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Dear Friends,
Do you remember your childhood “chore?”
I remember around the age of 5 that my chore was to go into the chicken coop and collect the eggs. Now this isn’t some great Hollywood moment of singing to the feathery ladies while throwing seed on the ground. To me, this was a moment of real terror. Imagine, a building large enough in which to park cars reconfigured to house 50-100 egg-laying chickens. The “chore” started like this: you courageously turned on the light to wake up the chickens. You would hear the scurrying of the mice who loved the feed on the floor. Then you would go into each nest and take the eggs from large chickens, who would rather you leave their hard work right where they left it. Once you had your containers full you would carry these huge buckets back to the house to wash the eggs so my mother could take the eggs to the buyer in the morning.
The allowance or “pay-off” that I got for this chore that had been handed down from sibling after sibling was a quarter a week, big money in those youthful days!. What? Not fair. My friends made cash from feeding their dog in the warm kitchen or bringing in the dirty clothes from their room to the laundry room.
Ah, time for a life lesson with my father. He explained to me that, being asked to take on a chore, meant that I was part of the family, our little community. I was offered to do a chore that fit my age and abilities. I got an allowance because we had agreed that I would collect eggs and my father would give me a quarter each week. He told me, as I sat red in the face complaining, it wasn’t his job to decide chores and allowances for the other children. In that moment, it was just little Katie Lowe that mattered. I’m not sure I realized the lesson I was being taught to its fullness.
What seems unfair to you right now? Maybe you are a health care worker and in the middle of pandemic you have been asked to take a pay cut to help the hospitals financially survive. Maybe you are a parent trying to make the best decision you can on whether or not your children go to school on-site or virtually at home. Maybe you are the employer and you have to decide whether or not to let an employee go because of lack of sales. Maybe your home was damaged in the derecho and the neighbor seems to be doing just fine while you struggle with insurance policies. Or maybe your unfair is the way you are treated because of your gender, race, personal identification, economic or educational background, citizenship, political party, or wearing or not wearing a mask for COVID.
What is unfair?
Our Lord and Savior has conquered the consequence of a forever separation with God by taking on our “unfair,” the “ugly” of our lives by the way we treat one another or demand fairness on our terms alone. Check out the story from Matthew 20:1-16 and you will connect the dots on how Jesus turns the fairness of this world upside down with the fairness that God provides for each of us.
In a world that is deeply hurting from unfair, it is Good News that the peace from our Lord and Savior is exactly the only thing we need.
Worship with us this weekend with a willingness to ponder God’s Good News for you and me each day. You may check us out online on Sunday morning at 9:00 a.m. on the lawn, in parked cars, or listen online with Facebook. The pre-recorded service will continue to be available on our website.
See you this weekend! Peace,
Pastor Katie