Pinky People
Of all the brilliant things the apostle Paul said to us (and yes, I acknowledge there are many people out there who hate Paul and would argue that he wasn’t so brilliant, but I’m not going to tackle that question today, so back to my point . . .)
Of all the brilliant things the apostle Paul said to us,
near the top of the list for me is the analogy of the church as a body (1 Cor
12). “Just as a body, though one, has many parts,” he tells us, “so it is with
Christ” – that is, with his church. We are unified, but we’re also all
different. Different in abilities, different in functions, different in
passions . . . but all part of one body. And all NEEDED.
The weaker parts. Witness the little pinky toe.
If we were voting on the most worthless part of the body, that
might be what I would have nominated. The pinky toe. Bless its heart. It sits
there looking all cute and sweet and accomplishing nothing of value in this
world.
At least I thought so until I frickin’ BROKE mine the other
day.
During a 3am trek in the dark to the toilet, I stubbed my
left little toe on the corner of a dresser. And I know you are all wincing out
there just at the thought . . . because you’ve been there and done that, yes?
It’s awful. It’s a unique and ridiculous kind of pain.
But how many of you have actually broken the dang
thing??
Oh, people . . . it was excruciating. I ended up sitting for
an hour in the middle of the night with ice on my little toe (and writing and
posting my last blog post – fun fact), wondering if I was going to be on
crutches for the next couple weeks. (Y’all . . . MY SUMMER.) All because of
that ridiculous, pointless, useless little digit hanging off the side of my
foot, which isn’t even as cute as it tries to be, thank you very much!!!!
However, that silly little digit has redeemed itself in my
eyes. As it turns out, the pinky toe is not so worthless after all – not on my
body and not in the church. A quick google search will tell you that the pinky
toe provides “balance and propulsion”.
BALANCE. My lack of balance the last couple days has been
noticeable (and concerning to some of my friends – “Do you need a cane?” – Oh,
heavens, no). And it has caused me to take notice of the unheralded benefits of
being able to stand and move without falling down. I mean, something we take
for granted, yes?
And people, does the church need balance right now?
Good grief . . . have you not been paying attention? “Extreme” feels like an
understatement when describing the divisions in our country that the church (to
its SHAME) has willingly taken sides in. We have abandoned the messy middle
where people actually communicate with each other and where Jesus, therefore,
is actually present.
PROPULSION. The hobble I’ve had to adopt in the last couple
days doesn’t just make me feel like an old woman; it keeps me from getting
stuff done efficiently. And yes, I do recognize the value of slowing down once
in a while, but forward motion is still required if I’m going to accomplish
anything in a day.
And does the church need to be propelled? Once we’re
back in balance and pointed in the right direction, yes, I would say so.
Inertia is strong; courage is lacking; we need to be pointed and pushed.
So now, I’m actively looking for the pinky toes in my life
and in the broader church in my life. Who are the little unseen people who are
providing balance? Who are the ones behind the scenes propelling us forward,
making things happen? Because those people are apparently far more important
than we realize.
And they desperately need protection from sharp, evil
corners in the middle of the night.
Comments
Post a Comment