Christ is just like the human body—a body is a unit and has many parts; and all the parts of the body are one body, even though there are many. We were all baptized by one Spirit into one body, whether Jew or Greek, or slave or free, and we all were given one Spirit to drink. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it. 1 Corinthians 12:12-13, 26
This week, the smoke returned from Canada.
I was with a group of people and they were talking about how we had such bad smoke last year, and how they had thought we wouldn't get it again.
Wrong. The smoke came back. This time, it didn't stay long, but the fires are still burning strong in Canada, so a change in the wind patterns could bring it back anytime.
Last year, I flew away for a vacation, and when I returned, the smoke was so bad in the Detroit airport that I couldn't see beyond the jetways where the planes were parked. It was eerie and spooky, like the rest of the world had disappeared.
I wasn't terribly inconvenienced by the smoke. I don't have breathing problems. I had to close the windows and turn on the AC. I adjusted a few activities. Not a big deal for me.
But the smoke sent a signal to me. The smoke reminded me that the world is interconnected. For the smoke to be strong enough to make me adjust my life a bit meant that it was terrible somewhere else. The fire that came with the smoke was destroying homes and crops and natural resources. People lives were disrupted, and a few even died from smoke or dangers fighting the fires.
God's creation works together. The wind that blows in Canada eventually makes it to the US and even to Europe. The wind carrying the smokes reminds us that we are one body in Jesus. When one part of the body is hurting, the whole body is hurting. We see this in other parts of our lives as well. Churches and car and property owners are all seeing dramatic increases in insurance rates as climate change causes more natural disasters and insurance companies are facing significant losses. Hurricanes and droughts and mudslides far away have impacts on us.
This week, I met a group of ladies that is doing something about the parts of the body that are hurting. They raised money and sent some of it to Lahaina, Hawaii to help rebuild the United Methodist Church that burned there last year.
Some of us are blessed to live in places that don't have to worry about wildfires, or floods, or hurricanes. Some of us have strong homes and stable jobs and secure neighborhoods. This is a blessing. But it is also a resource that we are given. We can use our security and stability and safety to help others who are facing war, poverty, famine and disaster.
In our Foundations class, Shane Claibourne quoted Proverbs 30:9 in a video about the relationship between our financial resources and our faith: "Don’t give me either poverty or wealth; give me just the food I need. Or I’ll be full and deny you, and say, “Who is the Lord?” Or I’ll be poor and steal, and dishonor my God’s name."
Let's not be full and miss seeing the need of our neighbor. Let's use our resources to reach out and make sure everyone has enough.
“Christ has no body now but mine. He prays in me, works in me, looks through my eyes, speaks through my words, works through my hands, walks with my feet and loves with me here.” St. Teresa of Avila
Smoke map from July 21, 2021, NASA Earth Observatory