Our current blast of Arctic air has provided an illustration I was looking for at the beginning of this year. Christmas is past which means putting away all seasonal decorations. I have been getting to that task – little by little. A couple of extension cords were used for exterior lights and when putting them away, it became evident that they, being chilled to the core, were going to resist being curled up neatly. Some struggling did improve the storage look of the first, but the second totally refused to cooperate. It is, right now, sitting like a large, bright orange, futuristic art piece atop a shelving unit in the garage. An unfinished task for another (warmer) day.
Life is often made up of a series of curl-resistant, bright orange extension cords. They are frustrating, refusing to fit neatly into life’s flow. They slow us down. They can cause us to entertain thoughts of being failures. They prevent us from getting a job done, sitting somewhere, quietly smirking because, painful acknowledgement here, they are constant reminders of that thing in our past, that embarrassing situation, that certain individual whose choices put a serious, lingering kink into the tidy plans of our lives. Or maybe some of our own choices have left a knotted mess where we don’t want others discovering them. Detritus for our brains. King David had plenty of still-lurking ‘orange extension cords;’ the big ‘future king’ secret, putdowns from his brothers, the love-hate of King Saul, the threats from his own ragtag army, the many years of hiding like a wild animal, and on and on.
And in the middle of this accumulated history, David’s and ours, there is God, encouraging us into a face-to-face relationship, knowing full-well all the sordid details, those things ‘hidden.’ But choosing us anyway, lifting us to our feet, holding us, pouring forgiveness into us, restoring us (return of the Prodigal?). The Gospel message is plain, that we are loved and wanted. It goes as far as to say we, the Church, are the Bride of Christ and that Jesus is returning for the wedding that we may be with him, the Lover of our Souls, forever. Such staggering, loving generosity! PD