, and over our home.

It used to be that when I read the story of the calming of a storm on the Sea of Galilee, I thought of a storm with lots of waves and some wind. I’ve seen waves in lakes and on rivers. I’ve seen storms blowing in from the ocean. But after that winter, I have an entirely different comprehension of what the stakes can be and how powerful the winds and waves really are. It’s no wonder peoples all around the world have believed that their gods are responsible for storms. Only a very powerful force could possibly cause so much uproar or still it so quickly. The storm stops. The sun comes out from behind the clouds. The birds begin to sing again. And all is right with the world.

Jesus had been teaching in Galilee for a while on the day he decided to leave behind the crowds and go to the other side of the lake by boat. Hundreds of people had followed him around the side of the lake to hear him teach and heal the sick. He needed a rest and some time to pray. Going just a bit up the coast was not going to be enough. At evening, people would not follow him around to the other side of the lake.

He lay down in the boat to rest and he slept deeply. He didn’t notice the beginning of the storm. His friends did their best to handle it on their own, keeping the boat afloat and heading in the right direction. But eventually the waves got so big they were crashing over the top of the boat. There was real danger they would all die in the storm. That’s when they woke Jesus.

To their amazement, he didn’t seem at all worried, just puzzled that they were so frightened. “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?”

Although they had been traveling with him, hearing the stories he told about the Kingdom of God, learning the deeper meanings of the stories, and seeing the miracles of healing bodies and minds, they still saw him as a prophet or a wise teacher. But now he can calm a storm? That is mind-blowing. “Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?” (Mk 4:35-41)

Job also had an encounter with God. He knew he was dealing with the Lord God, but he had not had a happy experience in the process. His entire family had died, his business and wealth were gone, his friends had abandoned him or tried to convince him he must be a great sinner to be so severely punished by God. Job believed in the depth of his being that all of this had happened unjustly. So, he confronted God and stated the reasons why he believed God had acted unjustly.

God responded to Job’s accusations and a conversation developed. God spoke to him from out of a storm, “Who shut within doors the sea, when it burst forth from the womb…?” God pointed out the clouds he had made, the darkness at night, the shoreline that kept the sea from sweeping over all the land. If he could do all of that, who was Job to complain of injustice?

Their conversation continued. Eventually, having proved Job’s faithfulness in the face of tragedy, God restored his fortunes. Nevertheless, the lost family could never be restored, only replaced with a new family. And hopefully, the suffering he endured could only help him become more compassionate. (Jb 38:1, 8-11)

So how do we understand storms, figuratively in stories and in the hard times of our lives and/or literally and physically in the world around us? Why does suffering come? Who is in control of the forces of nature? Who controls our behavior to and with each other? Where does Christ come into the story?

In our Christian tradition, we return to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. He was a man, an ordinary guy as far as anyone knew, who had a role and an origin no one suspected and we can’t really explain logically. Truly human and truly divine. One in being with the Father. Yet he lived an ordinary human life, followed the call he received at his baptism, shared the truths he had come to understand about the Kingdom of Love, the Kingdom of God, and eventually died because he would not deny who he was and what he had come to understand of God’s love and plan for all of us. He was raised from the dead and we all have a very special life because of him.

St.  Paul reminded the folks in Corinth that all changed once Jesus died and was raised again from death to life. Those who live believing in him no longer live for themselves. Those who live in Christ are “a new creation: the old things have passed away … new things have come.” (2 Cor 5:14-17)

The storms of life come and go. Sometimes they blow very strongly and we wonder if we will survive. They may come upon us quickly, like a storm that blows up suddenly at sea. Other times we see them coming from a distance and have time to prepare.

Storms never last forever. The sun comes out again. New life sprouts. It’s not that God causes storms to punish folks. Rain comes with storms and waters the earth. Crops grow, the land blooms, and life moves forward.

Like the people of Corinth, the disciples in the boat, and even Job so many years ago, we don’t always understand what is happening. But we live in Christ. We are a new creation. We have a well-founded hope and confidence that new things have come. All will be well.

This week, may we all keep our eyes open to see the Lord’s presence in the events of our daily lives: the people we meet, the challenges we face, the joys we experience, the surprises that cross our paths. The Lord is there with us in the boat. We never need to be afraid, even when the winds blow wildly, or the whining engine of the electric bus wakes us in the night!

Readings for the Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time – Cycle B

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Posted by on Feb 4, 2024

Hard Times Come – Where’s the Lord?

Hard Times Come – Where’s the Lord?

