Give us this day…

An old man had a habit of early morning walks on the beach.  One day, after a storm, he saw a human figure in the distance moving like a dancer.

As he came closer, he saw that it was a young woman and she was not dancing but was reaching down to the sand, picking up a starfish and very gently tossing them back into the ocean.

“Young lady,” he asked, “why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?”

“The sun is up, the tide is out, and if I do not throw them back in, they will die,” she replied.

“But young lady, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it?  You cannot possibly make a difference,” the man said.

The young woman listened politely, paused, bent down and picked up another starfish and tossed it into the sea, past the breaking waves, saying,

“It made a difference to that one.”      

adapted from “The Star Thrower” by Loren Eiseley                                         

                                                                                                      

Today is World Communion Sunday.  The Senior Minister at the church where my daughter serves as Youth Director, sent me a written copy of his sermon in advance so the deaf guy could follow along. He indicated that in observance of WCS that their service would be highlighting different cultures during the service.  It does not take much for me to find a reason to make the drive out to her church, enjoy the service, her company, and a few moments of pride while watching her participation during the service.

Today was a special day.  The sanctuary was adorned in fall colors and the communion table was covered with breads representing cultures from around the world. The minister offered a wonderful sermon, and it began with these words:

“Who says one person can’t make a difference?”

And it ended with these questions:

We often say, “Everyone is welcome at Christ’s table, but I am not sure that we live that extreme hospitality.  Who have you invited to the table?  Who will you invite next?“

During the service, a nice lady named Loes read scripture in Dutch and then the translation in English; the choir director, Eddie, lead an anthem in Swahili; and Kara offered an Elder Prayer in Spanish.  While I could not hear these multi-cultural additions to the programming, I was able to follow along with the information in the bulletin and by reading lips from my silent pew.

When it was time for communion and the Elder stood to lead the congregation in the Lord’s Prayer, the minister asked my daughter Katie to sign the words. I watched in pride as she signed the Lord’s Prayer, and I followed the signs as rest of the congregation recited the words.  And I remembered these words that opened and closed the sermon…

“Who says one person can’t make a difference?”

Who have you invited to the table?  Who will you invite next?

Who indeed?  While I may not have auditory appreciation of an anthem sung in Swahili, of scripture recited in Dutch, or a prayer offered in Spanish, I can say without a doubt that on this World Communion Sunday… just like the starfish, you have made a difference to this one!

Thank you for the invitation! Thank you for making a difference in my life by including the deaf in this multi-cultural experience!

And thanks to all of you for listening!

Your friend,

KBM

Kevin Medlin
kevin@mysilentpew.com