Remember that old book, Are You There God? It’s me, Margaret? Margaret was the child of parents with different faith backgrounds, so they raised their daughter without any religious affiliation at all. The book was a tad bit controversial when I was growing up, but her cry to God, has always resonated with me. That one simple question, “Are you there God?” Followed by an introduction…”It’s ME… Margaret” not realizing the God she was calling to, had created her. I can’t imagine growing up without faith as a part of my daily life.
Those of us who have been a part of organized faith, forget sometimes that the world is full of people… like Margaret… who have no clue who this God we speak of is or how his son Jesus Christ, fits in the story of humanity. I imagine the Bible feels like a Greek Mythology story to some. We ALL know what we know… and we don’t know what we don’t know. Without knowledge, they look to those of us who profess to be Christians for clues as to what a life with Christ looks like in action.
There was a point in my own adult life when there was a lot going on. I could be surrounded by women of faith laughing and loving, but behind the smile, was a whole lot of stress. I felt like the devil was attacking me from all sides and quite honestly… that God was testing me or punishing me somehow. It was a difficult period, even with a lifetime of faith to ground me.
One beautiful autumn afternoon in the middle of this mess, I took a ride in a Cessna single prop plane. We flew out of New Bern and out over the Outer Banks of Carteret County. We circled Cape Lookout and skirted the MCAS Cherry Point as we headed back over the Neuse River. This corner of North Carolina is spectacular.
It wasn’t just the beauty of the area that stayed with me that day. It was the divine majesty of a creator who could design something so fragile looking from the air, with such strength from the ground. The strips of land we flew over, looked like one big wave would take them out forever. Yet, I know generations have lived there and raised their families on those tiny strips of land.
That afternoon God reminded me that he was there with me. He was in fact, all around me and encompassing every facet of my life. I might have been feeling as alone as that piece of land dissolving into the ocean, but I wasn’t. He had placed people in my life all around me to love me through it all, including the people flying with me that morning. God is all around us if we have eyes to see.
This week, I will be reminding myself that if I can sometimes feel distanced from God, how do I expect people like Margaret to ever even be introduced to, much less learn to have faith in, our Father, His Son, and the Holy Spirit. We are called to make those introductions. We are called to remind and encourage every Margaret calling out searching and questioning this faith we know. It’s our job to say to each other when we struggle and to the world that “Yes, Margaret…God is with us.”
Jesus, undeterred, went right ahead and gave his charge: “God authorized and commanded me to commission you: Go out and train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life, marking them by baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you. I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 MSG
— Kim
You can reach out to Kim Smith, Sound District Lay Leader, by email at k.smith@nccumc.org