Every Friday morning on my way to my men’s Bible study, I listen to “Story Corps,” on National Public Radio. Story corps chronicles the stories of everyday people by providing small, mobile recording studios where people can set an appointment, and they tell of a relationship, event, or vignette from their lives. If you’d like to learn more, simply go to: www.storycorps.org, while you are at it, you might listen to Earl Reynolds’ story from this morning.
I was immediately drawn into Earl Reynolds Jr.’d story, because he is from, and grew up in, Roanoke, VA, my current hometown. He grew up the son of a barber, and tells of how one day the singer, James Brown, came into the shop and young Earl got to shine Brown’s shoes. Earl shares tells this story to his daughter, and as he does he quotes one of his own father’s frequent sayings,
which is “life is a process of adjustments.”
This phrase struck me, and thank goodness this came at the end of the narrative because I began thinking about the many ways in which life is indeed a process of adjustments. I thought of how life unfolds, and the result of that unfolding we have to adjust to the realities of life, otherwise we’ll either go crazy, be frustrated, or get lost and depressed.
I reflected upon what a process of adjustments looks like and was reminded that, just as in life, so in faith do we find ourselves in the middle of a process, adjusting to where God is and where God might be calling us to serve. To how our faith or forgiveness or love or hope are all well described as a “process of adjustments.” But then I found myself thinking about who makes those adjustments and how those adjustments affect others.
Certainly from Earl Reynolds Sr.’s perspective, the process and adjustments are personal. That as we go through life, or as life goes through us, we discover that we have to adjust and that it helps to see things as a process rather than an ends and means game. That we face situations day in and day out, and how we approach and address these situations can make all the difference. But this has implications which are more than just personal, they can also be communal.
As a pastor, daily I encounter how one person’s response or ideas can disrupt the whole apple cart
or make all the difference in bringing harmony. I am reminded that the process that is going on in one life is interlinked with my own...and a whole congregation of people...and when one person adjusts, others are forced to adjust their lives as well.
This happens in committee work. It happens in mission and outreach. It happens in finances, and even among the work of church leadership and staff. This process of adjustments is constantly at work, and in order to become community there must be give and take, as well as sometimes placing the needs of the community and the communal process of adjustments ahead of our own desires and ideals.
In the middle of the book of Acts there are story after story of Paul and his companions traveling from town to town, region to region, sharing the story of Christ. Toward the end of the 14th chapter Paul and Barnabas head back to Antioch. When they get there they are greeted by their friends and fellow Christ followers. They share the stories of what they have been through, and Paul says to them, “We must go through many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God.”
In reading the New Testament and reflecting upon Paul’s writings, there is an evolution that took place from who he was at the start to who he ended up becoming. One can almost see the process of adjustments lived out in Paul as his theology was shaped by his experiences and the movement of the Holy Spirit. As he made those adjustments and shared them, those with whom he shared, including us, were blessed, for they witness to a call to grow and be changed as people of faith. They witness to the blessing that God does not leave us where we are but moves us to become who God needs us to become. Through a process of adjustments, and learnings, we grow as disciples.
“Life is a process of adjustments.” It is a simply but profound statement. Even more powerfully, when lived out, it is more than just a statement. It is a way of living. It is a way of growing. It is a way of becoming. It is the way of faith.
How do you approach life? How do you deal with change? When was the last time you reflected upon the process of adjustments that you are making, and where is God in the midst of that process?
I was immediately drawn into Earl Reynolds Jr.’d story, because he is from, and grew up in, Roanoke, VA, my current hometown. He grew up the son of a barber, and tells of how one day the singer, James Brown, came into the shop and young Earl got to shine Brown’s shoes. Earl shares tells this story to his daughter, and as he does he quotes one of his own father’s frequent sayings,
which is “life is a process of adjustments.”This phrase struck me, and thank goodness this came at the end of the narrative because I began thinking about the many ways in which life is indeed a process of adjustments. I thought of how life unfolds, and the result of that unfolding we have to adjust to the realities of life, otherwise we’ll either go crazy, be frustrated, or get lost and depressed.
I reflected upon what a process of adjustments looks like and was reminded that, just as in life, so in faith do we find ourselves in the middle of a process, adjusting to where God is and where God might be calling us to serve. To how our faith or forgiveness or love or hope are all well described as a “process of adjustments.” But then I found myself thinking about who makes those adjustments and how those adjustments affect others.
Certainly from Earl Reynolds Sr.’s perspective, the process and adjustments are personal. That as we go through life, or as life goes through us, we discover that we have to adjust and that it helps to see things as a process rather than an ends and means game. That we face situations day in and day out, and how we approach and address these situations can make all the difference. But this has implications which are more than just personal, they can also be communal.
As a pastor, daily I encounter how one person’s response or ideas can disrupt the whole apple cart
or make all the difference in bringing harmony. I am reminded that the process that is going on in one life is interlinked with my own...and a whole congregation of people...and when one person adjusts, others are forced to adjust their lives as well. This happens in committee work. It happens in mission and outreach. It happens in finances, and even among the work of church leadership and staff. This process of adjustments is constantly at work, and in order to become community there must be give and take, as well as sometimes placing the needs of the community and the communal process of adjustments ahead of our own desires and ideals.
In the middle of the book of Acts there are story after story of Paul and his companions traveling from town to town, region to region, sharing the story of Christ. Toward the end of the 14th chapter Paul and Barnabas head back to Antioch. When they get there they are greeted by their friends and fellow Christ followers. They share the stories of what they have been through, and Paul says to them, “We must go through many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God.”
In reading the New Testament and reflecting upon Paul’s writings, there is an evolution that took place from who he was at the start to who he ended up becoming. One can almost see the process of adjustments lived out in Paul as his theology was shaped by his experiences and the movement of the Holy Spirit. As he made those adjustments and shared them, those with whom he shared, including us, were blessed, for they witness to a call to grow and be changed as people of faith. They witness to the blessing that God does not leave us where we are but moves us to become who God needs us to become. Through a process of adjustments, and learnings, we grow as disciples.
“Life is a process of adjustments.” It is a simply but profound statement. Even more powerfully, when lived out, it is more than just a statement. It is a way of living. It is a way of growing. It is a way of becoming. It is the way of faith.
How do you approach life? How do you deal with change? When was the last time you reflected upon the process of adjustments that you are making, and where is God in the midst of that process?
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