Ezekiel 39:25-29: Restoration After Hiatus
Monday, October 21, 2019
When we look at the life of Jacob we might be tempted to look at the story of his deeds or accomplishments: his early toying with deceit, his growing ability to focus persistently on a goal, his fathering of twelve sons who lead the Twelve Tribes of Israel. When we look more closely we see that rather than a rising and falling arc of “doings” what we really find is a string of actions that are separated by pauses. What Jacob has mastered is not so much the “doing” of life but the thoughtful hiatus.
In the story of Jacob we see that are many periods of hiatus in which he is separated from all he loves by either his own actions or the events that swirl around him. When we reflect a bit more on Jacob, we might also see how and if and whether we experience hiatus in our own lives. Today’s Noontime calls us to reflect on the goal we all have in mind when we are in a state of hiatus. We yearn for the reunion, the curing, the re-construction, the bridging, the healing . . . the restoration.
We know that the lands and fortunes of the tribes of Jacob are indeed restored . . . and then lost again. The people wander away from the lesson they thought they had learned during exile. Their hubris and their lack of willingness to listen to and for the voice within gets in their way, they become easily distracted, and wander into the wilderness again to lose what they had regained. Fortunately for humans, God forgives endlessly. The prophet Ezekiel reminds us of this.
When we experience hiatus well we have the opportunity to learn much about ourselves.
We come to know that the Lord is our God, before whom no other god may stand. These other gods may be our desire for wealth, looks, fashion, friends, prestige, life style, addiction – anything which separates us from God.
We experience the New Law of Love, the Law of the Beatitudes which Jesus brought us on the Mount (Matthew) and on the Plain (Luke).
We become people who do not fear poverty, illness or rejection suffered as the result of Kingdom Building and Kingdom Living.
We become light and salt and yeast to the world. We are to be brothers and sisters together shouting with joy that God is good.
We become to be harvesters who go forth weeping to return singing.
We become people who are Jesus in a world which is not.
We become people who wait for, and hope for, and work for Restoration.
And this is the Restoration which awaited the tribes of Jacob. It is the same restoration which comes to all those who wait actively, seek patiently, and witness persistently.
This is a Way worth following. It is a Life worth living.
Amen.
To explore how hiatus figures in Jacob’s life and in our own, go to the A Journey Hiatus in the Journeys of Transformation page on this blog at: https://thenoontimes.com/a-journey-of-transformation/a-journey-hiatus/
Image from: https://www.thinkingfaith.org/articles/jesus-who-do-you-think-you-are-1-abraham-isaac-and-jacob
First written on October 6, 2008. Re-written and posted today as a Favorite.
The Noontimes 