Bit by bit and one fell swoop
Over the latter part of the summer, High Street, on the south side of the church between the upper and lower parking lots, was closed for resurfacing. Week after week we watched and waited, once the old roadway had been scraped away, wondering when the new surface would be laid. Week after week. And then, in the space of a few days – a week at most – there it was. And there it is – that smooth, solid, ebony surface, stretching curb to curb with its shiny edge trim. I’ve actually altered my approach to the church in my car to be able to drive on the new surface and enjoy it, so compelling and attractive it is.
At the end of our driveway at home, it’s been a different story. We came out of last winter with a serious pothole, about exactly where we stop and turn the wheels when we back out of our garage. Indeed, the friction and weight of that turn, day after day, over many years, may well account for the collapse of the surface in just that spot. For months, no one came. No one seemed to notice, except for us. And then one day, there it was. And there it is – the city crew snuck in while we weren’t looking, laid a three-foot-diameter patch, and the pothole is no more. That one I still try to avoid, not to save my suspension but to keep from disturbing and perhaps degrading the patch.
Of course, with the patch in place, it becomes more evident how many patches have been layered on the pavement in this block. It’s no longer quite the obstacle course that it was, but it bears little resemblance to the almost cushioned ride along High Street. We wish we would move up the list for a whole-block resurfacing one day soon.
Yet, when it comes to driving on the two blocks, the difference really is primarily aesthetic. Neither one threatens me with back spasms or car repairs; both reach from one corner to the next as an open thoroughfare. As for the surfaces, one is being achieved bit by bit while the other was done in one fell swoop.
“Every day I will bless you
and praise your name forever and ever.” (Psalms 145:2)
Our lives of faith – our relationship with God – show a similar variation among folks I know. For some, it’s as though it all got put together at once and it will last a lifetime – praising God’s name forever and ever. For others, it gets put together day by day, one day at a time, with little confidence about tomorrow and only a faint recollection of yesterday – blessing God every day (assuming that each day turns out that way).
The wonder of it is that the folks in both groups have a lively, meaningful, sustaining, empowering, enriching experience of God’s love and grace. Bit by bit, or one fell swoop, God comes to us in the way God knows will be most beneficial to us. Neither way lacks in the basic character of faith: God comes to us and will stay with us – all the way to the end of the block.
Sue Grove
“All the way to the end of the block” yes indeed, well said.
Jeannine Crockett
Thanks Peter,
You express your thoughts so very eloquently…even when it comes to bumpy pavement!