Out of the Mouths of Cows...

    I love jigsaw puzzles, so I downloaded a Jigsaw Puzzle App onto my iTouch.  I open the app, and it gives me a few options.  How many pieces do I want the puzzle to be? (25, 36, or 49) Do I want the pieces to rotate or not? (which makes the puzzle harder)  Then when I push the “play” button, a framed “board” pops up with scattered puzzle pieces.  At the top of the app there are two buttons.  One will show the picture of the puzzle to be solved, and the other will show the outline of the pieces, both of which help to solve the challenge.
    This has become my favorite app, for it is a challenge to take that which I cannot see in full and put it together piece by piece, that in the end I am able to see how all the single pieces create the whole.  Sometimes the puzzle is easy and sometimes it’s harder, but always I enjoy putting that last piece in place.  It brings satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment.  If you’ve ever worked a puzzle, I think you know the feeling.

    In my 15 years in the pastorate, I’ve grown to learn that one of the roles that a pastor takes on is to help put together the pieces of the puzzle God lays out for lives.  This role is lived out corporately in situations where the pastor seeks spiritual discernment through examining the past, residing in the present, and praying for God’s guidance into the future.  The pastor does this in many ways, but often it is received in snippets or visions or promptings that come from the world, parishioners, and/or situations.
    This role can also be live out on an individual basis in situations where people come to the pastor seeking an ear to listen, shoulder to cry on, or heart to help in the discernment process.  It’s as if the individual pieces of the puzzle of one’s life are laid out, and with the Spirit’s help, the pastor is given the privilege of helping the person to connect the pieces together to reveal a coherent whole.  Time and time again I’ve been blessed to be a part of the revealing of that picture with clarity.  Such is the nature of the pastorate, but at least from my perspective, in order to be effected in that role, the pastor must be attentive to his/herself as well as their own past, present, and future.
    This concept of a God-created puzzle of life has been realized in my own life through parishioners whom I’ve served being moved to the same town so that the pastoral connection continues in multiple settings.  I have experienced it in the connections between current parishioners and those I’ve served in the past, and I have most recently experienced it through sharing pastoral care with a former parishioner whose parents live in the area.  New Year’s Eve her father became ill and a week later was taken off life support where he eventually entered the Church Triumphant.
    In sharing time with my friend and her family, I found myself again amazed at how God  intertwined our lives long ago, so that we could journey together through these difficult days.  In doing so, we were all blessed.  The truth of “God’s intertwining” was revealed powerfully this past Tuesday at the culmination of the funeral and graveside service.  Before I describe what happened, however, you need to know that my friend’s father was a dairyman.
    The setting of the church was amazingly picturesque, for as I drove up images of quintessential “Country Churches” raced through my mind.  The building itself is classically designed both inside and out, and surrounding the building is a collection of saints who had been shaped by that very church and whose tombstones stand as monuments of Christ’s love for them and their love of Christ and the Church.
    Following the funeral the congregation made it’s way to the cemetery, and I noticed immediately that, as was appropriate, my friend’s father was being laid to rest at a grave closest to both the church as well as closest to the pulpit area (chancel) of the Church.  Turning away from the church I looked out to see laid out farms, valleys, and mountains rolling on and on as far as my eyes could see.  It was a beautiful sight, and when I placed all of those pieces together in my mind I couldn’t help but think about what an amazing and beautiful place to be laid to rest.
    The pastor led the graveside service with the congregation surrounding the family.  Words of comfort were spoken, prayers were raised, the commendation and the benediction were given, and the ending of the service was to be marked by the grandchildren each releasing a helium-filled balloon.  Though the balloon release was powerful, God’s message didn’t come most powerfully in that simple act but through the mouths of cows.
    As the first balloon made its ascent a lone cow, feeding on a farm just below the church, began to low its cry.  Then as the rest of the balloons were released, her bovine friends joined together in their lowing, and what arose from below was a cacophony of mooing pinging off of the hills and vales.  The balloons ascended further and further up, and God led those cows to give a fitting and final tribute to one who had spent a life caring for their own.  When the balloons were just about out of sight, the mooing stopped, and we knew that the pastor had not had the last word, but God’s benediction had been given by God’s creatures below.  God put the final piece of the puzzle in place.

    We’ve just come through this season of Christmas and now find ourselves in the season of light, Epiphany.  It is a season where we remember and share the truth that God came down to earth to proclaim His love for all.  It is a time where the message of peace, joy, hope, and love is shared, so that all might hear God’s word of benediction and blessing.
    Many know the phrase, “Out of the mouths of babes...,” but did you know it is scriptural?  It’s taken from Psalm 8 and it is referenced by Jesus in Matthew 21: 16, and in both passages it references giving praise to God.  However, it implies more than just praise, it implies a praise that overcomes evil and enemies as a stronghold of faith. 
    As I reflect upon God placing the puzzle pieces of the life of Curtis Cronise together, “Out of the mouths of cows” was a most fitting and meaningful tribute to God’s servant.  It was a reminder to me that God really does bring things together in amazing ways, and if we are attentive and aware of God’s presence and action in our lives, there is praise that overcomes all things – even death – because God loves us that much.

When was the last time you made the time to reflect upon the pieces of your life?  Pray that God will bring the pieces together so that you might see the big picture.