Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Hebrews 13:20-21 (KJV)
By the time you read this, the news of the Wisconsin pharmacist who purposefully spoiled 570 doses of the Moderna vaccine may be wrapped around, as we used to say, “Yesterday’s fish”.
The thought remains, “Why would anyone do such a thing?”. It could have been evil intent, or mental illness, but it could have been that he thought, “Why not? It’ll be a good prank!”
Of course it’s not a good prank. As he discovered, it’s a criminal action, but was the person who did it necessarily evil? I don’t think so. I tend to think he just lost his way.
(Oh no. It’s back to being “sheep” again, is it?)
Yes. You and I are two of the many sheep in God’s flock and, like all sheep, we occasionally get lost. Not dangerously “lost” like this pharmacist, but lost in our own versions of stupidity. Because as humans, we all sit on a knife’s edge, between the right choice and the wrong choice.
And that’s where church comes in. Church is that “home” button for the psyche. It’s the way to reset the brain back to “caring and compassionate” and to get rid of whatever examples of idiocy have crept into the cranium.
Instead of thinking of all the things you could be doing with that hour in church…the time that we spend confessing our sins, listening to sermons, and saying the liturgy every Sunday, realize that our time on Sunday does allow us to “reset” our sense of right and wrong back to something we can be proud of, and away from the moronic thinking that leads to bigotry, to criminal behavior, and all the other sins we humans are so creative at cooking-up.
So, in this new year when we have hopes of actually seeing each other on a regular basis, pray for our church and for your ability to return to worship. Reflect on the fact that church is also a car wash for your soul. It’s a reset button for your psyche. It’s yet another of the many gifts from God for the people of God.
After all, a little church each day keeps the policeman away.
See you at church in 2021!
