Westminster Congregational United Church of Christ

Sermon for July 19, 2009

Tired and Still Compassionate

Pastor Marj Johnston

Mark 6:30-34, 53-56 (New Century Version)

    ³⁰ The apostles gathered around Jesus and told him about all the things they had done and taught. ³¹ Crowds of people were coming and going so that Jesus and his followers did not even have time to eat. He said to them, "Come away by yourselves, and we will go to a lonely place to get some rest."

    ³² So they went in a boat by themselves to a lonely place.³³ But many people saw them leave and recognized them. So from all the towns they ran to the place where Jesus was going, and they got there before him.³⁴ When he arrived, he saw a great crowd waiting. He felt sorry for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began to teach them many things.

   ⁵³ When they had crossed the lake, they came to shore at Gennesaret and tied the boat there.⁵⁴ When they got out of the boat, people immediately recognized Jesus.⁵⁵ They ran everywhere in that area and began to bring sick people on mats wherever they heard he was.⁵⁶ And everywhere he went—into towns, cities, or countryside—the people brought the sick to the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch just the edge of his coat, and all who touched it were healed.

~*~*~

It all started last Sunday.  After worship each week, I generally spend an hour or so in the office to wrap-up a few things and to read the scripture selections for this week.  It’s an opportunity for me to see where the stories in sacred texts might actually intersect with life and give shape to the meditation for next Sunday.

This week’s lectionary readings included a passage from the prophet Jeremiah that begins with “Woe to the shepherds.”  Psalm 23 begins with “The Lord is my shepherd.”  The lesson from the Epistles is in Paul’s letter to the believers in the community of Ephesus, outlining that in spite of what makes them different as Gentiles and Jews, there really is unity in God if they could learn to trust each other because of what they know and believe about God.

I was struck most by the stories selected from the Gospel of Mark, two stories about Jesus and his followers that are separated from each other by two other stories that we’ll look at next week.  This morning we heard the beginning of Jesus feeding the 5000 and then a story of Jesus healing sick people in Gennesaret.

For the disciples, following Jesus meant things to do, places to go and people to see, something I’m familiar with.  But verse 31 reads, “But so many people were coming and going that Jesus and the apostles did not even have a chance to eat.  Then Jesus said, ‘Let's go to a place where we can be alone and get some rest.’”  I had all kinds of thoughts about our lives and the parallels with how busy we can be with work, family and friends, church tasks, social opportunities … about how on Sunday mornings we’re invited to return from our individual journeys for a shared time of fellowship, worship experiences and renewal as we move forward in our faith and life journeys … that church is to be a healing place even while we share in the ministry of doing church.  It was—I thought—a time for me to reflect on the challenges of balancing time and opportunities as one who works for the church, as one who serves through the church, coming up maybe with new ideas about taking time to read, pray, study AND play.  And I know there are many of you who struggle with that same element of wanting to serve God, to do good, to love our neighbors and still you recognize your need for quiet, playful and refreshing times as well.

And then there’s the story of Jesus and the disciples going to yet another place where he thought they could have some quiet time together, but once folks figured out they were in town, the people in the village brought all their sick for healing and prayers.  Last Sunday this story made me think about the world around us that is suffering.  I thought I would share the number of calls I get in a day, how people who share life’s challenges because of the economy or physical challenges or relationship struggles.  I wanted to share that this story reflects in new ways that the world needs people like us to tell our stories of hope, of healing, that we get to be healers through gifts of time, touch, prayer, study and action on behalf of what we hear the stories of Jesus inviting us to do.

But God had other ideas about how I might hear these stories this week.  So after my wrap-up in the office, I walked across the street to my car, and as soon as I started it, the radio came on right where I left it.  Kevin Brown was wrapping up “Front Porch Bluegrass” on KPBX, and he was inviting callers to win a pair of tickets to the Kootenai River Bluegrass & Beyond Festival.  It was my lucky day—I won!  And then I knew I needed to get things done by Friday so I could enjoy a Saturday away in Troy, Montana.

 Well, on Friday my sermon was half-finished, and I was struggling with some element and opted to leave it alone until Saturday eve.  Yes, I sometimes do that.  And for good reason:  Life happens.

I have a personal theory about day trips, that anything within a three-hour drive of Spokane is a good day away.  So we started with breakfast here in Spokane, enjoyed the sights along the way, and arrived in Troy around noon Montana time.  We found a nicely shaded area to sit in our camp chairs, just above the river’s edge.  We could sort of see the stage and could hear the music and banter while watching folks play in the cool river water.  We listened to music, wandered some of the booths set-up around the perimeter, people watched.  There was a nice consistent and gentle breeze, a nice touch to the heat beating off the rocks across the river in Roosevelt Park.

