“Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” Luke 21:28
This week we decided we would finalize the hardwood flooring project we began six months ago. We had all the materials already, we just needed to finish the job, just one small bedroom in the northwest corner of the house. Which meant, I had to vacate my temporary home office.
I've been longing for a treadmill walking desk for years, and so I took the opportunity to modify our treadmill downstairs to be a walking desk. It’s been great to get all these extra steps while typing on my computer or participating in phone or video calls, but it took a few adjustments to get right. First thing I noticed is stepping OFF is like the feeling when you step into the shower after being on a boat all day. Oi.
The other thing I noticed is how much my neck and shoulders were feeling tense. I had originally put the desk too low down, and so I was spending hours with my head hunched over, leading to excessive strain and stress.
That's the image that came to mind when I read this passage from Luke. Jesus is talking in some pretty grim and bleak terms about the coming of the Kingdom of God, but his reminder is clear: stand up, raise your heads, your redemption is coming near.
When I let myself get so immersed in the worries of life, parishioners I love but cannot visit, family members I cannot travel to be with to celebrate milestones, fear for those in our world who don't have enough set aside to weather a storm like this, when I have my head down for too long, the strain and the stress takes its toll.
So I'd like to encourage you today to take a moment, stand up and look up. Look around. Spring is here. New life is springing forth from the buds of the trees, and returning birds, all signs of new life we will miss if we keep our heads down.
Even amidst this crisis, God IS doing a new thing, so stand up, lift your head, God's love and redemption are near.
Holy God, help us to raise our heads and look for the many ways you are at work in this world, and give us the grace to respond to your invitation to participate in new and eternal life, here and now. I lift up my eyes to the hills, from whence does my help come? My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth. Thanks be to You O God. Amen and Amen.
- Pastor Andy Bartel