A story about a
wedding, I can’t tell you how many weddings I have officiated. I can’t. I haven’t kept track. I probably should have in retrospect but when
I try to remember the list changes every time.
Then I try to remember all the weddings I have attended and the list
even more muddled. When I was a kid, it seems like all the weddings I went to
had a reception at the KC Hall #3651. I remember
that number because that was the number of my Cub Scout troop that also met
there. Every my memory of those
receptions have all blended into one memory because the band was always in the
same place. The food was all basically
the same. The same relatives were
dancing the way they do. The loud music, the cool night air, the exhausted bride…it
was always the same. The next day, as
far as I was concerned, life returned to normal. Everything was ordinary again.
It’s interesting how the ordinary life can, at times, become extraordinary.
For example in a couple of weeks,
on February third, a two professional football teams will be in New
Orleans. They will spend several minutes
trying to carry, throw and kick an oblong ball to opposite ends of a great big
green rectangle. Whichever team does it
the most will win and will be the champion of pushing an oblong ball to the end
of a big green rectangle. That’s football. And there will be a lot of little green
rectangles traded for beverages, chips, wings and hot dogs. And there will be lots of little green
rectangles paid for advertising on television while you watch the game to
convince you to buy things a bit more expensive than beverages, chips, wings
and hot dogs. This is part of our
culture. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New
Years, then a month later, Super bowl. And
I like it.
I like it like it like I like
weddings, and graduation open houses. I
like it like an impromptu summer dinner around a grill in the summer or a night
out with my wife, just because. I like it because it is a celebration of
the ordinary life. Last night there was
a party out in the Activity Center. We
played some silly games, heard some less-than-stellar jokes and ate some good
food. The theme was football, but we
would have had a great time even if the big game was cancelled. We laughed and enjoyed each other’s company
because we love each other. We gathered
in the name of Jesus as a community of disciples. We didn’t have a bible study but we felt the
love of God.
When Jesus is at the center the
ordinary becomes extraordinary.
In the Gospel Lesson today Jesus
is at a wedding. The writer of the
Gospel didn’t say who was getting married, this may be because he didn’t want
to distract from his main point by identifying the bride and the bridegroom or it
may be like me, by the time he wrote it down he didn’t remember which wedding
it was that he was at. He just
remembered that Jesus was there. He
remembered that Jesus’ mother was there. He remembered that Jesus disciples
where there. He remembered that something
very special, something extraordinary happened at that wedding. He saw Mary and
Jesus discussing something. He saw his lord give instructions to some
servants. He saw one of those servants
draw some liquid out of a stone jar that was usually used for ritual cleansing
and bring it to the head waiter. He saw the delight on the head waiters face as
he tasted the contents. And the
celebration continued. The next day life went back to being ordinary.
Now the same event from the
perspective of the newlywed couple was that the celebration was underway. The head waiter came and complemented the
bridegroom for the good wine and the celebration went on and the next day life
went back to being ordinary.
The same event from the
perspective of the average attendee of the celebration was that they went,
every proceeded as these things usually do and the next day life went back to
being ordinary.
For the disciple, the bridegroom
and the average attendee the ordinary life meant different things. For the disciple who witnessed these things
and followed Jesus life was never like it was before. Life had purpose and meaning. The wedding at Cana was a turning point. I
have had the thought before and I have others say it as well, that ‘I wish I could
feel the way I felt when I first believed.’
You know that feeling of complete peace mixed with exhilaration and
joy. The knowledge of the eternal
balanced with an appreciation for the earthly. “Thank you Jesus! Thank you God
for breaking down the walls of my ego and pride!” I would be nice to stay in
that state, but the kids need to be dropped off at school, the taxes need to be
filed and, you know, my bad knee is acting up today.
For the newlyweds the ordinary life was also
different because he now has a wife, she has a husband. The party was over and life begins. They had
a wonderful party. There was a situation
where at that party that could have embarrassed the family. But Jesus came
through for them. Good thing he was
invited. But now regular life begins. The ordinary life begins. The day in and
day out of life can sap you of your spirit. How can you go every day to a job
and do the same thing over and over again and find fulfillment. How can you clean your house every single day
only to have it thrown into disarray moments after your family walks through the
door and receive little to no appreciation for the work you have done? What is
the cure for this ordinary life?
For the average
attendee of the wedding the next day may have been just like most days. The party came and went. For them it was just
an ordinary party. But if
they knew where the wine that they were drinking came from, they would have a
different perspective. Who gonna tell ‘em?
But there is a fourth person I haven’t
mentioned. The servant who filled those
jars with ordinary water then drew out wine and brought it to the head waiter.
He saw everything that happened yet had no understanding. I’ll bet he didn’t sleep well that
night. I’ll bet that he spent many hours
contemplating what had happened. My Hope is that he sought out the one who
instructed him that night to fill those jars and ask who he is and how that extraordinary
thing happened. I don’t think there is
any measure of normal for this fellow until he gets some answers to explain the
things he experienced? Who’s gonna guide
him?
We spend a lot of time and
energy on things that are impermanent. If
we hinge our joy on a sports team then our happiness is diminished when our team
fails. Those of you who are Lions fans
have had to grow spiritually and lean more and more on your faith over the
years while you Packers fans have had an easier go of it!
God want us to have
joy! At the wedding feast the wine ran out.
Mary came to Jesus. Jesus took care of it. It wasn’t his time to reveal himself as the
Messiah so he did it discretely. The party went on the celebration continued. That’s
what we have to do. We have to celebrate.
We have to celebrate the things of this life. The wedding is a
celebration of the love two people have for each other. The party yesterday was
a way to celebrate our life together, a way to find joy. In a book in the Bible called Hebrews it says
“ And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good
deeds, not giving up meeting
together, as some are in the habit of doing, but
encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
When we are gathered together in the name of
Jesus he is among us and he makes the ordinary extraordinary.
Brothers and sisters
we need to keep Christ at the center of everything we do. It’s there we will
find joy. If we are in the practice of
prayer and worship, if we study the bible and meditate and it does not lead to
joy then we are doing it wrong. If we
don’t find joy in the Christian life then Christ is not the center of it.
So, how is it with
you today? Does your walk as a disciple
of Christ lead you to joy? I pray that
it does.
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