The Pastor’s Desk…         

                                                                                                                                             
    Have you ever had one of those days when you thought you have everything under control, only to find out you were wrong? Take last Tuesday morning, for example. Everything started out all right. It was my day off. I was just getting out of bed. That’s when Zoe announced that it was time for me to take her outside for the morning “business” walk. That’s nothing new. It usually doesn’t take long. So, instead of getting completely dressed, instead I just put on a pair of walking shorts, and took her outside. We were doing well, until she noticed some of the Cemetery crew. That’s when my decision NOT to put on her leash didn’t seem like such a good idea. She has been doing so well. She is starting to respond and listen. Unfortunately, not last Tuesday morning.
    First, she headed toward the crew. Then she spotted one of the local roosters and decided it was time to play. The rooster didn’t like the idea, so he flew off toward the cemetery office. Zoe took this as an invitation to follow, and there the chase began. Zoe was chasing the rooster, and I, with no shirt and no shoes, was chasing Zoe. All three of us passed by the crew. They seemed to enjoy the scene. So much so, that none of them tried to stop Zoe as she passed by. While to me, it seemed to last forever, the chase ended quickly, with no harm to the rooster, to Zoe, or to me, (except for a small amount of my pride).
    One of the crew stopped me later and said that it was the funniest thing he had seen in a long time. I asked, “What was so funny—Zoe chasing the rooster? or me chasing Zoe?” He replied, “Both.”
     I have noticed, however, that in life such moments are not unusual. Everything appears to be moving along as we believe it should be, when
suddenly, everything goes out of control. It can, and does happen with our faith, too. You do your best to live your faith as you think you should. You do, pretty much what you’ve always done, but somehow, it doesn’t feel as though your faith is what you think it should be. After following your normal routes and routines, it can even feel as though you have suddenly taken a detour, or made a wrong turn, or reached a dead end.
     So, what does it take to get back on track, and closer to “normal”? First, it means paying a little more attention to the journey. Sometimes we make the same trip so often, we miss things. In worship, read the words of the hymns, or focus on just one of the lessons, and expect God to be present. Second, if you’ve gotten out of a routine, get back into it. Third, if you need to, start a new routine. And lastly, know that sometimes, when things get so outrageously out-of-control, all you can do is to laugh. I write this knowing, that in the heat of the chase, it can be hard to laugh. But fortunately, my experience is that these moments don’t come often, they usually don’t last long, and when they are over, they have given us a whole new perspective on our life, our routines, and our faith. Now where is Zoe’s leash? It’s time to take her for another walk.

 

                                                                                                                                                  (Yes, this is Zoe.)