Soul care: wounded healers

In Matthew 14, Jesus preaches a sermon that makes his mission laser clear. To heal the hurting, to bind up the wounded and moving from brokenness to wholeness. I remind you, we’re on this journey together from captivity to freedom; from mourning to joy; from being broken and bruised; from being a faint person hardly able to stand to being a person filled with hope and joy; to being a person who is positive and filled with praise.

So, what does this mean for us? When I say “us,” I’m thinking of us as individuals, and even more specifically, for “us” as a community of faith.

In our narrative, the disciples are frustrated. Jesus is preaching and healing; there are thousands of people who’ve come to hear him in this deserted place and now it’s getting late in the day and they’re getting hungry. And you know what happens when people get hungry!

The disciples come to Jesus and say, “Send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” Then Jesus says the most shocking, and yet, instructive thing, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.”

I can imagine the disciples looking at each other, shaking their heads, dumbfounded. Yet in those words of Jesus, we as a faith community can hear words of truth, that maybe we don’t want to hear, because ultimately we know that is our mission too. That is what Jesus calls us to do. “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.”

As a community of faith, as a progressive Christian church and one that is vibrant, inclusive and progressive (VIP) we are called to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. As followers of Christ, we are called to follow in the footsteps of the wounded healer whose name we bear.

As we look at his life, and hear the words, “You give them something to eat…” we begin to hear the answer of, “What does it mean to be a VIP church here in San Diego in 2013?”

The first thing that jumps out at me in this narrative is that we are called to be a hospitable church. (Kind of sounds like “hospital” – and that may be true – but “hospitable.”) Let me ask a question. Is it possible to truly be the Body of Christ (follower in the teachings of Jesus) without being a hospitable church? I think our narrative says no. Hospitality is the ability to pay attention to the guest.

Hospitality is more than just being friendly. We are constantly told we are a very friendly church. But hospitality means more than that. It means being focused on the new person; on the one standing off alone; on the one who is here for the first time wounded, in pain, searching for healing. And we may not be able to see the pain from the outside because most of us are experts at hiding our pain.

There is not a week that goes by that we don’t have first-time guests here. (I can’t remember the last time!) I don’t think they are here by accident. They don’t wake up in beautiful San Diego and say, “I don’t have anything to do this morning, so, I think I’ll come to church …” No, they come for a reason.

Being the VIP church we are called to be, means I am more focused on their needs than my own. Jesus said, “They need not go away, you give them something to eat.” In our narrative, I see three things that have to do with fulfilling the words that Jesus said. Let me share them with you.

First, we are called to be a community of compassion. What does that mean? One definition of compassion is: sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress, together with a desire to alleviate it.

It’s when we look at our neighbor and see they are really part of us. It’s where we see our own hope and our own desire for healing by looking into our neighbor’s eyes.

Second, we are called to be a community of recognition. What do I mean by that? Well, where we recognize the one who’s here for the first time, (more than just a “Hi how are you?”) or where we recognized the one who’s come back after a long time of being away. Where we have open arms.

Most people long for a place to belong. Many people are just lonely. We live in a time where we have more “close friends” on Facebook who’ve we’ve never met than we do in person. All of us enjoy going to a place where we are recognized. I love it when I go to “my Starbucks” and they say, “Good Morning Dan, we have your spinach feta wrap already in the oven.” Church should be a place where that happens, where people are recognized. I like the greeting in Avatar, “I see you!”

There’s a healing power in simply recognizing a person. And making the effort of remembering their name is so important. Ouch! I try, it’s not my gift but I try.

Oh, how we love to have someone recognize us. I’m a people watcher and I love when I’m at the airport terminal, waiting to board my plane, to see loved ones gather in the lobby, some with flowers, some all dressed up, and then to watch the people get off the plane and try to guess who’s going to be matched with whom. Airport reunions have brought tears to my eyes! We love to be recognized. Being a community of recognition is an important part of being a VIP church.

Third, we are called to be a people who are vigilant.

Where, when we come to church, we are aware, we look around. We are sensitive to that new person coming through the door for that first time.

Do you remember the first time you came to church? How many of you came to the church in pain? How many of you spent the first month here crying? Many of us did. I know I did. As odd as it may sound, this is a gift. Why? Because we have been broken, we then are sensitive to the brokenness of the new person.

Because I have been broken and wounded, I can recognize and respond to that with sympathy and authenticity.

We can relate to the wounded with authenticity because we ourselves are wounded.

Henri Nouwen, gifted writer said this, “No one will be perceived as authentic, unless they speak from a heart wounded by the suffering about which they speak.” Let me paraphrase that, “No church will be perceived as authentic, unless it ministers from a heart wounded by the suffering about which it speaks.”

Again, as strange as it may sound, I’m coming to see this as a great advantage we have. The very nature of who we are, means that we have experienced hurts, misunderstandings, rejection and pain and because of this, you and I are uniquely positioned to be wounded healers.

Why do we provide ministries and programs that reach out into our community in the areas of social justice and healing?

What’s the purpose?”

Let me suggest the answer is twofold.

First, it’s the up-building of the body, the strengthening of the body (as we come to worship we are enriched, our own healing continues, we are encouraged, we are built up.)

And for what purpose are we being built up? Is it only so we can be together and enjoy each other’s company? No one enjoys our times together more than I do. I love worship, fellowship and our gatherings, but I think it’s that and more.

Second, we are all in the process of being healed that we may become instruments of God’s healing grace to others, to the world. This is our calling. And ultimately, as an authentic community of faith, as a VIP church, this must be our focus.

We are not to come and be strengthened and healed just for our own sakes; not just for us four and no more. It’s not just about us, folks. What did Jesus say? “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.”

So, I challenge us as a community of faith to look into the eyes of those who we meet from week to week. To recognize them. They are here looking for healing, hope and wholeness. And as we look into their eyes I believe we will see our mission.

Beloved, as a VIP church that is vibrant, inclusive and progressive, we are called to be here for each other. Amen.

Rev. Dan Koeshall is the senior pastor at The Metropolitan Community Church (The Met), 2633 Denver Street, San Diego, California, themetchurch.org. Services every Sunday at 9 and 11 a.m.