Preparing to Meet Jesus
Read: Luke 24:13-32
As I prepared for my recent trip to the Holy Land my thoughts focused on the activities that would allow ministry to continue in my absence and what I needed to pack. Pointer articles, worship services, program ministries, warm weather clothing, rain gear, and the small bottle of Woolite that would make packing less clothing possible. I considered carefully whether I would read a novel or a book on ministry during the plane ride and at night before bed. I contemplated the items that John and I did not need two of and consolidated our packing list even more.
I arrived at the airport with great joy and thanksgiving in my heart for the people with whom I would be sharing the next ten days, the staff at Educational Opportunities (who had so carefully planned our trip, handled the registration, made all of the arrangements, and kept our costs down), and my colleagues in ministry, whom I had not seen since our Ordination, and I was looking forward to spending some time. Excitedly, I boarded the plane ready, or so I thought, to begin yet another faith journey.
What I did not prepare for was a pilgrimage—a holy expedition, a holy journey that takes one to a sacred place. As a group, we had prepared for our exodus. We had prayed for and expected God’s provision as we traveled to and through this foreign land, and we had arrived in Tel Aviv seeking God and the City of God. But it wasn’t until I was walking through the Ben-Gurion Airport (in Israel) on my way to claim my luggage, that I realized that I had not prepared myself to meet Jesus.
I wondered how many of us are unprepared to meet Jesus and walk with him in our busy lives. How many of us are like the disciples on the road to Emmaus--knowing all about the people and events, but unable to recognize Jesus as he walks beside us on our road towards home? I wondered where we would be when Jesus would once again make himself known to me, to my fellow pilgrims from Grosse Pointe and the United Methodist Church in Michigan.
Having met Jesus in so many places and times in my own life, I knew that I did not have to go to the Holy Land to meet him, but I also knew that I had to be ready to receive him—prepared for the next time we would meet. As the days passed, I found myself reading the Bible stories of the places we were about to visit in anticipation of our reunion. That is when I remembered that it is living in anticipation and expectation that we will meet again soon, which prepares all of us to meet our Redeemer, our Savior and our Friend, Jesus Christ. After that, Jesus seemed to be everywhere. In the arm of the Bishop as he and Roberta Fuller walked arm in arm down the steep road to the Garden of Gethsemane, in the conversations about ministry and mission work on our bus, in the faces of those we shared communion with in the Baptist Church in Jerusalem, and in conversation after conversation shared around the table as we broke bread.
I am glad I was able to recognize Jesus in so many places and situations, but as we walk towards the cross in this season of Lent I find myself wondering how many others are unprepared to meet the risen Christ. After all, that is what Lent prepares us for—to meet the risen Christ. I pray that you are well prepared and that you too will find Christ everywhere you look during this Lenten season.
Rev. Pam Beedle-Gee
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