The Rev. Dr. Jerome (Jerry) DeVine offers a perspective on hope…

“Innovation requires disruption, yet disruption without focus is merely chaos.”

This quote is on the eraser board in my office as a daily reminder to me in my ministry.  It came to me one day as I was meditating on the multiple challenges and changes facing our local communities, our local churches, our annual conferences here in Michigan, and our denomination.    We cannot reach new shorelines if we do not push away from the dock, yet to do so can create movement and a certain amount of disequilibrium.  Allow me to share a visual story of what that may feel like.

A number of years ago my family and I went out on a friend’s sailboat for a “gentle” excursion on the Dorchester River in Cambridge, Maryland.  It was a peaceful sunny day on the water and all seemed smooth and calm.  My friend needed help to place a new radio antenna on the mast of the sailboat, so he asked me to sit on the boatswain’s chair and get hoisted to the top of the mast to install the antenna.  The water was calm and I was not concerned about heights so I agreed.  Up to the top I went, sitting on a small board, holding onto the rope and the antenna.

Just as I completed the installation a large deep-hulled speed boat was approaching putting forth a small wake.  Had they stayed at medium speed it would have been just a small disruption.  However, thinking they were helping they slowed way down, forcing the hull down into the water.  A two-foot wave began to roll across the river straight at the side of our boat.  “Hold on” cried my friend, 15 feet or more below on the deck.  He didn’t have to warn me twice!  From the deck the movement required all to hold onto something as the sailboat began to rock from side to side as the waves hit.  From the elevated perspective of the boatswain’s chair I experienced a much exaggerated version of that movement.  In a moment of time I went from being straight up and calm to seeing only water as the mast hung over the river each time the boat tried to counter-balance.

To better understand my potential emotional state in that moment  I should share that I have nearly drowned three times in my life, so hanging 20 feet or more above the water on a small board suspended by a rope brings some level of apprehension and fear with it.  In the midst of that disruption I was grateful to have a solid mast and reliable rope to hold onto.  I could allow myself to experience “the ride” because I had something stable to rely upon. And, by holding onto something stable, I avoided making the situation worse.

Circumstances beyond our control can bring such disruptions into our personal lives, our churches, our shared ministries and the world in which we live.   Our life experiences and perspectives may either enhance or subdue our ways of responding to those disruptions.  Having clarity about what brings stability in the midst of those disruptions is essential to staying focused while the world seems to be rocking away at us. If you find yourself, or perhaps your church, in a time of disruption and chaos, you can help calm the chaos by the manner in which you respond.

The season of Advent is nearly upon us.  The lectionary scripture readings are rich with a yearning to emerge from seasons of disruption and to be restored by the grace of God.  They are filled with reminders that the present moment or season past does not have the final say, and that God is in our midst as the One who restores and heals.

Yet, these scriptures are also filled with calls from God for ordinary people to step forth into roles of leadership. Through ordinary people God reveals and announces extraordinary things. These servant leaders bring a word of stabilizing grace in the midst of turbulence.

How might God be calling you or your church to be a voice and hand of expectant hope in the weeks ahead?  How might we be willing to be a part of the restoration and healing needed in our communities and the world?  In a media-season of inflammatory rhetoric and sensationalized responses, what truly stable grace-filled presence might we be called to bring?  How will the world know that God has called upon United Methodists to be “heralds of good tidings”?

Riding the waves with Jesus!

Rev. Dr. Jerome (Jerry) DeVine
Director of Connectional Ministries, Detroit Conference

 

Last Updated on October 20, 2023