Lenten Devotional...March 1

"Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away."

(Luke 21:33)

Yesterday brought an unusual observance. Leap Year happens infrequently enough that we take notice of it as a rare event, occurring every 1461 days or so. Rarer still, is the blooming of a white star magnolia tree in this area in February. The picture above was taken yesterday in the courtyard at Westwood, just outside the sanctuary. The bloom looks a bit wilted because of the rain, but it is coming into full bloom. Normally, the tree would be in a dormant state waiting for the warmer days of spring...not the warmer days of winter!! Even the usually predictable patterns of nature are at times interrupted by unexpected changes in climate.

Most of us experience the unexpected on a regular basis, perhaps even daily. The ability to be flexible in an often changing world enables one to adjust to these changes and find joy in the midst of life's "shifting sands". Jesus reminds his followers in our text today that change is an inevitable characteristic of our human experience. Earlier in this twenty-first chapter of Luke, the disciples are enamored with the beauty and strength of the temple structure and of the gifts given that sustain it. Jesus tells them that such a structure cannot endure, for it is built of temporary materials. He also tells them that relationships they depend on may be called into questions because of their faith in him...once again the uncertainty of something so significant in their lives. "Heaven and earth will pass away," Jesus says, "but my words will never pass away." "What or who can I put my trust in?", we find ourselves asking from time to time in frustration and disappointment. Jesus reminds us that his words are trustworthy and that his promises are eternal.

Many things around us change unexpectedly, yet the living Word, Jesus Christ does not change. In our sin, the Word is ever faithful. In our doubt, the Word is ever encouraging. In our worry and struggle, the Word is ever present. The beauty of the temple in Jerusalem would someday be lost in a pile of rubble. The white star magnolia in bloom in the courtyard will most likely return to its dormant stage when the expected course of winter returns again in a few days. The living Word, however, will remain and that is our hope in the midst of the unpredictable.

Jim Abernathy