May 25, 2022 – When Things Fall Apart, Pema Chodron

Some Kind of Death

“At that very time there were some present who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.He asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans?No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish as they did.Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the other people living in Jerusalem?No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish just as they did.” Luke 13:1-5

“Seeking security or perfection, rejoicing in feeling confirmed and whole, self-contained and comfortable, is some kind of death. It doesn’t have any fresh air. There’s no room for something to come in and interrupt all that. We are killing the moment by controlling our experience. Doing this is setting ourselves up for failure, because sooner or later, we’re going to have an experience we can’t control: our house is going to burn down, someone we love is going to die, we’re going to find out we have cancer, a brick is going to fall out of the sky and hit us on the head, somebody’s going to spill tomato juice all over our white suit, or we’re going to arrive at our favorite restaurant and discover that no one ordered produce and seven hundred people are coming for lunch. The essence of life is that it’s challenging.” Chodron, Pema. When Things Fall Apart (Shambhala Classics) (pp. 94-95).

Some Kind of Death

Everyone wants some sense of security. It is often on our minds – something we worry about, perseverate about. It was on the minds of the disciples who were seeking some solace from Jesus regarding their friends who were killed on the steps of the Temple. From Jesus’ response we can infer the real issue for those seeking solace: did they deserve their fate. Were they worse sinners than others? Seeing others suffer was affecting their sense of security in the world.

Pema Chodron writes: “Seeking security or perfection, rejoicing in feeling confirmed and whole, self-contained and comfortable, is some kind of death. Doing this is setting ourselves up for failure, because sooner or later, we’re going to have an experience we can’t control: our house is going to burn down, someone we love is going to die, we’re going to find out we have cancer…the essence of life is that it’s challenging.”

We know that life is challenging. We experience those challenges every day. And we cannot control these experiences. There is no way to predict what is going to happen to us tomorrow. All we can do, as Jesus says is “repent” and stay awake for the coming of the Kingdom. Or as Pema would concur, we need to stay in the moment. No matter what each moment brings, we need to stay in that moment and learn the lessons each moment can teach us – teach us about ourselves, about our faith, about our preparedness, about our love for our neighbor and how these experiences will prepare us to walk with our neighbors when their lives fall apart.

Let us pray,

Lord Jesus, we do not want our lives to fall apart, but we intuitively know they will. When my life falls apart help me to find my hope, my grace and my center in you and your presence. Amen.

Pastor Dave