Look, I would never say that our loving God causes tragedy. Never. But...sometimes tragedies have a way of birthing incredible blessing. Sometimes God can use a tragedy or work through a tragedy to bring about great good. For instance, (and just so you know this article will only be dealing with this topic on a personal level) as a pastor I rarely get a chance to be around regular folk anymore. People these days are incredibly busy! We all have so much to do and so many places to be. It used to be that folks would invite pastors into their house for Sunday dinners, graduations, and so much more. But these days...not so much.
Except for tragedies. I’m not saying I enjoy saying this, but when there is a tragedy in someone’s family, I often get a chance to get to know people in ways I never would have thought possible. Not once, would I say that I hope for a tragedy so that this might happen. Not once would I say I pray for it. But sometimes when a tragedy happens and people actually let themselves be ministered to...God has a wonderful way of showing up not only for the family, but for the pastor, too!
Just today, for instance, I had the privilege of visiting Ted and Marge Kuykendahl. Ted has been in the hospital for 4 or 5 days and has just come home. He’s received some tough medical news. And so, when I called Marge to see if Ted might be up for a visit, there was none of the usual hesitation in her voice. There was no, “let me check my calendar,” or, “Oh, we’re headed to the cabin.” There was not even a hint of that this time. There was simply a “Please come our way! We would love for you to stop by. No, to be honest, we need you to stop by.”
And this time when I came (and just let me tell you that Ted and Marge are some of the most gracious hosts), I wasn’t placed in the chair opposite the couch (a safe distance away), but instead, they plopped me down right in-between them, on the couch. Three of us! And as I sat, they actually kind of leaned in and took my hand. There was a humility in their eyes as they looked across at me for support and love. And as I sat between them, something else came to me. They didn’t see me as just Brook today, they saw me as their pastor, as an extension of their church. I wasn’t just representing myself; I was bringing all 150 members of our church! We were all there sitting on that couch!
And as we shared, I experienced a feeling of Christian Koinonia...togetherness. We weren’t sharing in a linear, up, and down kind of way, but instead in a way that we were holding something between us and sharing it. We were both giving and receiving. As Ted and Marge shared, Ted finally stopped paused for a moment, and as tears filled his eyes, he began to share that through this whole experience he has had this feeling that God was surrounding by thousands of angels. Doctors and nurses, hospital care staff, Marge, his children and grandchildren, and then he held out his fingers as wide as he could and said, “When we got home, Pastor Brook, we opened up our mailbox and there was a stack of cards and notes this thick in the box. Everyone one of them from our wonderful faith community at Bear Creek.” Just thousands and thousands of angels.”
As I headed out the door and drove away, I found myself pulling over on the side of the road for just a moment and thanking our good God for such a visit. I found myself pinching myself just a bit. Because for just a couple of hours, I had felt like had been sitting between two angels.
Your pastor, hoping that 'brush' will linger for a few moments, or days, Brook
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