A new home in a foreign place

How could we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land? (Ps. 137:4)

            Over the past few months, I have heard a number of people compare this time of Covid-19 to the time the Israelites spent in exile in Babylon.  They were taken there against their will.  All they wanted was to return home and get on with their lives there.  Initially, they were hoping that their time in exile would not be long, and that soon things would be back to normal.

            However, along comes the prophet Jeremiah who speaks God’s message to them.  “Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce.  Take wives and have sons and daughters” (Jer. 29:5-6).  “For thus says the Lord: Only when Babylon’s seventy years are completed will I visit you… and bring you back” (v. 10).  In other words, they needed to settle down and plan on being there a while!

            Back in March when everything shut down, many of us were thinking maybe 8-10 weeks and then we could gather again.  However, as you are probably well aware, things have not returned to “normal,” and many precautions are still in place.  Thus, some of us have been stuck in a “holding pattern” of sorts – kind of like when an airplane is circling the airport waiting to land.  However, we’re going to run out of fuel soon, and really need to bring that plane in for a landing.

            As it turns out, we’re going to be here for a while. – Not for 70 years, I would hope, but probably for quite a few months.  And so, the challenge is how to come up with some sustainable patterns and healthy living in the meantime.

            In the case of the Israelites, they had to learn how to worship in a foreign land.  They had to learn how to worship without having a Temple in Jerusalem or animal sacrifices.  They had to learn how to sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land.

            We, too, are being asked to learn how to worship in this foreign place in which we find ourselves – as well as how to be disciples and make disciples.  There are no seminary classes on “how to be a pastor during a pandemic,” just as there are no manuals on “how to worship during a pandemic.”  It is kind of like going hiking or cross-country skiing where there are no established trails and having to break trail yourself.

            Thankfully, at least those of us who are pastors have been able to be in conversation with one another about what is working or not working, as well as sharing resources with one another.  I would hope that others who have had to change the way they do things at home and at work have had similar opportunities for collaboration and support.

            There continue to be many questions - not only about how we worship, but also about how we continue to be the body of Christ in our world.  How do we stay in touch when we aren’t able to gather in person?  What does worship look like with no singing or spoken responses?  How do we minister to those who can’t hear when conversations need to be 2 meters apart?

            We continue to learn as we go.  However, just as God was present with the Israelites even when they were in Babylon, so the Holy Spirit continues to be at work in and through us, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

            In Christ,

            Pastor Lynne Hutchison