Lectionary readings for today:
Morning Ps. 18:1-20, 147:12-20
Evening Ps. 126, 62
Now He is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to Him all of them are alive.
Luke 20:38
What does it mean to be alive? We know biologically what it means for oxygen to fill our lungs, for synapse to fire in our brain and for our limbs to animate as we walk. Yet, what does it mean to be living in the eyes of God?
I must admit that I feel the most alive when I am diverted from a primary goal. I enjoy when I find myself completely disoriented and forced to stop to regain my bearings. This is when I often discover something surprising and inspiring.
Case in point, a couple of weeks ago I was very sure that if I did not make the two-hour drive to Nashville from Chattanooga for something involving Mercy Junction. However, on the way, I felt compelled to pull off for lunch in the town of Monteagle.
Driving down Main Street I saw a historical marker that I could make out the words MONTEAGLE SUNDAY SCHOOL ASSEMBLY. Being the curious church geek I stopped for a reading break.
After finishing an inspiring read I remembered one of the most important places of the Civil Rights movement happened near this same small town. It was a place called the Highlander Folk School. Such historically important people as Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, John Lewis and a young Martin Luther King Jr. trained in the forms of non-violence that would inspire generations of Christians.
So, I found that I had another journey to fulfill. I eventually found a marker in the countryside commemorating that radical Christian educational experiment. My faith was lifted. Having come from a place of grand monuments and imposing stone edifices heralding America’s great leaders this sinfully humble marker meant more to my faith in that moment than I can ever express. I felt proud of the church, I felt exhilarated for my ministry and I felt…yes…alive.
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This is a season of movement toward wonder. Keep our eyes open Lord and moving toward the life of abundance that your life brings.
Rev. Brian Merritt – Mercy Junction
Northminster Presbyterian Church 