
Our graphic for the next six months is pretty catchy, don’t you think? After seeing it for the first time this past Sunday, a few people said that the right side reminded them of how their hair looks in the morning. Before you weigh in on that, go to the home page and watch the video (just tap on the icon of the image) and decide for yourself what it looks like.
I appreciate all the different ways we have been challenged by the perspective of these short films and graphics. Most of us know that Eric Peterson is the energy behind these creations. While I don’t mind embarrassing my friend, I don’t mean to by saying, “Thanks, we could not afford you.”
This graphic is especially helpful because it illustrates for me a number of things, including the value of different perspectives. If you just look at this sort of “cold turkey,” you are going to have a bit different response than say after you watch the video. Even then, not all of us will appreciate the same thing. I confirmed this last night at confirmation when after watching the video and asking what the graphic meant, just about everyone there pointed out something different.
Eric tells me that he thinks these visuals are successful even if they just get people asking and talking about them.
As we begin to talk about the parables, this same appreciation for different perspectives is important. Despite the temptation to reduce these stories of Jesus into succinct moral lessons, they will always contain an element of mystery. On Sunday I’ll be saying, “We may not “understand” a parable. But understanding or grasping a parable is not the point. The point of a parable is to fully enter the world it creates.”
Parables create a moment in time in which Jesus will describe a very different way of living in the moment. Each week I want to encourage us to be open to that moment occurring in worship. Just when that moment is going to occur is hard to say. It certainly will not be the same for each one of us. What matters is that we begin to anticipate those moments, claim them, and trust that we can live in that new world they create.
Keep the Faith,
Pastor Dan