Pastors Ponderings

by Rev. Judy Crane Jones, Pastor Christ Memorial Church

Have you ever had a case of the “if only’s”. You know, when you say to yourself, I would help my neighbor, if only I had the right tools. Or I would join that group, if only I had the right outfit to wear. It seems that whatever we know we should do, we can always find an excuse for not doing it. Either we don’t have the time, the money, the skill, the clothes, or even the temperament to attack the task.

Have you ever wondered what our country would be like if the great historic figures had only come up with the right excuse to get “out of ” doing the tasks that made them important to our history? How about George Washington? Surely he could have sited the running of his farm and family to help avoid becoming our first president. Jonas Salk could have decided that he wanted to work on something safer than polio research. How many lives would have been lost if not for his work? Think a little closer to your life, what if your own Pastor had decided that a career that was a little more financially stable was really their calling? I know that I would be lost if professors that I had in Seminary had decided to become bankers instead of studying religion. We all have times when we wish we were doing any other job than the one we are doing at any given time. But for most of us, the job we do truly does make a difference in the lives of the people around us. We have to remind ourselves to stop making excuses and answer the call of others.

Last week we were privileged to join together with several others from Blue Island, to honor the like of Rev. Martin Luther King. As I sat there and listened to the speaker recite one of Rev. King’s speeches, I was transported back to 1967, to the era of the Vietnam War. I heard the words that called us to peace that were spoken over forty years ago. I remembered my friends who fought in that war and many who lost their lives there. I remember that we carried with us the belief that if we joined in that war, we would bring about peace. But as we now know, there is still not peace. Rev. King and all the other religious leaders, called us to peace. They sited passages of Scripture that call us to put away war, to take the instruments of war and turn them into instruments of peace. You remember, the swords that became plowshares and the spears that became pruning hooks. Men and women of faith prayed endless hours for those young men and women to come home and for peace to fill our lands. But that was forty, actually more than forty years ago and we are still finding ways to hurt others. There are still people who live where there is no justice, and children still not being taught to resolve their disagreements without violence. So the question that struck me as I sat in the company of others who live in hope, was, “What are we waiting for? Why do we continue to offer excuses?” Too much time has already passed. We cannot not wait for the perfect time, the perfect leader, the perfect cause to stand for. There will never be a time when all the stars are aligned just so and all the world’s leaders are of a like mind. But there can be a time when we all are awakened to the need to reach out to the people of the world to offer the hand of peace.

Put away your excuses, put away your “if only’s” and decide that today is the best day that there is for you to share peace with someone. You may feel that you cannot change the world, but I tell you, you can change your corner of the world. You can put aside the petty arguments and prejudices, and pick up the branch of peace. You can begin to answer the call that Jesus made so long ago, to “Love your enemies”. I, for one, am thankful that men and women life Rev. King and those who are presently in Haiti helping out there, are willing to give of themselves and not make excuses. Now I call you to do likewise. Oh, I am sure that not many of you reading this will leave your homes and families to go into the fields of disaster, but I am sure that each of us reading this today can take time to say a prayer for those who do go. And I am sure that we can each spare a dollar or two to help their efforts. Help us find peace for the children of this world and for our own hearts.

God bless you all.

All Are Welcome
Christ Memorial Church
2440 York Street
389-7710

Special thanks for favors granted to:

The Holy Family, Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Holy Spirit, St. Walter, Seven Holy Founders, St. Francis, St. Donatus, St. Stanislaus, St. Christopher, St. Peter Claver, St. Isidore, St. Benedict, St. Bernadette, St. Clair, St. Peregrine, St. Lucy, St. Blaze, St. Th eresa, Little Flower of Jesus, St. Margaret, St. Anthony, Our Lady of Fatima, St. Padra Pio and Mother Teresa. - DFS