One of our deep values at Grace Lutheran is serving our neighbors. We have a long and vital tradition of tending to those who are most vulnerable among us in the name of Jesus.

This stretch of craziness we find ourselves in reminds us that love of neighbor is always a contextual practice. How we love will be shaped by whom we love and when that love is expressed.

We have continued some of the practices that we have done for a while. Even in these difficult times, a team of people has made sandwiches for people housed at Sojourner House. Across the street we have fed families at Beacon House. Some have worked on feeding the hungry at Community Table and others through Feed My People. Our own Blessing Box has been frequently well stocked.

Others continue to serve in the jobs they spend their days in. We have people working in hospitals to heal the sick. We have others involved in educational ventures. Some have found new demands on what it means to be a parent; others on what it means to be someone’s son or daughter.

Our Bishop noted in her Easter service that staying home has been an odd but real way to serve our most vulnerable neighbors in a highly contagious time.

I’d like to note to other ways that love is put into action. One of our members, Anna Wilson, has often been in our prayers as she has struggled with cancer. Her aunt, Jean Borgerding, uses a photo from deep in Anna’s chemo days as a canvas upon which she paints images from popular culture; each day she posts a new image on Facebook. It is easiest to show you some selections:

Here you see Marge Simpson, the Wicked Witch of the West and Anna’s most precious favorite since she is a Lord of the Rings fan, Golem.

Anna writes of Jean’s art works, “They spread joy. I have people I work with who have shared that they look forward to “who I will be!” the next day. I’ve also had friends text or call me with ideas to share with my auntie. So….I just realized that it helps me to stay connected to my loved ones. I love it because it takes my mind off the scary parts of life. You’ve gotta maintain some level of humor. We’ve been through a lot of garbage the past four years and I’ve learned that I need to find something to laugh at daily. And this is one way of doing that.”

Let us learn from Jean and Anna about creative transformation and the use of the particular gifts God gives us. Let us remember the importance of humor in the midst of messiness.

There is one more way to serve that I would like to mention. Every day people are putting themselves on the line to hold together a world that is in danger of falling apart. When these people are exhausted and world weary of their labors, we can offer the gift of appreciation.

That is why if you are a Grace member we are inviting you to send cards to someone who has made your life better in the last two months. Saying thank you is a form of service we can each do. And being grateful is a faithful way to follow Jesus in troubled times.

If you are a Grace member, some blank cards are coming your way. If you are not a member but like the idea, break out your scissors and colored pencils and make someone a thank you!

And while you are at it, thank God for the mending of the world that God is doing through these resilient people. Amen

 

 

About Philip Ruge-Jones

After I served for eighteen years as a professor of theology at Texas Lutheran University, my family decided to return to the Midwest where my wife and I grew up, attended college and seminary. Read more...