Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled

As I try to gather my thoughts for this evening’s congregational email, I understand there were two press conferences in reference to the coronavirus, one in Columbia and the other in Washington DC. With the current cycle of news that causes growing concern and worry, I thought I would share another story from the past that might help us keep a proper perspective about everything that is happening around us.

It may surprise some to learn that I moved away from home the summer before my junior year of high school. I applied for work at the local funeral establishment, was immediately hired and offered living quarters on the second floor, which I accepted. The following Spring, Kay was admitted to the hospital for an emergency appendectomy and remained several days while in recovery.

Following Kay’s discharge, her surgeon advised her to take things slow and easy for the next several weeks. At the end of classes on her first day back at school, we made our way to a nearby drug store located in a strip mall on the other side of town. The drug store was a popular spot for teenagers, especially those of us who enjoyed coke floats, banana splits and a quick hamburger. I was driving a 1962 Chevrolet Impala at the time, a used car that I had paid for with my own money. There were mechanical issues with the vehicle but there was a good mechanic I knew and he kept the sweet thing running and limping along.

As I made a right hand turn into the parking lot, I was completely startled when the gas pedal descended to the floorboard without any pressure from my right foot. I mean to the floorboard! The car accelerated. I panicked. No Diver’s Education Class had prepared me or Kay for anything like this. I pressed both feet down on the brake as hard as I could as I gripped the steering wheel with both hands trying to get as much leverage as I could in holding down the brake.

Imagine the scene. Pedestrians were walking all over the parking lot as I tried to slow down the car doing my best to avoid hitting innocent men, women and children. It was a wild scene and I could see it in their faces, “There goes another wild teenager doing something dangerous and stupid!” Poor Kay. She screamed, “How can I help you? What do you want me to do?” “Pray I don’t hit anybody,” I said adding, (believe this) try bending over and see if you can pull the gas pedal into the upright position!”

While Kay was pulling on the gas pedal, somehow, I dodged and weaved finally, making it to a side road, which was a two lane boulevard going through a major suburb of the community. The brakes were starting to smoke and the car was picking up speed when I remembered a big pile of fill dirt in the town cemetery close by. I prepared myself mentally to ram my vehicle into the pile of dirt. We were a block from Kay’s home and an older gentleman was on his afternoon stroll through the neighborhood. Just a few blocks from the cemetery, I turned to Kay and instructed her to open her door and jump! She gave me a quick glance (I don’t remember a smile), turned the door handle, opened the door and jumped! As I looked in the rear view mirror, I saw Kay rolling in the grass on the side of the street. The older gentleman on his afternoon walk looked at Kay and then me driving down the road, and just stood there shaking his head. Praying that Kay was going to be alright, I couldn’t help but wonder how I was going to explain this to her parents, especially to Mr. Marlow, Kay’s father, a man who stood 6’4” and weighed 240 pounds. There was the fleeting thought that I might end up in the cemetery … for good!

About one more block down the road I made the sudden decision to shift the gear from drive to park, which I did. The car came to a screeching halt. I sat there for a minute or two trying to collect my thoughts. I felt so foolish when I realized that all I had to do when the gas pedal went to the floorboard was to simply turn the ignition key. The old Chevrolet Impala would have simply rolled to a stop. Kay never would have had to jump and I wouldn’t have had to slam my transmission into park. At this point, I think it best for you to use your own imagination on how that day ended. (At least both of us are alive and together!)

As we follow the guidance of our public health officials, medical professionals, government agencies and civic leaders to shelter-in-place and practice social (physical) distancing, as we watch the news and hear reports about the advancing coronavirus, we must not panic. It is imperative that we keep our heads about us. Entering Holy Week with the celebration of Palm Sunday, we will quickly transition to Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday. We are mindful that the celebration experienced on Palm Sunday will end quickly. Just around the corner, Jesus will encounter confusion, betrayal and incarceration, in addition to tragic injustice followed by humiliation, ridicule, taunting and finally a painful death by crucifixion. There is no hint anywhere in the gospel that Jesus ever panicked. Instead, he kept plugging along knowing what was waiting for him at the end of the week.

So, as we transition into another week of staying home, let us not complain or lament, but use our time wisely. Let us communicate with one another by way of telephone and mail, cell phone and email in addition to other venues, but let us not give in to boredom and panic. Like Jesus, let us trust Abba Father and keep the faith. And Jesus said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. (John 14:1) We may not know what tomorrow holds, but we know who holds the future. In the coming days, may we pray for our scientists, doctors, nurses, technicians, volunteers and all those who work on our behalf to protect us from this dangerous and destructive virus. Remember, it is God who has granted us the gift of human intellect and a sense of inquiry to find solutions for the many problems that plague us, the most immediate one, the coronavirus. Faith + Science = A Better Day to Come!

As I say goodnight, please be sure to check tomorrow’s email. It will contain the liturgy for Palm Sunday along with an updated Pastoral Care Joys and Concerns. Stay Safe! Stay Well! Call if you need me! And remember, when trouble comes unannounced, don’t panic. May we trust God to equip us with what we need to defeat the enemy. And all God’s people said, “Amen!” In Christ +

—
Steve Keeler, Pastor