Last Sunday in church the beatitudes were read from the gospel of Luke. Although we are now part way through this week, I have been continuing to mull over the significance of this common passage. We hear this reading so often, it is so easy to not dig deeper and to glace over them.
Years ago at a church service I was given a business card with “Blessed are you who weep, for you will laugh”. Five years later this card is still held by a magnet to the top of the refrigerator door. It is right at eye level and so I frequently see it pass by as I dive into our fridge. Since receiving this card, there have been times of profound stress, despair, and grief in our home; however the card remains and reminds me that things change. Life changes, circumstances change, the world changes. I may be in tears now, but I will laugh later. This provides a tremendous sense of relief and hope. When things are bad they will get better.
It is a bit harder to accept the bitter truth that when we are on top of the world, things will inevitably change and we will become the underdogs once more. This on the surface can be disappointing, however with each transformation comes growth, perspective, and balance. These are the real fruits of the Spirit.
The beautitudes may seem simple, but they are also profound, because they remind us of the vision, the balance, and the hope that we must find in the world. With these gifts we can keeping transforming into the persons that the world needs, that our community needs. Do not despair “for the times they are a-changin’ “. Our spirits are being cleaned, we are touching the experiences and emotions that Jesus himself, as every human has, felt. Let us find the comfort and the hope that is here.
Amen.