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Musings
When God's Messenger Appears
Rev. Peter Faass | 12/16/2010
Even in this Advent season of slowing down and being quiet, I often find myself being busier than I plan (or want) to be. The reality is that with the demands of parish life combined with all the planning and preparation that go into the events and liturgies we offer this time of year, one can’t help but be very busy. This, of course, doesn’t even begin to take into account my personal activites and planning for Christmastide. All of this has the affect of leaving me feeling somewhat hypocritical as I preach about making time for quiet and reflection to the flock and then go and live into borderline chaos!
There is a marvelous story in the Book of Numbers about a diviner named Balaam and his donkey. Balaam is saddled on his donkey and journeying to foretell the future for an evil king. God is trying to prevent Balaam from doing this and sends an angel with a sword drawn in its hand to stand in the donkey’s way. Balaam does not see this danger, but the donkey does. This beast does all it possibly can to avert the danger but Balaam just gets angry with him and beats him. Finally, the danger of the armed angel in their path is revealed to Balaam and he gets what is going on.
I feel like Balaam. There is a real danger in my not being attentive to God’s asking that I be quiet and slow down in this season of Advent. I just want to use the whip of my busyness on the donkey of my life and make it move into more frantic activity so I can “get things done.” Fortunately, God sent an avenging angel to stand in my path this past weekend and revealed to me the error of my ways.
Well, it wasn’t so much an avenging angel with a sword in its hand that stood in my path, but a poised and articulate twelve year-old young lady in my congregation.
This young woman’s name is Callie and she asked me if she might deliver one of the monthly Faith Testimonies that we offer at Christ Church. Now the sheer fact that Callie asked me to do this should have opened my eyes that something special was going on. I normally have to cajole and beg people to do these Faith Testimonies. But in the midst of all my busyness I missed this early indicator.
But God doesn’t give up easily. On this Sunday past, the congregation was gifted with grace-filled words of wisdom that could only be from a messenger of God. Here is a portion of Callie’s testimony:
“Christianity though, isn’t just about memorizing everything God said and did. It’s also about having faith when there is no exact proof. When I was little I believed the sun was round, because people I trusted and loved told me that. I didn’t know for sure, because I was told not to look at it and I didn’t. I was also told Jesus was the son of God, they both love us unconditionally, Jesus turned water into wine and Moses led the Jews out of Egypt. Just like I trusted the sun was round I trusted all of that. But trust is different than faith. Trust is believing in someone else’s beliefs and faith is trusting your own.”
In these profound words of faith, I was stopped as dead in my tracks as any armed angel could have ever achieved! Callie’s faith reminded what is truly important about my own. Her words reminded me that I have to remember that faith is trusting my own beliefs; beliefs like God wants me to stop and be still every now and then so I may know God more fully. She has clearly been able to do that herself and in her witness she has re-given me that gift as well.
My hope is that you will be inspired by the words of this wise young lady as well. In these waning days of Advent take some time to reflect on what your faith is for you and know that God’s messengers do show up in the most unexpected and marvelous ways!
Peter +
