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I'm So Glad Jesus Lifted Me
Isaiah 40:27-31

Picture
      Youths who run and run and do not get tired, young men who have energy and don’t soon get weary.  Many of us may remember such times with nostalgia; our physical stamina allowed us to play on sports teams or work long days.  We took on so much because we could, and we knew that after a bit of rest or a satisfying meal we’d be revived.  We’d be ready to go again!
      But those days of peak physical form only last so long.  The passage we just heard read from Isaiah speaks about that reality.  Humans at our strongest, even the most fit youth among us, will become exhausted at some point.  We have our physical limits.  Isaiah reminds us that God does not.  And what’s true for us in physical terms is also true in spiritual terms.  We need renewal, for we do grow weary – this life we live is not an easy journey.  We need God for the whole of our needs for our whole lives.      
     This Scripture passage has reminded me of conversations I’ve had with a good many people during this long month of January.  They say they are fighting inertia, that it feels like their spirits are deflated.  Can you relate at all; has that been your experience?  I believe are all weary of our tedious, COVID-related confinement and now we’re trying to come to terms with a long waiting period before enough vaccines are made available that perhaps we can get back to a semblance of normal.  What many of us are mulling over is, “How do we get by in the interim?  What can lift our weary spirits and see us through?”  
     The phrase I most liked from the Scripture this week came from verse 29: “God revives the exhausted.”  We can each be exhausted physically, emotionally, spiritually or some combination of all of those.  I think we do recognize the need to be “revived”, which means to come to life again.  When I taught French years ago, I would have my students conjugate verbs.   If you’ve ever taken a foreign language you may remember such exercises.  I would name a verb and the class would need to conjugate it in unison.  For example, “vivre” means to live, so together we would say:  “je vis, tu vis, il vit, nous vivons, vous vivez and ils vivent.”   I live, you live, he lives, we live, you (formal, plural) live, they live.   God wants “je” (me) to be fully alive, “tu” (you) to be alive, “nous” (us), and “ils” (them) to all be living in fullness.  Wouldn’t you agree that God wants us fully alive?  
      But “there are days,” as the saying goes… there are days when we feel lifeless.      An interesting image came to mind for me this week as I thought about this.   I have a “Resurrection plant” that I have used as a Children’s Time illustration.  It is a brown, gnarled, dusty bunch of roots.  It looks long dead, impossible to vivify, to bring to life.  But when soaked in water, defying all reason, it begins to plump up and enlarge.  It moves before your eyes, opening itself in a matter of minutes.   It never fails to astound the children, or my own heart, even though I’ve seen the miracle before!  
      I imagine many of you have felt the same delight as you consider the multitude of bulbs that come to life each spring when the soil is warmed by the sun and water reaches them to activate their re-birth.  If God can bring about such miracles in nature – like the tender green shoots of yellow daffodils, sturdy wider leaves of bright tulips, and heavily-scented hyacinths – if God does such things in the natural world of plants, let’s remember God can do the same in each of us.  Out of our confined places that may feel dark and isolated, we too can make our way upward toward the light – we can feel refreshed and awakened.  But like the bulbs, we must let ourselves be touched by things that vivify us.  For bulbs it is the rain soaking into the soil and the sun bringing new growth.      
     I want us to each consider what might spark joy and engage us through the darkest part of this winter season.  What might awaken your mind, body, or spirit during this prolonged confinement?  One of the most popular answers I hear is taking a drive!  Our dear senior saint Bob Elbertson has enjoyed some outings with the help of others.   He’s had curbside visits and some trips to stores; these boost his spirits.  I got my husband a guidebook for day trips in our region for Christmas.   We hope to explore some new places soon; it is giving us something to look forward to on our calendar. 
     Next up, social connections. We all need to be in touch with others, just to hear their voices and exchange some news about our lives.  Do write notes or letters these days, put pen to paper, or fingertips to your keyboard.  I can remember the joy of opening our mailbox as a child, peering in and hoping to discover a letter from a friend, or a card from a grandparent.  I would grin all the way back into my home as I clutched that personal bit of mail and quickly open it when I got back inside.   Isn’t it lovely to get a note or card, no matter our age – to get a personal letter or card in the mail, rather than just bills and useless flyers?  And the same joy can happen online through social media.  It hasn’t been that long since Facebook first allowed us to see pictures of people’s daily lives, glimpses of their homes, the meals they eat, their birthday parties, weddings, and newborn babies, and pictures of beloved pets as well.  We also have lots of platforms now to see and talk with family members and friends.  It’s not as satisfying as in person, but it does us so much good to connect.   If being online still intimidates you, I challenge you to realize that you can do hard things.  I hope you’ll stop doubting and choose to believe you’re capable of learning new things.  Plenty of people can help you, if only you would let them use their talents to assist you.  And keep in mind that helping would bring them much pleasure; all they’re waiting for is for you to pick up the phone and call them.  
