Under construction
It is not the beauty of a
building you should look at; it’s the construction of the foundation that will
stand the test of time.
–David Allen Coe
A few weeks ago, I had
been at the labyrinth at University Hospitals and was walking back towards the
Church in the Circle, deep in thought. I paused, and really looked at the Holy Oilcan.
Our landmark steeple is
currently covered in scaffolding. Workers busily moved up and down, behind and
around, shoring up broken places, restoring wholeness to this place we call home. It’s important work, repairing our
cathedral.
What’s even more
important is what’s going inside
UCUMC—and I don’t mean the renovation of our chancel. Our building is
magnificent, and the restoration and renovation will makes us better able to
truly say all are welcome, all the time. But it’s the tireless,
never-ending work of the Holy Spirit happening in our hearts that truly takes
my breath away.
Every Sunday, our
hearts are drawn back here. Every Sunday, God is waiting. And every Sunday, we
each have a choice: We can come to worship, greet one another and leave
relatively unchanged; or we can try harder, making ourselves more available to
the work of the Spirit. Join a class or small group. Help with the coffee hour
or Neighborhood Lunch. Do more. Become more. And then—take the “new you” back
into the world, and be the change you
want to see in the world. It all begins with you. (This week: a look at some
biblical “construction projects,” as found in The Message. I encourage you to explore beyond the cited verses.)
Monday “This is the story of Noah: Noah was a
good man, a man of integrity in his community. Noah walked with God. . . . God
said to Noah, ‘It’s all over. It’s the end of the human race. The violence is
everywhere; I’m making a clean sweep.’” Genesis
6:9-13
Tuesday “At one time, the whole earth spoke
the same language. . . . Then they said, ‘Come, let’s build ourselves a city
and a tower that reaches to heaven.’” Genesis
11:1-9
Wednesday “[Ezra said,] ‘Blessed be God, the God
of Our Fathers, who put it in the mind of the king to beautify the Temple of
Jerusalem. . . . My God was on my side and I was ready to go. And I organized
all the leaders of Israel to go with me.’” Ezra
7:27-28
Thursday “God spoke to Joshua, ‘Look sharp now. .
. . Here’s what you are to do: March around the city, all your soldiers. . . .
Repeat this for six days. . . . On the seventh day . . . the city wall will
collapse at once.’” Joshua 6:1-5
Friday “They were trying to intimidate us into
quitting. They thought, ‘They’ll give up; they’ll never finish it.’ I prayed,
‘Give me strength.’” Nehemiah 6:8-9
Saturday “The farm of a certain rich man produced
a terrific crop. He talked to himself: ‘What can I do? My barn isn’t big enough
for this harvest. . . . I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones.’” Luke 12:16-18
Sunday “Jesus found the Temple teeming with
people selling cattle and sheep and doves. . . . Jesus put together a whip out
of strips of leather and chased them out of the Temple.” John 2:14-15
A human being is a being who is constantly
“under construction,” but also, in a parallel fashion, always in a state of
constant deconstruction. –Jose Saramago
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