Campfire Connections

Sometimes I worry that the way we read the gospels in church each week gives the impression that Jesus’ life is a highlight reel of miracles and important sayings. That’s pretty much how we know all scripture, unless of course, you’re reading the Bible at home, too.

Each week we get a story. Or some sayings or a single psalm or a few words of wisdom from a prophet. Bits and pieces that highlight a theme or emphasize a particular life lesson. I’m not suggesting this isn’t helpful (it is), nor am I suggesting I have a better way or that we should spend a few more hours than we do, listening to someone read entire chapters or books of the Bible. (Again, you can do that at home.)

Thing is, though, it’s the life Jesus lived that we learn the most from, not just the highlights. We need the continuity of the story, how moments are connected, how Jesus lived love into each moment, how Jesus showed us that love is in us, too, and we are capable of living as Jesus did, embracing the divine spirit and human soul together. 

We need to remember and spend some time with those untitled moments in Jesus’ life. The ones that, like those untitled moments in our own lives, are just about getting us from here to there, the moments that are about taking time to rest, to spend some time apart and pray, to take a sabbath rest and just be with God. That doesn’t make for very interesting reading, but it’s important to remember that Jesus would have experienced them, just as we do, and that Jesus would have leaned into them so that he was ready for the next big moment.

That’s not to say Jesus would necessarily have been any better at it than we are. Jesus gets tired, Jesus gets frustrated, Jesus loses his cool sometimes. And how many times do we hear about how Jesus was trying to get away from the crowds, but they followed him. He sees they’re like “sheep without a shepherd” and he takes the time to show compassion and grace. I like to think that, for every one of those moments, Jesus managed to find sometime somewhere else to rest, refresh and rejuvenate. Just like the lessons of love, compassion, grace and connection, the lesson of wholeness is at the heart of Jesus’ life.

I get that the gospel writers might not have thought those moments were important, but it’s the ordinary moments that help us connect with Jesus so that we can be a part of the spectacular ones, too. It’s the ordinary ones that bring Jesus close, someone we can sit with and talk, just as I think he must have with everyone he met. “Tell me your story,” I think he’d say.

Our children’s summer program this year was called “Campfire Tales.” We structured the stories around the idea that Jesus and his disciples walked everywhere and would likely have camped a lot at night. They might share conversation around the campfire and Jesus might tell a story or two, maybe even one of the stories he told the people earlier or the next day. They might have chatted about, well, “things.”  Just like we would. Those are the moments that bring us together with Jesus.