Rocking the Boat

He Qi. Asianchristianart.org/art_he_qi.htm

He Qi. Asianchristianart.org/art_he_qi.htm

Sit down, sit down, sit down

Sit down, sit down, you're rockin'

Sit down, you're rockin' the boat. 

                                                From Guys And Dolls, Frank Loesser

Kay and I were both part of a local production of Guys And Dolls a couple years ago. I was one of the prim mission band ladies (and briefly, a streetwalker). The above song was fun to rehearse and perform – a lively, confusing, seated-dance number. Kay reminded me of it when I mentioned the theme for today’s post. A funny thing is that while the song is about being discouraged from rocking the boat, I want to encourage us to do it. 

It all started at seminary. I was eating dinner before an evening class when I overheard parts of a conversation from the next table. An instructor I respected (brilliant!) was talking with a couple students about the upcoming trial of a gay clergyman. One of them brought up the need, sometimes, to shake the tree. 

Immediately I remembered shaking the plum tree in my yard, so the curculio larvae-inhabited fruit would fall off the branches into the waiting sheet laid below. 

Shaking the tree is a useful metaphor for loosing old or bad fruit – in life, organizations, or systems. I could see that. Still, it wasn’t quite right for where my mind had gone. Another word picture, rocking the boat, reflected the difference I was seeking. 

It's all in where you stand.

You don’t have to be in the tree to shake it. I’m not even sure it’s possible. However, you do have to be in the boat to rock the boat. In that moment, I realized why I was doing what I was doing. Why I was investing so much time and energy (and money) in this seminary education. Why I was finding my place as a pastoral minister. Why I was seeking ordination.

I love Christ’s church; particularly, I love The United Methodist Church. I was baptized, and grew up, in that branch of Christianity. I love the smell of old hymnals, and the lemon oil that’s sometimes used to clean the pews. I love pipe organs and UMs who sing “lustily” (per John Wesley’s directions found on page vii in our Hymnal). I love that we have a long history of doing something about justice issues. (Okay, not as long as the Franciscans, but pretty long for a 2nd generation Protestant denomination.)

It’s that last one – about our justice record – that calls me to boat-rocking. Maybe you’re not keen on Jesus’ call to eat with the dregs of society and to heal what ails us, as individuals and as a people, but I am, and officially, so is The United Methodist Church. Some of the people of our churches, though – both pew-potatoes and leaders – not so much.

God’s been after me for decades about this rocking the boat business. It just took me a long while to understand the message fully, and to find my voice.

What’s God after you to do? Are you a boat-rocker? Or a tree-shaker? (I suspect they both have their uses.) Are you a comforter? Do you build up good things or tear down bad ones?

Since you’re still breathing, God still has something for you to be doing. If you haven’t paid attention lately, now might be a good year to do so. Pray about God’s plan for you. Notice what activities feed you and give you joy. Be open to surprise – the answer might not be what it once was. Then, practice living into it.

As usual, I’d love to hear your thoughts!