2024-03-05 A Meditation on Working Away

“18 After this Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. 2 And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. And he went to see them, 3 and because he was of the same trade he stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade. 4 And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and tried to persuade Jews and Greeks. 5 When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul was occupied with the word, testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus. 6 And when they opposed and reviled him, he shook out his garments and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” 7 And he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God. His house was next door to the synagogue. 8 Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with his entire household. And many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized. 9 And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, 10 for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.” 11 And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.” (Acts 18:1-11 ESV)

Really working our hardest to get something done, it is important not to let gravity be the sole influencer; it is not as though we no longer had impetus or charisma to choose our fate; it is not as though we were somehow hunched over in dutiful service whilst forgetting life is not going to reward any endeavor properly if that endeavor is not undertaken in Faith.

That is, we are not going anywhere; we are in a strange winnowing hour; we are in some wise to adapt to a progress indicator in place of a holiness cap: holy to find existential meaning in a gathering of friends on a street corner; holy to recall the gentle peace of the pastoral role each of us has; holy to bite the bullet, simultaneously finding that Calling does mock us, while also that the perhaps thankless duties are just as meaningful, indeed, have greater power to comfort, than any back-breaking labor. Our backs are stronger, not weaker; we downgrade from a perhaps presumptuous perch were it not utterly consecrated unto: we are consecrated unto the love affair with our fellow, with our gal, with each other, with the role of Pastor and of Friend. In these things we stand in contrast to the head-down escape from said duty and Call: the service of the day’s labors is no reason to put aside God-stuff. It is no reason to forget sanctum Now, peace Here and Now, satisfaction and patience Today.

For the manna one day did cease, upon Israel’s coming into the bounty of new land. It simply ceased to be anything perhaps more than a laughing matter, what strange food-stuff they had subsisted on; we forget the deprivations of cold showers and bread-and-water fasting. We think it ludicrous to fuss around with the morsel of delicious homecooked meals we are about to enjoy. Offensive to suggest we abstain from the meat-stuff. Inappropriate to call us to account for our flagrancy, rather, for our simple indulgences. We are about our own business, let no one interfere. Let no one challenge us: what a frightening route for them, to be the one’s with a mind for reform, with an appreciation that the Manna does suffice and say something Holy.