The stories of our lives – or maybe just mine – seem non-descript, painfully ordinary. Our daily lives roll along with their usual, often mundane regularity. I have never considered anything about my life to be book-worthy, let alone blog-worthy. Does anyone really care? Have I done anything to set myself apart? My upbringing, my mistakes, even my achievements could be those of practically anyone else. I describe myself as a loner, a private individual. I have even deactivated my Facebook account. It could be just a phase I’m going through, because I have derived some prior satisfaction from sharing personal anecdotes or events that are significant enough to me to be of above-average interest.

But to stay in that phase or state is to deny the uniqueness of how I was created and formed. The melding of our lives together constitutes the body of Christ. I have arrived where I am at, in personal development and geographical location, by circumstances that are not entirely random. The congregation I serve was certainly just fine before I came and will be so whenever I leave. That holds true for EVERY minister, servant, disciple that hails this as their church home. There do not have to be that many “magic moments” or mountaintop experiences to make us feel special. It is the moments of the mundane that are far more the norm. “The extraordinary ordinary”, as the same-titled book by my muse Frederick Buechner suggests, is where our merciful Creator dwells.

Even Jesus was not performing miracles and healings 24/7. He rested and he prayed. He was always thankful in his countenance, the ongoing outward-appearing mundane. I affirm each of you whom I know personally in your splendid, non-descript, grace-worthy lives. I feel blessed to know wo many holy saints, who live lives of humility and generosity. You inspire me to inhabit the JOY of Christ and to persevere through these lonely, paralyzing times of self-analysis. Each day, may you and I experience fully the unconditional love of God, revealed to us in the life of His extraordinarily ordinary Son.

Pastor Art