{"id":919,"date":"2019-12-15T23:19:58","date_gmt":"2019-12-15T23:19:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/2019\/12\/15\/hope-for-restoration-based-on-isaiah-351-10-and\/"},"modified":"2020-02-11T21:43:02","modified_gmt":"2020-02-11T21:43:02","slug":"hope-for-restoration-based-on-isaiah-351-10-and","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/2019\/12\/15\/hope-for-restoration-based-on-isaiah-351-10-and\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cHope for Restoration\u201d based on Isaiah 35:1-10 and Luke 1:57-80"},"content":{"rendered":"

I did my seminary work in
\nSouthern California (Los Angeles county) which is a desert climate.
\nThe choice to be far away in a different subculture of the USA was
\nintentional, as I figured I could use some perspective on the
\nNortheast. \u00a0The desert climate part wasn’t intentional. \u00a0I just liked
\nthe school, so I decided to go there, and it happened to be in the
\ndesert. \u00a0I had no expectation, whatsoever, that this would be
\nrelevant.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nSo, clearly, it was. \u00a0The first
\npiece of learning came from the campus itself, which was planted with
\nbiblical plants so we as the students could have a better sense of
\nwhat the Bible was talking about. \u00a0Because I’d grown up in the water
\nabundant Northeast, I hadn’t really considered the ways that my
\nvisioning of the Bible was insufficiently desert like. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nThen came the fact that I don’t
\nLIKE the desert. \u00a0I hated that the sides of the road were filled with
\npebbles with nothing growing in them, because without watering,
\nthings just didn’t grow. \u00a0I hated being dehydrated, and the amount of
\nwater I had to drink to be hydrated. \u00a0I didn’t like the heat. \u00a0I came
\nto resent Palm Trees for being there when trees I knew and loved
\ncouldn’t be. \u00a0(Can you tell LA wasn’t a natural fit for me?) \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\nSomewhere along the line as we
\nlearned about Christian history it became clear how much of early
\nChristianity was formed by the words and actions of solitary desert
\nthinkers, and later monastic desert communities. \u00a0The so-called
\n\u201cDesert Fathers\u201d were new to me, but heavens they were important.
\n My classmates who were native to the area waxed poetically about the
\nbeauty of the desert, and its starkness, and the rich spiritual
\ndepths of being alone in such a stark environment that was so
\nunfriendly to life. \u00a0I understood part of what they meant, I love the
\ngreat outdoors, and I have felt closest to God in nature. \u00a0Except, I
\ndon’t actually LIKE stark and dangerous landscapes. \u00a0They are
\nDEFINITELY beautiful. \u00a0For me they are startling in good ways too,
\nbut not really in God-connection ways. \u00a0My soul isn’t a desert soul,
\nalthough I recognize that desert is as good of a climate as any
\nother. \u00a0(This is all about my preferences, not about what is good.)<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nBut then, in the winter of my
\nsecond year, a friend read that the recent rains we’d had were
\nsufficient to make the desert bloom. \u00a0The desert blooms erratically,
\nit isn’t an every year sort of thing. \u00a0More than that, this was the
\n100- year bloom, and plants believed to be extinct were in full bloom
\nunder the unusual conditions. \u00a0We drove out to Joshua Tree National
\nPark to see it, and it was breathtaking. \u00a0From afar, the landscape
\nactually still seemed stark \u2013 it wasn’t as if the plants were more
\nabundant than they’d been before. \u00a0But as you looked, flowers were
\nEVERYWHERE. \u00a0The flowers were more diverse and more delicate than I’d
\never seen before. \u00a0We saw a burning bush in bloom \u2013 you can
\ndefinitely tell why it is called that. \u00a0Out of what seemed to be bare
\nrock came tiny flowers. \u00a0Rock faces exploded with color. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n
<\/figure>\n
<\/figure>\n
<\/figure>\n

