A theme in the sermon last Sunday was lifted directly from a conversation that I had with a young mother in our parish. We talked for some time about the challenges of parenting. Parents are vulnerable to broken hearts and sleepless nights. As children get older we are no longer able to fix their problems. In fact, we are often not even invited to express our opinions.
Finally, she shared with me her new motto for her journey: “life is not the fairy tale that I expected it to be.” No truer words have ever been spoken. Life is hard. Life is hard for everyone. The rich have problems. The poor have problems. The young have challenges. The old have challenges. Some days are wonderful, but some days are downright painful.
I can see Judy Garland singing:
“Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high, there’s a land that I heard of once in a lullaby. Somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue, and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.
Someday I’ll wish upon a star and wake up where the clouds are far behind me, where troubles melt like lemon drops away above the chimney tops that’s where you’ll find me.”
The Wizard of Oz is a fairy tale. But even in that fairy tale, the land of Oz was hardly the place of dreams. Life is not a fairy tale. Life is hard for everyone.
There is a lot of anxiety, fear, uncertainty and pain in our country right now. There is a lot of anxiety, fear, uncertainty and pain in our families. So, come to TLC this Sunday and be with people who are hurting and afraid. Come to TLC and hear the words of Jesus, “Be not afraid.” This Sunday the people of God will gather for worship. Our lives are a mess and yet we are people of hope, people who understand that God is with us in the mess, and we are in this mess together.
If your life is not the fairy tale that you expected it to be, then join the club. There is room for you in Club TLC.
Realistic but always hopeful, I am your
Pastor Jim
