Tuesday, December 15, 2020

Day 283: A Sneak Preview


DAY 283
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
pastorrobert@paxpres.org
Week Forty-one    Tuesday 22 December 2020

 A Sneak Preview
My twin brother and I had it down to a silent science on Christmas Eve, tiptoeing into the living room, carefully loosening ribbon or tape just enough to peek at what the box contained, then sealing it back up, feigning surprise at the receptivity of the gift on Christmas morning when our family unwrapped presents. In retrospect I suspect our parents knew – our father didn’t miss much, but chose - I think - to remain silent allowing us to have our suspenseful fun. 

A sneak preview – in some ways we would all like a sneak preview of the rest of our lives, our future, which is what sends people into the occult from horoscopes to palm readers to crystal balls and tarot cards. There is within us all in varying measures a broken belief that if we could know ahead of time our future, be given a sneak preview, we would be better prepared for it upon its arrival. But would we really?

A glimpse into a future marked by pain or a catastrophe could easily disable us in the present, crippling our souls with fear of a dreaded tomorrow. Yet many if not most of us engage in a measure of future casting at Christmas, asking “I wonder where we’ll all be next Christmas?” or “I wonder if so-and-so will still be with us next Christmas?” And these days – “I wonder if any of us will get the coronavirus between now and next Christmas?” These are sneak preview questions asked uniquely at this time of year.

Trust – to lean on or cling to, to entrust oneself, are all within the Biblical usage of a number of words translating trust. In addition, trust and faith are frequently interchangeable synonyms. The problem with sneak previews is that sometimes rather than excite us they can disappoint us. “It’s a Wonderful Life,” a movie staple at Christmas in our household, gives an emotional ‘sneak preview’ into a life and the consequences of that preview in a hopeful way. But our lives are not movie scripts subject to revision nor are they Christmas movies leaving the bad parts on the cutting room floor. As Christians the reality is that we trust Jesus for and with our future. Period.   

Reflective question: Where in your life do you most want a sneak preview you need to give to Jesus? 

Reflective Scripture: Matthew 6:34 – “Do not worry about tomorrow,…” – Jesus.

Reflective hymn:
“Trusting Jesus” – Edgar Page (1836-1921)
Simply trusting every day; trusting through a stormy way;
Even when my faith is small, trusting Jesus, that is all.
Trusting as the moments fly, trusting as the days go by,
Trusting Him, what’er befall, trusting Jesus, that is all.

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