Getting to the Root through Gentleness with Healing

As I have mentioned before, I am a recovering English teacher.  I have a fascination with words and their roots - their etymology - because it defines the core of a word, where it came from and its original meaning.  Usually such archaeology is helpful in understand a words meaning in a modern context, such as passion really means “suffering” and the prefix pur- of the word purpose means “fire.” 
Uncovering origins is also helpful in other areas of our lives, as we seek to understand the causes of things in our lives, whether that is stress, fear, gratitude or hope.  We are blessed that our Gospel lesson for this week from John 9 also seeks to understand the cause of a man’s blindness; and (as luck would have it!) we will have our Lenten Healing Service on this Sunday as well.  A great confluence of events!
The characters in the Gospel seek to know why a man is blind and offer the interpretation that it is a manifestation of God’s disfavor due to sin, either the man’s or his parents’.  I have heard many people wonder what they did wrong in God’s eyes when they are faced with a physical, spiritual or relational malady.  The truth is that as mortal beings we are fragile and it doesn't take much to disrupt our systems. And usually the problems we notice – pain, sleeplessness, anger, etc.– are only symptoms of the real issue.  While many of us are inclined to seek out medical attention for a physical problem, many times our mental, spiritual and relational maladies are ignored or mishandled because it takes longer than a 5 minute conversation with a medical professional to diagnose a course of action.  Ironically, many times the medical course of action may take a long time as well, but taking a pill for a couple weeks doesn't disrupt our lives too much.  But when an ailment requires a lifestyle change that requires time and dedication, we are not as quick to follow doctor’s orders.
Another serendipitous event this week is that our fruit of the Spirit for this week is gentleness.  As we continue our inward journey in Lent, exploring those deep, dark places that need God’s light to offer healing to a root ailment, it is important to remember to be gentle with ourselves.  The problem with the word gentle is that it has a connotation of passivity.  We can be gentle and still face the truth about our lives, about where change needs to occur.  We don’t need to “beat ourselves up” when we are not perfect in working to affect those changes that will benefit our health, our relationships, our connection to God.  There is an insistence with gentleness that should catch our attention, not in a pushy, nagging way, but where the truth will continue to assert itself, whether we want to recognize it and heed it or not.
It is fascinating in the Gospel story that no one wants to proclaim the healing of the blind man as a revelation from God because it would require all of them to change their understanding of who Jesus is.  They are not gentle in their refusal, to the extent of having Jesus killed, but that doesn't stop Jesus’ gentleness.  He still comes back and offers more of the insistent gentle truth.
You will be invited to receive laying on of hands and anointing on Sunday and I hope you will take the opportunity to consider where you need God’s gentle healing in your life.  Where are those dark places you need to explore that are the root causes of a physical, spiritual or social ailment?  Are you willing to ask God’s light to come into those places and begin the healing process?  Will you continue to seek God’s gentle presence to continue the healing process for a long as it takes?  I hope you will, with God’s help.

In Christ,
Rev. Valerie+

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