It’s raining again as I write these words. Winter in our area can be very wet or very dry. This year, it’s been relatively dry until recently, but the ground is saturated and water is freely flowing off the coastal mountains and to the ocean. It’s not unusual to get 2 inches or more in 24 hours when the big storms blow in from the ocean. This one is predicted to last 2 or more days, so there will be plenty of runoff!

A song is going through my head as I listen to the rain. “Raindrops keep falling on my head, but that doesn’t mean my eyes will soon be turning red…” Blessedly, the rain is not leaking through our roof since we got it repaired a few years ago. But the sense of rain as symbol for hard times which will end is also included in that song and resonates with the story of Job.

Job was a good man. He was married. He had children. His business affairs were successful. He was honest. He fulfilled his religious duties willingly. All should have gone well for him. He was doing everything right. The story tells us that the Lord was very pleased with Job.  But one day, while the Lord was speaking with his angels, Satan came among them too. When the Lord pointed out Job and what a wonderful person he was, Satan objected that it was only because all was going well for Job. It would be a different story if Job lost everything.

The Lord didn’t think it would be, so he gave Satan permission to do whatever he pleased with Job, except to kill him. Satan set to work quickly. The large herds of sheep, donkeys, camels, and other work animals he owned were all killed or stolen. A house fell on top of his children and killed them all. Job was devastated, but he spoke the famous words, “Naked I came forth from my mother’s womb and naked shall I go back again. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” (Jb 1:21)

This amazed Satan and pleased the Lord. But Satan persisted, noting that Job had not suffered anything physically himself. The Lord gave Satan permission to cause physical pain but not to kill Job. So Job was afflicted with itchy sores all over his body that caused tremendous pain and suffering. His wife and friends all assumed it was because he had committed some terrible sin that he was being punished this way. Sure, some rain falls in every life, but not so much! Only great sinners would be punished so dramatically according to this way of thinking.

Most of the book details the accusations of Job’s friends and his responses defending himself. Job also calls on God to justify having taken everything away and allowed such suffering to befall him. He begs for relief or death. Job reminds God of his own faithfulness and asks God to respond in kind – with faithfulness. (Jb 7:1-4, 6-7)

Finally, God responds. He reminds Job in a series of undeniable images of his power and Job’s lack of power over much of what happens in life and in the world. Job accepts the fact that God is in charge and has the right to do what God pleases. And the Lord relents and restores Job’s good fortune, granting him a double all he had lost and a life twice as long as normal.

In the story, God then turns to the so-called friends and defends Job as a falsely accused innocent man. The false accusers must apologize to Job, who forgives them.

The book of Job is not to be taken literally. It’s a poem intended to teach something important about the relationship between people and God. People go through hard times. God is aware of the suffering. God will reward and somehow restore those who remain faithful.

As Jesus began his ministry of teaching and healing in Galilee, he did not remain in just one place, working with a few friends and their families. He healed Simon Peter’s mother-in-law with the touch of his hand. She got up and began to serve her guests. After an evening of healing many people, Jesus went to bed. But in the morning, Jesus took time to get away and pray. While he was away praying that next day, lots of people had gathered, hoping for healing. But Jesus, strengthened by his time in prayer, knew it was time to move on to another place and again share the good news of the kingdom which he had been sent to proclaim. (Mk 1:29-39)

Some folks were healed. Others had to wait. Many who suffered would never receive the miracle of a return to health. But with the coming of Jesus, healing became a possibility, a hope, a promise. It could take many forms, not just physical restoration. Healing was something deeper than the physical. As in the case of Job, healing includes acceptance of God’s place and our place in the grand scheme of things. God can and will bring healing in many forms to those who trust and follow.

Paul traveled widely, sharing the news of the coming of the kingdom. He gave his testimony freely to all those he met. He didn’t ask them to support him. He didn’t charge for his teaching. He gave it freely because he had received it freely. The encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus changed the course of his life. The call he received led to long journeys, with hardships and eventual death. But he rejoiced that he had been called to share the great news of God’s love and reconciliation with all of humanity. His life of prayer and service gave him strength and hope. (1 Cor 9:16-19, 22-23)

It’s raining again, and very windy. Some folks are out in the rain yet. They have no homes in which to rest warmly. Many of us are safely sheltered. We can look at our sisters and brothers and judge their worthiness of respect by whether they are sheltered or not. We can look at those who have traveled far from their homes seeking safety from violence and wonder whether they are worth our attention, welcome, and support. Or we can stretch out our hands to offer help and welcome. To help find healthcare and decent housing and food and education for the children. So much depends on how we look at the rain that falls figuratively on the lives we all live.

Let us pray that our eyes be opened to see the Lord’s hand in the hard times we all experience and reach out to each other in practical care and support, sustained by a life of prayer.

Readings for the Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time – Cycle B

 

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