\nThere was nothing in my life
\nthat had prepared me for the desert bloom. \u00a0Even now, it stuns me,
\nthe transformation of it all. \u00a0That hidden in the starkness was
\nbeauty beyond my imagination. \u00a0The flowers were bright, and
\ndifferent, but sooooo fragile. \u00a0It was often hard to believe they
\nexisted. \u00a0It blew my mind to see yards of dusty pebbles in every
\ndirection, the floor the desert, and then to notice a tiny little
\nflower breaking through all on its own. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nTo say it directly, I have seen
\nnothing that proclaims resurrection more than the desert in bloom,
\nand I think it is radically unfair that this desert hating
\nNorth-easterner got to to savor the 100-year desert bloom, and see
\nlife emerge from what looked like lifelessness. \u00a0But I’m thankful
\nanyway. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nIsaiah starts this profound
\npassage with imagery of the desert in bloom. \u00a0I shared all that,
\nbecause I don’t think that we who know spring flowers, and summer
\nflowers, and even fall flowers can hear how BIG the vision of the
\ndesert in bloom is for desert people, nor how much of a miracle it
\nis. \u00a0The clear joy of this passage fits incredibly well with the
\ndesert in bloom. \u00a0It is abundant, it is colorful, it is unexpected,
\nit is hope-filled, it is transformative.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nIsaiah is talking about the joy
\nof homecoming in this passage. \u00a0The assumption is that the people
\nwill be taken into exile (true, they will) but that someday God will
\nact and let them come home (also true). \u00a0This vision of homecoming is
\nbursting with joy. \u00a0The act of coming home after the exile is called
\n\u201crestoration\u201d or \u201cthe return\u201d and this restoration passage
\nbubbles with joy in God.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nIt starts with the imagery of
\nthe desert in bloom, and then it EXPANDS into human healing.
\nPhysical limitations are lifted, healing occurs, strength is given
\nwhere there has been weakness. \u00a0Then it takes the desert metaphor
\neven further. \u00a0Streams of water will flow, pools of water will
\nemerge, springs will break out. \u00a0I think my favorite line is the one
\nthat says, \u201cthe haunts of jackals will become swamps.\u201d \u00a0Now THAT
\nis a transformation. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nIn the midst of this beautiful,
\nblooming, and now lush landscape, with healing for all in need of it,
\nthere will emerge…. a way home. \u00a0And the way will be safe from all
\nattackers, and easy to follow \u2013 impossible to get lost on. \u00a0On that
\npath, the people will travel home, and life will be restored to what
\nit shall be.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nAnd, of course, there will be
\njoy and singing, and so much of it that sorrow itself will fall away.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nWhat. \u00a0A. \u00a0Vision. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nIt seems hard to believe Isaiah
\ncould start with the desert in bloom and then grow imagery from
\nthere, but he does it. \u00a0Exile and return\/restoration is one of the
\nbig themes of the Bible, likely because while the story happens once
\nto the Israelite people, it happens time and time again to us in our
\nlives. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nWhen I was 13 I broke my femur
\nand was put in a straight leg cast. \u00a0For months I was unable to
\nnavigate stairs on my feet (well, my foot) at all, I had to sit on
\nthe steps and move up or down them one at a time. \u00a0During that time I
\nrestlessly dreamed of the day when I would be restored to walking up
\nand down stairs on my feet again. \u00a0And then, of course, once I was,
\nit mostly lost its luster. \u00a0For better or worse I’ve had plenty of
\ninjuries in my life though, and my capacity to do stairs has
\ndissipated and then returned rather a lot. \u00a0Perhaps because of the
\ndepth of the yearning in my younger years, sometimes while I’m on a
\nset of stairs, I remember to be grateful for the capacity to use
\nthem. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nI think exile and restoration
\nhave a lot of emotional resonance too, because in large part they are
\nabout \u201chome.\u201d \u00a0And home is a big huge deal to humans. \u00a0What does
\nhome feel like? \u00a0What does it mean to leave home? \u00a0How does it feel
\nto be between homes? \u00a0Or homeless? \u00a0Or someone with a foot in more
\nthan one home but no one place to call home exclusively? \u00a0When we are
\nsick, or injured, we yearn for home. \u00a0When we think of displaced
\npeople in the world, we recognize the pain of being far from home and
\nwithout a new place to try to make home. \u00a0And, as North Americans, we
\ncome from people who have left homes. \u00a0Those whose ancestors came
\nfrom Europe or Asia often left home voluntarily. \u00a0Those who ancestors
\ncame from Africa were enslaved and torn from their homes. \u00a0Those who
\nancestors were native to the Americas were displaced by the Europeans
\nwho came here. \u00a0I sometimes wonder if some of the displacement in our
\nsociety comes from our shared histories of being displaced in the
\nworld. \u00a0In any case, \u201chome\u201d is something that matters to humans,
\nand exile and restoration are all about home.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nNow, the imagery of Isaiah is
\nassumed when we come to Luke. \u00a0Isaiah’s vision of restoration and
\nreturn home are premised on God’s actions, and so are Luke’s. \u00a0John
\nthe Baptist is going to be seen as the forerunner of Jesus, the one
\nwho starts the path in the desert so Jesus can complete it \u2013 and we
\nwalk it. \u00a0The language of Zechariah’s song is that of redemption,
\nsalvation, mercy, and rescue. \u00a0ALL of those emerge out of the desire
\nfor restoration and return. \u00a0They are the yearning not just for home,
\nbut for a safe home, and Zechariah names that \u201cfearlessness\u201d is
\nan impact of God’s work in those days. \u00a0As John, whose name means
\n\u201cGod is Gracious\u201d will prepare the way, and Jesus will walk it,
\nthe result will be peace, fearlessness, and light. \u00a0Redemption,
\nsalvation, rescue all resonate with people being safely HOME.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nIt is the tradition of
\nChristianity to follow Christ, since Christians means \u201clittle
\nChrists.\u201d \u00a0I’m all for this, but sometimes I think it is worth
\nconsidering when we are being asked to be \u201clittle John the
\nBaptists.\u201d \u00a0Often, I think our work is the prepare the way, and to
\nbe prophets of what is possible with God. \u00a0Perhaps this is just the
\nlongview of building the kindom, acknowledging that some work gets to
\nmake the BIG changes, but before that happens, there have been years
\nor decades or centuries of preparing the way for that to happen.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nIn our Advent Study on John
\nShelby Spong’s \u201cUnbelievable\u201d last week we discussed his idea
\nthat morality is always contextual, and thus always in flux. \u00a0So, we
\ntalked about how public morality has changed in our lifetimes, and
\nyou know what? \u00a0It has been GREAT!!! \u00a0Space has been made for people
\nto be who they are and to be accepted and loved as they are in ways
\nthat once seemed impossible. \u00a0LGBTQIA+ rights have expanded, and
\nrights and opportunists for people with disabilities have been
\nnormalized, people who are divorced as no longer stigmatized, nor are
\nthose who have sex outside of marriage. \u00a0Women’s work opportunities
\nhave exploded. \u00a0All of us in the room had grown in our awareness of
\nracism and privilege, and had hope for the country to change its
\npractices. \u00a0The changes were truly inspiring. \u00a0Also, work on all of
\nthat inclusion and all of those rights was being done well before any
\nof us were born. \u00a0Many, many people have prepared the way and we are
\nable to see their work with gratitude.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nThe work we do to prepare the
\nway is the work that we may never see the impact of. \u00a0But, we trust
\nthat God will make sure the next steps happen, and God’s people will
\nfollow through, and the preparation will not be in vein.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>\n

