2020 Isn't Cancelled

by Intern Pastor Meggie

Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
Matthew 9:35-39

The captain of the ship looked into the dark night and saw faint lights in the distance. Thinking it was a ship with whom they would soon collide, the captain had his signalman send a message, “Alter your course 10 degrees south.”
Promptly, a return message was received, “Alter your course 10 degrees north.”
The captain was angered; his command had been ignored. Therefore, he sent a second message, “Alter your course 10 degrees south – I am the captain!”
Soon another message was received, “Alter your course 10 degrees north – I am seaman third class Jones.”
Immediately the captain sent a third message, knowing the fear it would evoke, “Alter your course 10 degrees south – I am a battleship.”
Then the reply came, “Alter your course 10 degrees north – I am a lighthouse.”

I don’t know whether this story is true or not, but I love the way it talks about direction and guidance. It is true that, when we are amid dark and foggy times, all sorts of voices are shouting orders into the night, telling us what to do, how to adjust our lives. Sometimes it is hard to know where to go or how to turn.

And yet, out of the darkness, one voice signals something quite opposite to the rest – something almost absurd—and it says, “Follow me.” Like a steadfast lighthouse guiding the way, Christ’s light continues to shine.

I’ve heard a lot of people joke that they wish the year 2020 was just cancelled. That we could just get rid of it, start over, begin again in 2021 and maybe things would be much better! But I wonder: what if 2020 is the year we’ve been waiting for?

What if 2020 is the year that forces us to evaluate who we are, what we’re doing, and who we listen to? What if, while we’ve been forced out of our pews and away from our community, we’ve actually been given time to think and ponder: what is God doing in the world, and are we really joining God in God’s mission?

Christ is the Light of the World and Christ asks us to follow his lead and sends us into the world as his hands and feet. Are we doing that? Have we answered the call or ignored it, at our own peril?

The time is now. The year is 2020. Let us not wind up being sheep without a shepherd…let us rediscover Christ who calls us and offers himself as the Good Shepherd. We can then be followers – all of us together – following the constant, steady, bright light of Christ. Amen.

Peace,
Intern Pastor Meggie Bjertness