Tomorrow, we travel to New York City to see our daughter Caroline in her one performance of Sunset Boulevard before she moves on to her next gig. It is exciting, for sure. But, when I spoke to her yesterday, we discussed the irony that Sunset Boulevard was literally burning while she was sitting in the basement of the theatre doing her job as a standby for the lead in the musical Sunset Boulevard. It was in the basement of the St. James Theatre that she decided to do what she could to help those affected by the California wildfires. Caroline had some free time, so she contacted her cast members, and they took up a small collection. It was something.
What a week! Bitter cold and snow in our Maryland neighborhood while winds whipped up on the left coast, and there was fire, so much fire. The images were horrific. On top of that, there was a 7.1 in Tibet with tragic loss of life and hundreds of injuries.
Where is God in all of this? As a new “curate” (a label given to newly ordained clergy that means “cure of souls”), I think a lot about this kind of thing. Truth is, I thought about this long before I ever considered discerning a call to the priesthood.
Where is God when the proverbial @#$ hits the fan?
This is from the Hebrew Bible:
“The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.”
~~1Kings 19:11-12
Now, of course, these verses are in the context of a story of ancient-world turmoil and violence, of governments seeking power and control at the expense of the people they were supposed to be serving—nothing like today. We’re much more sophisticated today.
What I love about this passage is it reveals a genuine search for wisdom during a time of fear, confusion, and trauma. We could use some serious wisdom right about now.
I love that Caroline listened for wisdom and responded. I think it might be wise in times like these, in general, to get to a place where we might discern God’s gentle whisper. It might be wise to focus on what is in our control in the present moment. It is in the present moment that a gentle whisper is more likely to be heard. How can we help those in most desperate need? It might be wise to pause, to be still; to breathe deeply of the resources available in the now moment – which is really all we have. It is in stillness (some might call it prayer) that practical resources are most readily available. From there, we can take action.
Listen for the gentle whisper. It's always there, under all the rest of the noise.
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