Of Samaria and sacredness

The sermon yesterday was in part about the work of Jesus’ disciples in Samaria and the view at that time of Samaria by most Jews. Prior to the sermon, in small group, we talked about what the disciples must have felt as they went in to Samaria. This was a place that nobody wanted to go. A place that most people were afraid of. That most people would prefer to turn their backs on and pretend did not exist. It certainly wasn’t a place that any self-respecting person wanted to go to and spend any time in. We talked about what those disciples must have felt as they were being called to minister to the people in that place. And we talked about times in our lives when we had felt led by the Holy Spirit to go places and to do things that other people did not understand and that didn’t even always make sense to our own selves.

People tell me all the time that they don’t know how I do the work that I do. There are lots of jobs that other people do that I wonder how in the world they do them. I’ve always attributed that to the fact that God gives each of us different skills and different gifts. I’ve always thought that when God call us to something, it’s because we are uniquely qualified to do that thing, because of our life experiences, both good and bad, and because of those different skills and different gifts that God has given us.

It wasn’t until this morning, in thinking about the concept of Samaria, that I began to wonder. Maybe it’s not just that God gives us special skills and abilities and callings to work in a particular area or with a particular people. Maybe it’s that God gives us the ability to see that particular people through God’s eyes rather than our own. Maybe the place that God sends us to work and minister is Samaria to those around us but is not for us.

Maybe that’s just the point. Maybe it isn’t so much what we do or with whom we do it, but maybe it’s how we look at it. Maybe it doesn’t matter what other people think about what we are doing or where we are doing it, or whether the work is needed, or right, or whether the people are deserving. Maybe it’s trusting that God’s plan is holy and the work God calls us to is sacred. Maybe it’s embracing the place where God plants us, and blooming there. Regardless of whether other people understand. Regardless of what other people think. Regardless of whether we feel worthy, or equipped, or capable. Maybe it’s trusting that if God chooses us to go to Samaria, it’s because he chooses US to go to Samaria. Maybe it’s believing in ourselves enough, and believing that God believes in us, even when we don’t believe in ourselves. God does precious and sacred things. He sees preciousness in people that much of the world does not. Just maybe he sees that preciousness in us as well. And just maybe, if we trust that, we will begin to see that preciousness in ourselves too.