And Nehemiah continued, “Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!”
–Nehemiah 8:10
At first glance, choosing this text in the wake of all that has been transpiring in our world seems, at the least, out of context. To be truthful, it appears almost insensitive. There are images etched in our memories. Violent. Brutal. Senseless. Recordings of reprisal killings. Anger. Distrust. Resentment. Frustration. Helplessness.
Year after year, decade after decade, lifetime after lifetime, and there is still racism, still economic disparities, still deep divides that separate. We see stagnation and stalemates in legislative bodies. There doesn’t seem to be an answer in sight. The crumbling of a sense of community. There seems to be no way forward, no plan, no vision. And, as the scriptures state, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” (Proverbs 29:18)
The streets of our cities are not the only places that witness fear, frustration and lack of community. We have to look no farther than our own workplace, clinic, classroom or cubicle. There are those in our midst who live in fear and are subsequently silent. When people who look like you are being killed, you fear if you will make it home tonight. Not understanding why people are protesting and seeing law enforcement officers targeted. With whom do you share your frustrations?
If you dare to share, there is fear of repercussions. What do we do when the reach of current events has crashed into our lives? It is ironic that Loma Linda University Health, founded by and focused on Christ, could become a place of silence and fear. Two of the values that we hold to — justice and freedom — speak against fear and separation. Our calling to “continue the teaching and ministry of Jesus Christ” compels us to not just voice our values, but to live them and empower others to do likewise. It is by remembering Him whom we work for, and how we are called to love and live, that we can see a “vision” of how we can endure and move forward.
That vision has life breathed into it by our scriptural passage for today: “Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is our strength!” (Nehemiah 8:10) It is not our vision. It is God’s vision! It is not accomplished in our strength. It is accomplished in God’s strength. Sadness and dejection come when we look at our failures and inabilities as individuals and a nation. Joy — a hope for the future — comes with seeing things through the eyes of the Lord. What would that joy look like? It would be a joy stemming from knowing a clear way forward. It would be a happiness to know that we aren’t doomed to a life of fear and separation, cynicism and disillusionment. It is the comfort that comes from knowing that we can rest in Him while we grieve. It comes from accepting His invitation to give all our burdens of fear and worry to Him. It is not just in a fairytale land where love can reign and fear be banished. It is not just a myth to believe we can be one. It is our destiny as long as we follow the pathway Jesus blazed for us.
We can make Loma Linda University Health a place of openness, of acceptance, of trust. We can do it one heart and one life at a time. We can start with ourselves and those God has placed around us. We can celebrate that love will win … every time.
Terry Swenson, DMin
Campus chaplain
Loma Linda University