Rehearsal

Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

New Testament Scholar Dale Brunner says that here, Jesus claims not just to be bread – but The Bread. And it is bread that gives not just some life – but deep and abiding Life. Jesus is claiming to be that for which all human beings most long. I am the Bread of Life. But how do we get this Life?

In her book, God and the Art of Improv, MaryAnn McKibben Dana quotes Samuel Wells. I love this quote, “When people say, ‘life isn’t a rehearsal,’ I say, ‘But it is, really, isn’t it?’ Life is a rehearsal… (and) the habits of rehearsal are everything we do in life…. Most of my life is preparation for crucial moments. I’m not saying I’ve reached a defining moment in my life, but I’ve reached some fairly crucial moments where I had to act from memory.”

This raises the question: Am I prepared to face the suffering and loss in life that is inevitable? Am I prepared to face times of loneliness? Am I prepared to face these confusing, difficult times right now?

I think about my friend Charley Landreth who had a stroke and lost his ability to speak. But as those who go to visit with him know, he is one of the most joyful people you’ll ever meet. It’s as if Charley trained for the Olympics – Olympics for the soul!

There are times, we need to act from memory. And the practices of our faith are very much a kind of rehearsal – practices of worship, prayer and meditation, small group gatherings in his name. They are the very concrete specific acts of coming to Christ. They re-orient us. They bring us back into his presence so that we can be fed, trained, strengthened.

So how do we get to the Bread of Life? New Testament scholar Dale Brunner says, “On one level the answer is very simple. Just come. Come to him. And then come again, and then again…” Trust in him. Show up where he has promised to be…

He has promised to meet us in worship. He has promised to meet us in times of prayer. He has promised to meet us where two or three are gathered in his name. He has promised to meet us in the poor, the sick, the suffering when we minister to them. And, to all those who trust, and to all of those who come, indeed, he promises, he will fill.

Let us pray: Loving God, I pray today for those who desperately need you near, the lonely, the poor, the sick, and the heartbroken. Meet each of us in this moment of prayer. Heal us. Renew us. And strengthen us each to serve you in our own way. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.