Around 4:00pm we decided we should head back to Spokane, so we went to the car.  While crossing the street, Cindi opened the trunk with the remote button.  We put the chairs in the trunk and rearranged things a little so everything stayed in place.  I tossed my bag in on top of things.  As I was closing the trunk I commented about the keys, to which Cindi replied, “I gave them to you.”  As I said “I don’t have them,” I was closing the lid of the trunk and patting my pockets at the same time.  The trunk lid closed, I patted my pockets again as Cindi checked her purse, and we both looked on the ground.  No, it couldn’t be that easy.  At this time, we’re still not sure where the keys are … except in the trunk.  Yes, there’s an extra key.  In my Toyota.  In Spokane.  Oh, and my car keys are in my bag.  In the car trunk.  There is only one key to my car.  You see where this is going….

We wandered across the road to a shady spot to talk it through—our cell phones wouldn’t pick up with the cell towers there, so we couldn’t call anyone.  We were about a mile from the nearest business, The Home Bar.  A woman who had been grilling chicken near where we’d been sitting walked by, and then came back by again, so Cindi asked her if she had a phone we could borrow.  She had a phone, but as a visitor from Hawaii, her phone didn’t work in Troy either.  She did offer, though, to take one of us to the bar to make a call.  She ended up dropping Cindi off at the police/sheriff office where Cindi was able to make calls with the help of the dispatcher.  After what felt like an hour, Cindi returned with a woman driving a gray Mustang.  She announced, “This nice lady is going to help us.”  Skeptic that I am, I smiled politely and watched from the shade for a few minutes as Becky began working with two wedges and the appropriate break-in devices.

With cheerleading from Cindi and me, Becky worked hard at trying to unlock the passenger door—to no avail.  Next she tried to work through the driver’s door, muttering to herself and sharing personal history and stories as she worked.  Wife of Bob who was at home not feeling well and napping, they own and operate Taz 1 Towing in Troy.  They ARE the go-to people for roadside assistance of all kinds, and she reported success in her work of unlocking cars over the years while clearly challenged by this Hyundai.  Gone are the days of simply reaching in and unlocking something that triggers an unlock mechanism throughout the vehicle.

After considerable effort, Becky offered to take us to a restaurant in town where we could wait for the next effort from roadside assistance.  As she drove, Becky kept telling us that she was sorry she couldn’t help—she wouldn’t let us pay for any of her time—and that she was concerned because Libby to the east and Bonner’s Ferry to the west would be 45 minute drives and have only people like her who probably wouldn’t be able to help either.  She let Cindi use her phone to continue talking with roadside assistance people through her insurance company and through Hyundai.  At one point Cindi relinquished the phone to Becky, who decided to call her husband Bob and ask for advice.  She then drove from the restaurant to her house where she checked with Bob who agreed to meet us at the park—he was sure he could get the car unlocked. 

We returned to the parked car, now in full Montana sun.  Minutes later Bob arrived and what Becky had shared was evident:  Bob was six weeks ago diagnosed with lung cancer and is undergoing both chemotherapy and radiation.  Last Thursday Bob had received two units of red blood cells to boost his counts.  A rather gaunt looking 50-year old grabbed the wedges and tools and set to work to enter the car while Becky explained again all she had tried.  A little taller than Becky, he had an angle on getting things through the driver’s side window and managed to unlock the door, which set-off the alarm.  Pushing the trunk release button on the door didn’t work, and the car alarm continued to cycle before shutting off.  Hyundai’s multi-level anti-theft systems were working just fine.

For another hour Bob worked at trying to figure out how to get into the trunk—the seat backs are locked and the release is in the trunk, near the trunk lid hinges and accessible from the trunk.  We learned through the car manual that if the doors and trunk were locked with the remote, they couldn’t be unlocked except by key or remote.  While Bob continued to puzzle over the car, Becky and Cindi took turns on hold with roadside assistance people and another towing company who would arrive in minutes from Libby.  Once Bill from South End Towing arrived, he collaborated with Bob who then asked Becky to call and have “the kids” bring over a volt meter to check wires since the locksmith in Libby instructed them to try to bypass the wiring using fuses to release the trunk.  “The kids” arrived with the requested meter, then parked and joined the growing group of folks committed to getting these visitors on the road.  Becky frequently started her car and invited us to sit in the air conditioning.  Daughter Shelly has been working in the towing business with her folks, so she was quite taken with all the issues of anti-theft devices and inaccessibility. And we heard from the Hyundai people that Hyundai locks can’t be picked.

Numerous folks attending the bluegrass festival took note for themselves, and locals who use the river front park for fun and entertainment offered all kinds of help from crow bars to pistols to essentially dismantling the car from bumper to bumper.  All the while Becky continued to worry about Bob who continued to fret that this car would not win and he WOULD unlock the trunk holding hostage the keys that would allow us to move on.

