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Greetings!
On the first Sunday in Lent, a wise elder in the community I serve observed that many of the devil’s tests for Jesus in the wilderness were temptations to act alone. Turn stones to bread. Throw yourself into the arms of the angels. All of this power can be yours if….
In each retort to the tempter, Jesus quotes Deuteronomy. At his baptism, he heard the voice of God claim him as a beloved child. In the desert, Jesus claims that his being beloved flows from the God who liberates and gives life the shape of justice. Body and soul, Jesus belongs to the One who gathers many, who gives the gift of covenant community. And through his prophetic witness, people heard the echo of Sinai in his words: You are not alone.
Over the last few months, that truth has challenged me. Honestly, I’d rather make a deal with the devil. For example, in February, I bargained: in return for stuffing all my anxiety into a back corner of my brain, I’ll get to hold myself together.
I thought that was a great deal: I wouldn’t have to tell anyone about the car with plates
connected to ICE that followed my husband through the neighborhood. I wouldn’t have to
process the presence of a six-foot-two security guard assigned to his majority-immigrant church, or the people skulking outside of San Pablo-St. Paul’s at two in the morning.
Of course that bargain fell through. Thank God that, when I fell to pieces, the beloved
community was right beside me to help me sort through the mess.
Last Sunday, a soloist shared in worship the song, “You Are Not Alone,” from Stephen
Sondheim’s musical Into the Woods. The Spirit preached right at me through her clear soprano: “People make mistakes / holding to their own, / thinking they’re alone.”
Truly, no one is alone. Not in the wilderness, where Jesus remembers how God scatters manna and makes water bubble up from a rock. Not in the dark night of the soul, where Jesus stays awake with us. Even at the cross, when we exchange Deuteronomy for the Psalmist’s bitter cry, nothing can separate us from the love of God.
You are not alone, dear ones. Remind one another; use words if necessary. The God of grace and good courage goes with you always.
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