Accidental Alignment Alights Amen

Then he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the other trees. When they sprout leaves, you see for yourselves and know that summer is now near. So also you, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. I tell you the truth, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

“But be on your guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day close down upon you suddenly like a trap. For it will overtake all who live on the face of the whole earth. But stay alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that must happen, and to stand before the Son of Man.”  

This reading is from the Gospel According to Luke, the 21st chapter. The words seemed to speak to me immediately. I started thinking about the first time I had a fresh fig.  I remembered the shopkeeper of the little market inviting us to try one, they are very different from the dried figs or jelly that we typically eat.  Fresh figs have a light and floral quality--very different from the dark and molasses leaning of their wrinkly later selves. We happened into the shop looking for something else. What a wonderful discovery. Figs don't keep real well in their fresh state, so you have to get them while they are ripe (or dry them!). Interestingly, I learned a little later that you can grow figs in this area. While I was thinking figs, I also remembered that the Tree of Knowledge probably grew figs rather than apples. (They did make their clothes with fig leaves and figs are much older than apples.)

I continued reading and heard Jesus caution against false anxiety and fear in a time that we might think is the end. They rang true and gave a strange comfort to my heart which has put on a bunch of pounds through this pandemic. Yes, Amen, Jesus. Your words live on forever. I need to hold on to what you say and not my fears about what others might prognosticate. You hold goodness and life for your siblings. 

We know it is now summer. The ripening figs, the date, and the weather tell us so. We know so many things. Yet, we are also so fearful of what might be. There is so much that we cannot control or even get a fingerhold of understanding.

Then, I went to copy and paste the Bible text for today and noticed that I was not reading the correct section. I had missed a digit. All my study and reflection started on the wrong paragraph! I read the "official" selection and didn't feel anything. Then I chuckled a little as I realized that it had already been revealed to me. The word apocalypse literally means revealing.

So often, God reveals to us in the midst of an alignment that we did not expect or predict. We make a "mistake" or think our timing is off. Then God shows us that being open to live in the light and the hope of now is the best and most fruitful way. Try this, when something goes a little off or seems wrong, look for meaning or another path that you should be on. It has been my experience that God gives us many such moments that light up the heart and mind. Then the truth becomes obvious enough to say the truth, the amen--"Yes, God, I see it now..."