"A Mat-Carrying Community"
When he returned to Capernaum after some days,
it was reported that he
was at home.
So many gathered around that there was no longer room for them,
not even in front of the door;
and he was speaking the word to them.
Then some
people came, bringing to him a paralyzed man,
carried by four of them.
And when
they could not bring him to Jesus because of the crowd,
they removed the roof
above him; and after having dug through it,
they let down the mat on which the
paralytic lay.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your
sins are forgiven.” …
“I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”
~ Mark 2:1-5, 11
We all have some kind of affliction.
It may not be as obvious as the paralyzed man’s, but we all suffer from
something that paralyzes and confines us to our own kinds of mats, preventing
us from living life with the fullness of joy that God intends. Perhaps our
paralysis is in the form of an addiction – to food, to gambling, to alcohol, to
drugs. Maybe our paralysis is emotional
– uncontrollable anger or a guilty conscious, a lack of confidence, or an
inability to trust or to forgive or to love.
Maybe our paralysis comes from issues within our family – frail and
aging parents; emotionally distant spouses; difficult or troubled children.
Do
you have someone to carry your mat? Someone
you can reveal your weakness and struggles to?
Someone who will pray for you? Do
you have someone you will let see your brokenness? Because if you want deep friendship, you
can’t always be the strong one. You will
sometimes have to let somebody else carry your mat.
And,
are you willing to carry someone’s mat?
Are you willing to leave your judgment and assumptions at the door, to
offer love and compassion and forgiveness without condition, to keep
confidences entrusted to you?
Such friendships – at the giving
and the receiving end -- can develop in a caring community like the
church. Come and worship at 10 am on
Sunday with the caring community at the First Congregational Church of
Stoughton, an Open and Affirming congregation of the United Church of Christ,
76 Pierce Street, Stoughton, Massachusetts.
No matter who you are, or where
you are on life’s journey, you’re welcome here!
