Soul Matters has given us the theme of “The Practice of Trust” for the month of March. Friends, I have to be honest, my first thought opening up the packet and planning out worship for this month was, “Are they kidding right now?! Have they not seen [gesturing all about myself] everything happening?” And then I remind myself that the theme was chosen back in May and the worship materials were produced before January. Then I remember that one of the great challenges of preaching is to find and point to what we feel has been lost when times get tough.
Trust has been shattered nationwide, fueled by engineered chaos and broken promises. We are being conditioned more and more to withhold trust and to lose sight of where we can place it. But our reemergence from hard times, our capacity for resilience, relies in part on our ability to trust ourselves and one another. Holding on to those slivers of trust is an act of mindfulness, a daily inventory prompted by the question, “Who’s got my back?”
It’s a question that I asked myself again and again throughout the pandemic. The answers, over and over again, were family (especially Jess) and my improv team – my community. The six of us and our coach knew instinctively that we couldn’t let lockdowns interfere with how we worked and played together, the weekly practice was so important to our souls and our mental health. While the theatre closed its doors, we kept meeting up on Zoom on our regular schedule, adapting exercises and creating new ones to compensate for the lack of physical proximity. And as the weeks stretched on, we found ourselves sharing more about our lives and our struggles, making time to just “hang out” on the internet, and feeling better connected in the process.
That community became my lifeline and soul fuel for the week. Those brief hours on a Monday night made the weight of everything at the time feel manageable, or at least not insurmountable. As we emerged back into real space and began performing for live audiences once again, we picked back up with our old pre-show ritual – clasping each other’s shoulders, looking one another in the eye and repeating: “I’ve got your back.” And it was always true.
Who’s got your back? Where are the individuals and communities that help make the burden light when trust seems harder and harder to find. A partner? A friend? Art collective? Book club? Maybe even your church? Now more than ever is the time to lean into those people, those communities. That little bit of trust will help us find the road back
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I know that the DOGE chaos has already had negative impact in some of your lives, but I’m not aware of everyone’s situation. If you’re experiencing unexpected life changes as a result of the current administration’s actions, or are frightened of what may be coming, please remember that I’m a phone call or an email away if you need someone to talk to. Sometimes it’s good to have a witness outside of your current connections to help you process and plan. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
In addition, I do have discretionary funds available to help with financial emergencies should they arise.
I’ve got your back
