“What appears to be an interruption is often an intervention.” (Rich Wilkerson Jr.)
If you have ever watched one of the major TV channels (like
ABC, NBC, or CBS), chances are you are familiar with something that can go by
several different names (News Alert, Breaking News, or Special Report). This is a
segment that someone higher up in the national (or local) news hierarchy has
decided is important enough to interrupt the viewing of the TV show you are
viewing at the time.
It is a certain thing that by the time the interruption is
over with, your TV show will either have gone on without you enjoying or have
concluded. There is no way to bypass this interruption. Your options are to
watch the interruption, if you have a cable (or streaming service) to watch
that instead, or to find something else to do that does not involve watching TV.
If you need a biblical example of a life interrupted, take
Mary (Jesus’ mother). Some religious scholars estimate she was 12-14 years-old[i]
at the time of a major divine interruption in her daily existence. She wasn’t
anticipating it, but her willingness of God’s divine plans divine for her have
benefited millions of people since she lived with the gift of eternal life in
Heaven (from her Son). Read about her interruption below:
26-27 During
[her
relative] Elizabeth’s sixth month of
pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to a virgin girl who lived in Nazareth, a
town in Galilee. She was engaged to marry a man named Joseph from the family of
David. Her name was Mary. 28 The
angel came to her and said, “Greetings! The Lord is with you; you are very
special to him.”
29 But
Mary was very confused about what the angel said. She wondered, “What does this
mean?”
30 The
angel said to her, “Don’t be afraid, Mary, because God is very pleased with
you. 31 Listen!
You will become pregnant and have a baby boy. You will name him Jesus.
38 Mary said, “I am the Lord’s
servant. Let this thing you have said happen to me!” Then the angel went away.
(Luke 1:26-31,
38, Easy-to-Read Version)
6 While Joseph and Mary were in
Bethlehem, the time came for her to have the baby. 7 She gave birth to her first son. She wrapped
him up well and laid him in a box where cattle are fed. She put him there
because the guest room was full. (Luke 2:6-7, Easy-to-Read Version)
You’ve heard me say this
before, but if my life had not been interrupted by cancer chances are very good
that that you would not be reading this blog today. Like Mary, I was not
expecting a change in my daily routine. I was neither prepared for, or wanted a
change in what seemed familiar (and comfortable) to me in the life I had
imagined for myself, which involved a long career with my employer at that time.
At the time
that any life interruption happens, it can seem like either a nuisance (or even
a tragedy). In my case, years from my
cancer in May of 2009 has allowed both time and maturity away from my
interruption. Medical retirement in my mid-forties is not what I would have
chosen for my life. That past interruption has provided me with opportunities
for service (and rejuvenation) that could have occurred if I was working full
time. It turns out my interruption was exactly what I needed.
Rebecca
Pippert gives this useful reminder about interruptions: “Jesus . . . wants us to see that the
neighbor next door or the people sitting next to us on a plane or in a
classroom are not interruptions to our schedule. They are there by divine
appointment. Jesus wants us to see their needs, their loneliness, their
longings, and he wants to give us the courage to reach out to them.”
[i] “Mary, Mother of Jesus” by Wikipedia
This post was inspired
by the Mark Lowry video, “Interruptions.”
No comments:
Post a Comment