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The Fifth Sunday in Lent God’s LoveGrace and peace to you. We are right in the middle of what is known as “March Madness,” the NCAA basketball tournament. Like many of these events, it is a single elimination tournament; lose once, and your team is done. One missed shot… one wrong move… one stray foul… can cost a team the game and mean the end of a season. A lot of the reality TV shows airing right now function in much the same way. I’ve been home a bit more in the evenings lately and, for good or for ill, have caught a glimpse of The Biggest Loser, Survivor, and The Apprentice, and my personal favorite, Dancing with the Stars. All of these shows operate with a “single elimination” mindset, too. One bad move… one wrong decision… can cost a player a few votes and mean the end of his/her run. I suppose basketball and reality TV function this way because it makes for exciting events and good ratings, but also because a lot of things these days operate with a “single elimination” mindset. One wrong move can cost your employment, health, an important relationship. Perhaps because this is the way the world often works, it can be difficult for us to accept that this is NOT the way God works. For those of you in small groups this Lenten season, this week’s DVD is about a boy… 7-8-9 years-old… whose parents find out that he has done something he shouldn’t have done. When confronted by his mother, the boy stands frozen, then he runs upstairs, climbs in his parents’ bed, and pulls the covers over his head. A few hours later Dad comes home, hears what has happened, goes upstairs, sees a lump in the bed, pulls the covers back, cradles his hot, sweaty son in his arms and says over and over,“There’s nothing you could do to make me love you less.” THAT is how God works. Today’s reading from Romans says that NOTHING can ever separate us from the love of God. Our Gospel says that we receive not only grace, but grace upon grace. And as Rob Bell says,“Whatever you’ve done, wherever you’ve been, whatever you will do… God loves you and God always has, and you can’t change that.” That is certainly good news; there is nothing we can do to make God love us less. At the same time, this isn’t a ticket to do whatever we want. In the video, the boy had to face the people he had wronged and apologize. He had to own his mistakes and experience the consequences of his actions. Of course, his parents didn’t love him any less, but that also didn’t excuse him from the hard work of making things right. And so it is with us… or so it should be… even into adulthood. God won’t love us any less, but that doesn’t spare us from experiencing the consequences of our actions or save us from the hard work of making things right. As people who value healthy relationships, what we learned as kids… or should have learned as kids… still holds true. This is when a lot of us seem to prefer that single elimination mindset. It’s a lot easier to sever relationships than it is to work things out and try again. It’s a lot easier to leave than it is to go through the pain of making things right. All this reminds me of the story of Roy Riegels. To continue the sports analogies, Roy Riegels played football for the University of California Berkeley. It was New Year’s Day, 1929; Georgia Tech played U of C Berkeley in the Rose Bowl. In that game Riegels recovered a fumble for California. Picking up the loose ball, he lost his direction and ran sixty-five yards toward the wrong goal line. One of his own teammates, Benny Lom, ran him down and tackled him just before he scored for the opposing team. Several plays later, the Bruins had to punt. Tech blocked the kick and scored a safety, completely demoralizing the California team. The strange play came in the first half. At half-time the California players filed off the field and into the dressing room. As others sat down on the benches and the floor, Riegels sat down in a corner and put his face in his hands. A football coach usually has a great deal to say to his team during halftime. That day Coach Price was quiet. No doubt he was trying to decide what to do with Riegels. When the timekeeper came in and announced that there was three minutes before playing time, Coach Price looked at the team and said,“Men, the same team that played the first half will start the second.” The players got up and started out, all but Riegels. He didn’t budge. The coach looked back and called to him. Riegels didn’t move. Coach Price went over to where Riegels sat and said,“Roy, didn’t you hear me? The same team that played the first half will start the second.” Roy Riegels looked up, his cheeks wet with tears.“Coach,” he said,“I can’t do it. I’ve ruined you. I‘ve ruined the university’s reputation. I’ve ruined myself. I can’t face that crowd out here.” Coach Price reached out, put his hand on Riegel’s shoulder, and said,“Roy, get up and go on back. The game is only half over.” There’s a metaphor for us! God is like Coach Price, who reminds us that, whenever we have made a wrong move, missed a shot, or run a long way in the wrong direction, God will not love us any less. At the same time, God doesn’t want us to sit in the locker room or on the sidelines. Instead, God taps us on the shoulder and says,“Whatever you’ve done, wherever you’ve been, whatever you will do… the game is only half over. Get out there and play.” On New Year’s Day 1929 Roy Riegels finally did get up. He went onto the field, and the fans saw him play hard and play well. How about you? Knowing that there’s nothing you can do to make God love you less, are you ready to play hard and play well? If you’ve been on the sidelines for awhile, are you ready to get back in the game? |
St. Paul's Lutheran Church § 824 N. Lewis § Waukegan IL |
