Today’s Word from Pastor Jim…
When I reflect back on my life, I realize that most of the things I worried about did not happen. Most of the seemingly critical issues that caused me to lose sleep, were not very important in the larger scheme of things. When that girl in High School broke up with me, it seemed like the end of the world, but it wasn’t. My heart hurt for a while and then I found Felicia, and now to quote Garth Brooks, “I thank God for unanswered prayers.”
That poor grade that I got in college was not that big of a deal. It gave me a chance to take the class over the next semester. I lost sleep over Greek and Hebrew. Then I realized that I could order at Greek restaurants and at Jewish delis speaking English.
I have lost my share of sleep through the years trying to be faithful to a calling that goes 24/7. The sermons I fussed over, the visits I worried about, the board meetings that caused me stress, the hate-mail I have received, and the details of dozens of pilgrimages have left me with many a sleepless night. And 98 times out of a hundred, everything turned out just fine. Not always as I had hoped or prayed for, but I thank God for unanswered prayers.
There are a lot of us losing sleep at night right now. It was that way when the economy melted down in 2008. We are losing sleep, and it is understandable. We are worried about our loved ones, we are worried about small businesses, we are worried about Boeing, we are worried about our retirement accounts. But guess what? We are going to get through this, and we will look back on this and tell stories of the great quarantine of 2020. We will grieve those who were lost, we will bury the dead, our businesses will come back, our students will be in school, and we will realize that most of our worries were out of proportion; most of our fears were overblown.
We are fortunate to live here on Whidbey Island. If we just follow the precautions given to us by our Governor, and stay safe by staying home, we will be alright. I am not going to tell you not to worry; I am going to tell you to stay home, so that I can welcome you home to TLC sometime soon.
“Can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” Jesus Christ.
“I’ve had a lot of worries in my life, most of which never happened.” Mark Twain.
We are one day closer to the end of this crisis.
Much love,
Pastor Jim
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