"Houston, We Have a Problem"

April 17, 2012

Dear St. Paul’s Family,

Forty-two years ago today, on April 17, 1970, the Apollo 13 lunar mission concluded its harrowing six-day space trauma with a safe return to earth. After an oxygen tank exploded two days after launch, the three astronauts were forced to deal with limited power, loss of cabin heat, a shortage of water, and a broken carbon dioxide removal system. After aborting their goal of landing on the moon, they attempted a perilous reentry into the earth’s atmosphere aboard the lunar module. Upon losing radio contact for four minutes, with the world waiting in deafening suspense, the men splashed safely into the South Pacific Ocean.

Jim Lovell, the commander of the mission, is not only praised for his heroism in leading the crew home, but is credited with uttering one of the most famous phrases in the history of space travel: “Houston, we have a problem.” But this doomed space mission would not be the first time he faced impossible odds in an aircraft, trying to find his way home.

When he was a Navy pilot in 1950, Lovell was flying a mission in his F2H Banshee off the coast of Japan. His faulty instruments mistakenly led him away from his aircraft carrier, forcing him to miss his rendezvous point by several miles. Lovell felt hopelessly lost as he flew circles in the dark over the stormy Sea of Japan. As he tried to use his map light, all of his cockpit electronics suddenly shorted out and everything went black. His chances of survival, let alone a safe return to the aircraft carrier, grew dimmer by the second.

Lovell glanced at the water below, the absence of light both inside and outside the cockpit forcing his eyesight to adjust to the dark. With his vision newly accustomed to the darkness, Lovell was able to spot a faint trail of phosphorescent algae, which had been churned up by the propellers of the carrier. He followed that glowing trail, all the way to a safe landing atop the carrier. Were it not for the darkness that engulfed him from the night sky and damaged electronics, he would not have had to adjust to see the radiant trail that had been present to lead him to safety all along.

“You never know what events are going to transpire to get you home,” Lovell said, which could very well refer to either of his death defying experiences. Indeed, whether it be splashing down to earth from space or landing a fighter jet in a storm-tossed sea, Lovell learned that sometimes, one has to go through the darkness in order to recognize and appreciate the light.


CONSIDER IT ALL JOY

It is a concept that the writer of the epistle of James seemed to understand, right at the onset of his letter. He offered an unorthodox view of joy, the second part of the fruit of the spirit in our new sermon series. Rather than defining joy as happiness or glee, emotions that are always contingent on external circumstances, James describes it as a soul that is strengthened in the crucible of suffering. Joy is a confidence in the face of adversity, and a change in perception produced by trials. It perceives hardship as nothing more than an opportunity for maturity and wholeness:

My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2-4)

Suffering is like the darkness that surrounded Jim Lovell’s plane. Just as it forced him to adjust his perception and see a new way forward, your hardship can give you a unexpected chance to recognize a hope that has been with you all along. It does not mean that God wants you to suffer, or that God caused your suffering to begin with. Instead, it reminds us that God is always present to offer us new life, even when we don’t realize it.

Sometimes, it takes suffering to help us do just that.

I don’t know what hardship you are facing today. But I suspect that all of us could use a fresh dose of joy in our lives. Whatever you are dealing with, I would recommend that you do two things: First, take a moment to thank God for your struggles. It may seem counterintuitive to do so, since the last thing we ever want to do is embrace pain and anguish. But take James at his word. This could be an opportunity for you to experiencing a joy you would have never known without it.

Second, surrender to God, that God may change your ability to see light in the midst of your darkness. It may not happen immediately, but the eyes of your soul will adjust. If there is anything we’ve learned from the miracles of Jesus, it’s that he doesn’t leave people blind for very long. Your prayer today may simply be that contained in Mark 10:51:

Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’

So ask Jesus to help you see again. That will be my prayer for you, as I know yours is for me. Let us embrace our sufferings together, allowing God to adjust our eyes, and help us to experience a joy that comes from finding a new way home.

Jim Lovell was right: You never know what events are going to transpire to get you home.

Grace and Peace,

Magrey

The Rev. Magrey R. deVega
St. Paul's United Methodist Church
531 W. Main St.
Cherokee, IA 51012
Ph: 712-225-3955
Email: mdevega@sp-umc.org




FIRE RECOVERY UPDATE

Sanctuary: With scaffolding now completed, ServiceMaster has finished washing the entire interior of the sanctuary, including the walls, ceiling, and chancel area. The pew cushions, currently in storage on the west parking lot, are undergoing a secondary ozone treatment to remove the odor. If that does not work, then plans are coming together to have the pew cushions replaced. Also, John Kaiser Painting out of Dubuque, who originally painted the renovated sanctuary, arrived on Monday to begin repainting the walls and ceiling, a process which will take about five weeks. Once the walls are repainted, then new carpeting can be installed and the sanctuary can be put back together. At this point, we are still anticipating a return to the sanctuary on or around June 1.

Kitchen and Dining Hall: Grundman Hicks has completed the scaffolding in the sanctuary and this week returned to the kitchen and dining hall to complete the demolition. The stage has been completely removed, along with the remaining plaster on the walls and ceiling. Work will begin soon on removing plaster along the stairwell on the northeast corner of the sanctuary (where the choir music was stored), and the stairwell itself will need to be refinished. The Building Committee meets again this Wednesday night, then again the following Tuesday with the architect.

PRAYERS AND AID FOR THURMAN, IOWA
Let us keep in our prayers the community of Thurman, Iowa, town of 200, which was 90% destroyed by the tornadoes last weekend. There is a United Methodist Congregation in that town that was severely damaged and may be a total loss. In addition to your prayers, you may choose to volunteer your time and effort by letting me know if your interest. You can also put together a cleaning bucket full of supplies, as advised by the United Methodist Committee on Relief: http://new.gbgm-umc.org/umcor/getconnected/supplies/flood-bucket/. You can bring completed buckets to the church office.

PARKING NEXT SUNDAY
With the Masonic Lodge breakfast next Sunday, please consider parking at the high school if you are able. We want to reserve the lower level parking lot for those attending the breakfast, and the upper level parking lot for people attending worship with accessibility needs. Thank you for your cooperation and your hospitality.

SPECIAL OFFERING NEXT SUNDAY
Next Sunday we will receive our annual special offering for Larry and Jane Kies, missionaries that we support who serve Africa University in Zimbabwe. All of your contributions support our Rainbow Covenant Missions program for this year.



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