DAY 98
Faith in the Midst of a Pandemic
A series of daily reflections for people of faith
by Rev. Robert Bayley, Interim Pastor
Patuxent Presbyterian Church, California, Maryland
WEEK FOURTEEN: SATURDAY 20 JUNE 2020
Shepherding This Formative Time
“Our faith is being formed by this pandemic in ways we have yet to fully understand. As theologian and author John Westerhoff reminds us, ‘Formation takes place whether we like it or not. You are always being formed by something.’ How can we shepherd this formative time by not racing to programming or busyness and still support each other even in times of physical distancing?” - From the current issue of a Christian denominational magazine
It was without question for me the most difficult time in all my years of pastoral ministry. Three of us pastors came and went in rapid succession and in the midst of painful conflict. Not only was I caught off guard by the extent to which church people can be hurtful, I was equally caught off guard by the depth of my sinful nature their behavior revealed within me. I quickly refocused – turning my gaze from them and who said what, to who I was and my desperate need for God’s intervening grace. So overwhelming was the bitterness rising up within my own soul that it eclipsed what anyone else had said or done. I knew that if I was to survive this chapter I had to let go of everyone and everything and focus solely on my own relationship with the Lord. I didn’t realize it at the time but I was engaging in spiritual formation triage, a shepherding of my faith.
The author of the above-referenced article asks the question: “What might faith formation triage look like …” Here’s her answer in terms of foci no matter where we are or what we are experiencing, written in the context of the coronavirus pandemic:
- “To belong to Christ and his body;
- To know God’s story and one’s place in that story;
- To have a sustaining hope;
- To find one’s calling and be equipped for it.”
As Christians we have the luxury of choosing how we are formed in and by life’s experiences, and it is a choice. Had I parked in my bitterness toward others I would have formed a bitter heart that probably would still be with me today. A pandemic faith formation triage exercise involves assessing what is going on around and within us, identifying choices and their consequences, and then choosing, and in the process learning how to ‘shepherd’ our faith formation.
Reflective question: Which of these four foci do you most need to choose during the pandemic?
Reflective Scripture: Deuteronomy 30:19 – “… choose life …”
Reflective hymn:
“The Lord’s My Shepherd” – Psalm 23, The Scottish Psalter of 1659
The Lord’s my shepherd, I’ll not want, He makes me down to lie
In pastures green; He leadeth me the quiet waters by.
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