At about the four-hour mark of the adventure, I suggested we make a decision.  Bob, in spite of how he must have really felt, was pouring everything he had into doing the job he’d been asked to do.  Becky, visibly loving and supportive of Bob, and determined herself to not let these visitors down by sending them off with no car, continued to offer hospitality of the most amazing kind.  Shelly and Mike, even though the newest and youngest on the scene, were just like Bob and Becky—upbeat, optimistic, frustrated and amazed at this experience of roadside assistance, cell phones and anti-theft systems.  Bill, the South End Towing guy, seemed mildly amused by it all and equally puzzled by the inaccessibility. And since he was the main focus of roadside assistance and the man with the tow truck, it would be his task to negotiate with the agent about the next step.  Authorization was given to tow the car from Troy, Montana to the Hyundai dealer in Kalispell or in Post Falls. We chose the obvious.

Bob explained he needed to get out of the heat and rest, so he left first.  Bill managed to find a bypass for the shift lock so the car could be put into neutral, hoisted on the lift of his tow truck and finished the negotiation with roadside assistance.  We watched him pull the car through a turn-around and head back toward town.  Becky left to go get gas for one of the cars that had run out of gas during the adventure.  Shelly and Mike continued their leisurely conversations with us, offering to take us somewhere, anywhere to sort it all out.

Cindi asked to make one more call to our dear friends David and Jeff who have shared more pleasant road trips before.  All I heard was, “Can you come and rescue us?”  They quickly agreed to find us in Troy.  Shelly suggested we wait at the Silver Spur, mentioning that “it stays open until 9, and then you could hang out in the casino and lounge.”

We enjoyed the air conditioning, lots of water, and a good dinner and laughed at ourselves and the situation.  The wait staff at the Silver Spur were generous with time and conversation, and when we saw the familiar and welcome sight of Jeff and David’s Cadillac pass by, we thanked them and walked out front.  Not certain they saw the restaurant—the lights had been dimmed—we knew they’d be back.  It is pretty much the only way out of Troy heading west.  As Cindi and I stood in the parking lot out front, a small blue car pulled up and we recognized Shelly and Mike who on their way home were checking on us.  We shared that our friends had just arrived and gone by, and that we knew they’d be back.  Shelly wanted to know how many cars back they were and offered to go through town to lead them back to the Silver Spur.

I chuckled … does their hospitality and the efforts to be helpful to strangers ever end?  I suspect not.

Bob is dealing with the mental, emotional and physical challenges of cancer, including the treatments of chemotherapy and radiation that are waging war on renegade cells throughout his body.  Becky is doing what she can to keep the family business going as well as doing her own job, and providing love, support, care and companionship for her husband.  Shelly, while invited to help with presence and ideas and muscle if needed, is very present and gifted in telling family stories.  Mike, the proverbial man of few words, shares just enough about his own sense of life with this family as the son-in-law that he knows he fits in and life is what you make it.  As Becky says, “It’s all about attitude.”

The bluegrass music was fun, the people watching entertaining, the location just part of beautiful western Montana, the weather a little warmer than delightful, and the experience humbling and rich.

So here’s what I heard in the gospel this morning.  Jesus recognized his own tiredness and that of the disciples from talking, teaching, healing and being with people all day so he tells them they’re going to take the boat across the lake to get some rest, to find refreshment for their bodies, minds and souls.  They arrive at the other side of the lake and find people waiting for them, having heard that Jesus and the disciples were coming.  And Jesus sees the people gathered, feels deep compassion for them, and he and the disciples continue to teach, feed, heal and be with the people who need them most. 

Bob, Becky, Shelly and Mike showed us such compassion in spite of their tiredness, their own dealings with disease, the heat of the day … and David and Jeff, to be called upon in the early evening hours, drove the two and half hours to Troy and laughed with us—okay, probably a little bit at us—as we drove the two and a half hours back.  And they not only saw that we got home safely, but have loaned us their car until we finish unraveling things today.

Tiredness in my life hardly seems like a good excuse anymore … there are people to whom I get to reach out and support, to remind that there are reasons to have hope, and to that we do need one another along the way.  Being weary or tired is no reason to withhold compassion when it might be the one thing someone needs from us.  Sure, there are times when we MUST make time to be refreshed in our bodies, minds, and souls.  But there are times when we have just a little more to give when it’s needed.

In spite of what makes you tired in life, may you also find new ways of being compassionate with all you meet in your life and faith journeys.

~*~*~

And how did it end?  After worship in Cowley Park, I called Toyota roadside assistance and within 10 minutes (a luxury of our Spokane location) the extra key to the Hyundai was freed from my car.  We drove to Post Falls, unlocked the trunk and retrieved the car keys from—sigh—MY bag in the trunk.