The Way
A lot of us are navigating times of transition, and the way forward seems impossible and terrifying at worst and uncertain at best. As a person who prefers action, the security of good plan, and a clear view of the path ahead, I don’t like the waiting times, those liminal spaces where grief over what’s being lost looms large, easily overshadowing any hope or excitement over what could possibly come next.
A friend recently shared a phrase that carried her through some very dark times. She said, “When there seems to be no way, God will make a way.” Yes, I thought, but so often it’s not the way we are seeking: the way of not losing that job, that relationship, that home, that dream, that beloved person.
As I pondered this, unhappily, I was reminded that early followers of Jesus were called “people of the Way”. For them, the Way was not a path out of uncertainty, not a miracle that erased all their pain, fear, and despair; it was a spiritual practice that informed and infused everything they did. It was the “how” in the midst of all the “what” of life.
Jesus modeled the Way so clearly that even 2000 years later those of us who follow him practice it still: compassion, dignity, belonging, justice, hope, sharing, helping, loving. Not a creed, not a label, the Way is a way of doing life in this beautiful, horrifying, exquisite, heart-breaking, mysterious, violent, and yet somehow still-wonder-filled world. If I had to sum up in one word the way God makes for us to get through the darkest of times, I’d say the Way is “together”.
Holy One, thank you that whatever we face, we need not face it alone. Draw us ever more closely together that the burden of our sorrow may be lightened and the impact of our joy may be multiplied. We pray in the Way of Jesus, Amen.
Due to chronic illness and other life challenges, you are most likely to see Roxanne and her husband, Brian, as part of the “stained-glass Zoom window” at Peace worship these days. Distance, however, does not dim the joy they experience in being connected with like-minded followers of Jesus in this beautiful community.