     Another much-recommended habit is to get outside and be active in some way.   A friend of ours thoroughly enjoyed snowshoeing in the Adirondacks last weekend.  The sky was blue and the scenery breathtaking.  Plenty of people continue to take hikes or just walk in their neighborhoods, where they’ve met neighbors they never knew before.  There are plenty of dog-walkers too.   I was driving down Old Post Road last week and had a very hearty laugh-out-loud moment!  In a yard I saw a whole line of snowmen, with festive scarves and uniquely decorated faces.  I was really glad some energetic kids bundled up, rolled snowballs across their yard, and created such a wonderful bunch of friendly snowmen.  When future snowstorms come, why not make your own snowman to cheer others?  This need not be a “kids only” activity.  Or if you have a larger lawn than others, why not invite neighborhood kids or younger relatives to use your lawn for their creative play yard?   Let them build a fort or have a snowball fight.   Invite them to go sledding or just make you some snow angels.  I am waiting for the next snowstorm with good packing snow so I can make an upside-down snowman – I’ll put two sticks on the top snowball and add galoshes!  Just because I can!  Or perhaps I’ll build one around my mailbox post.  When the mailman pulls up to open the hatch it will be the mouth of the snowman.  That just cracks me up!  Do find your warmest jacket, scarf, hat, and mittens and get outside; let it awaken your senses and bring you joy.
     Home projects and de-cluttering are still happening.  Why not do the same and pencil something on your calendar?   Last weekend one church family refreshed a spare bedroom.   It can feel invigorating to transform the spaces in our homes.  If that doesn’t appeal, there are other ways to spark our creativity or engage our minds.  Ask your librarian what’s being read in book clubs or join a group yourself.  Check out books or go online and learn new skills.  Try new recipes, or new spices.  Learn to play chess or start to sew.  Make jewelry or take up woodcrafts.  Do scrapbooking or learn how to make minor repairs in your home.  Sign up for some magazine subscriptions – there are so many choices these days.  Follow a new sport or check out the history or nature channels on TV.  There is so much that is available to us, things that can engage and fascinate us once we find what “hooks” us.  So do explore this week: make time to dream about what might vivify your days.      
       Another way you can feel joy during an otherwise boring day is, rather than dozing off (again) mid-afternoon, making a schedule of people you will be in touch with each day.   You will be glad you made the effort.   You might be the only voice they hear that day.  Simply listening to them and caring about how they are is a powerful act of love.  If you’ve known them a long while, have a nice jaunt down memory lane and reminisce.   If your life is more active than theirs, share your news, and anything that might make them laugh.  Offer to pray for them if you feel comfortable doing so.  Ask them about their days and you may learn they are pouring over seed catalogues dreaming of spring planting.  Another might pass along a new author, blog site, or game to try.   I just learned that my brother-in-law built himself a larger sugaring shack for this spring; he discovered he loved making maple syrup last year.  We love the taste of his maple syrup on our pancakes this year and are almost out!   I’ve come across and saved a dozen or more canning jars for him – it’s just a small thing but it makes my heart happy. 
     Well, I have shared lots of ideas with you for vivifying your lives during this long January month.  I believe God wants us to renew ourselves, whenever we become weary.  To reinvigorate ourselves through the people we know and the experiences and opportunities we have all around us.  But the greatest source and resource we each have is God. 
       Do you know the praise song “I’m So Glad Jesus Lifted Me”?  It is an African American Spiritual found  in our Faith We Sing songbook.  It is meant to be a call and response song, with one person singing a lyric that expresses their (or our) challenge or trouble in life.  Then another singer answers with “Jesus lifted me,  I’m so glad Jesus lifted me, Hallelujah.”  This beautiful song will now be sung, and while we don’t have the original call and response singing this time around, I hope you’ll name in your heart whatever troubles you, and let the response of “Jesus Lifted Me” be your answer.  Amen.

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