\nSo, dear ones, prepare the way.
\nWork on building that safe and beautiful highway home for ALL of
\nGod’s people. Because, someday, it will be complete and the people
\nwho walk it will be singing songs of joy and gratitude for what God
\nhas made possible. \u00a0And that which God makes possible, God lets us
\nwork on!! \u00a0Thanks be to God for that, and for beautiful homecomings
\nof many varieties. \u00a0Amen\n<\/p>\n

– <\/p>\n

Rev. Sara E. Baron<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

First United Methodist Church of Schenectady<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

603 State St. Schenectady, NY 12305<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Pronouns: she\/her\/hers<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

http:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u2028https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FUMCSchenectady<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

December 15, 2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I did my seminary work in Southern California (Los Angeles county) which is a desert climate. The choice to be … Continue reading \u201cHope for Restoration\u201d based on Isaiah 35:1-10 and Luke 1:57-80<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[34,38,28,39,33,86,89,88,87,91,71,64,90],"class_list":["post-919","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons","tag-fumc-schenectady","tag-progressive-christianity","tag-rev-sara-e-baron","tag-thinking-church","tag-umc","tag-advent","tag-bishop-john-shelby-spong","tag-desert-in-bloom","tag-joy-sunday","tag-little-john-the-baptists","tag-my-boyfriend-isaiah","tag-sorry-about-the-umc-world","tag-zechariah"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/919","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=919"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/919\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1120,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/919\/revisions\/1120"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=919"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=919"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}