The Writer’s Wife

Seeing below the surface where God’s grace works

10/1/2017

Matthew 21:28-32 Jesus said to the chief priests and elders of the people: "What is your opinion? A man had two sons. He came to the first and said, 'Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.' He said in reply, 'I will not, ' but afterwards changed his mind and went. The man came to the other son and gave the same order. He said in reply, 'Yes, sir, 'but did not go. Which of the two did his father's will?" They answered, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you. When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him."

              I want to tell you a story about an anonymous writer and his wife. A famous writer was in his study, and began writing: “(1) Last year, my gallbladder was removed. I was in bed for a long time. (2) The same year I reached the age of 60 and had to leave my favorite job. I spent 30 years with this publishing company. (3) The same year my father died. (4) The same year my son failed his medical exam because he had a car accident. He was hospitalized with a cast on his leg for several days. The destruction to the car was a second loss.” His concluding statement was: “Alas, it was a bad year!”

               When the writer’s wife entered the room, she found her husband looking dejected and sad. She read what he had written, left the room, and came back with another piece of paper. The writer read his wife’s version of the year’s events: “(1) Last year I finally got rid of my gallbladder which had given me many years of pain. (2) I turned 60 with sound health and retired from my job. Now, I can utilize my time to write with more focus and peace. (3) The same year my father died at the age of 95, without depending on anyone, without any critical conditions and met his Creator. (4) The same year, God blessed my son with life. My car was destroyed, but my son was alive and without permanent disability.” Her concluding statement was: “This year was an immense blessing.”

             What is the moral of the story? Simple: women are smarter than men! True as that may be, the real moral is not to scratch the surface of life. Rather, to dig deeper and discover the hidden undercurrents where God’s grace works wonders. The writer’s wife taught the writer that the surface doesn’t tell the whole story.

             In the gospel today, Jesus invites the Pharisees to stop scratching the surface, to see more than meets their eyes. Our Lord says shockingly: “Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.” That would be shocking for even us to hear! But Jesus explains why this is so when you dig below the surface level, saying: “When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did.” In other words, on the surface it seems religious leaders will be saved before public sinners. I sure would like to think so, since I’m one of those religious leaders! But that misses the deeper reality of God’s grace touching and transforming the human heart. The surface doesn’t tell the whole story.

              Let me give you three examples where the surface doesn’t tell the whole story. The first was an act of vandalism at the prep school of the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. Racial slurs were scribbled on an African American student’s door. Lt. General Jay Silveria addressed the entire Air Force academy and in no uncertain terms laid down the law. The 3-star general said: “Just in case you’re unclear on where I stand on this topic, I’m going to leave you my most important thought today: If you can’t treat someone with dignity and respect, then you need to get out. If you can’t treat someone from another gender, whether that’s a man or a woman, with dignity and respect, then you need to get out. If you demean someone in any way, then you need to get out. And if you can’t treat someone from another race, of different skin color, with dignity and respect, then you need to get out.” In other words, the general, like Jesus, was demanding that the cadets look below the surface level of a person – below their gender, their race, or their language – and see a child of God. The surface of a person doesn’t tell the whole story.

               The second example is how to interpret the signs of the times, especially the earthquakes, the floods, and hurricanes we’ve been hearing about lately. Several people have asked me lately: “Fr. John, are these the signs of the end times? Is the world about to end?” My reply was: “I sure hope so! The sooner Jesus comes back the better! Let’s blow this taco stand!” But I always remind people what Jesus said in Mark 13:32-33, “But of that day or hour, not one knows; neither the angels in heaven, not the Son, but only the Father. Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come.” That is, don’t scratch the surface of these events, and thereby jump to conclusions, but be perpetually prepared. Even when all is prosperous and peaceful – Jesus may return. The surface of history doesn’t tell the whole story of salvation.

              The third example is a poem called “The Weaver” written by Corrie Ten Boom. Corrie survived World War II, was sent to a German concentration camp for hiding Jews in her attic, and after the war went to Germany and forgave her captors. She had to work hard to see below the surface of Jews and Germans. And what she see she wrote into a poem: “My life is but a weaving / Between my God and me. / I cannot choose the colors / He weaveth steadily. / Oft’ times He weaveth sorrow; / And I in foolish pride / Forget he sees the upper / and I the underside. / Not ‘til the loom is silent / And the shuttles cease to fly, / Will God unroll the canvas / And reveal the reason why. / The dark threads are as needful / In the weaver’s skillful hand / As the threads of gold and silver / In the pattern He has planned. / He knows, He loves, He cares; / Nothing this truth can dim. / He gives the very best to those / Who leave the choice to Him.”

             Folks, we usually only see the “underside” of God’s great weaving of our life. But it’s the upperside – hidden from our view – where we find beauty and blessing and beatitude. One day we will see that upperside, and then we will conclude like the writer’s wife, “This year was an immense blessing.”

Praised be Jesus Christ!