Good morning!
Today’s scripture:
MARK 1:14-20
14Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, 15and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.”
16As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea – for they were fishermen. 17And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” 18And immediately they left their nets and followed him. 19As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. 20Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.
As you know if you have followed my blog at all or listened to my sermons, I love the group “Improv Everywhere.” I think they are brilliant. This is a group that’s sole purpose is to have fun and to create space for improv out in cities, now all over the world. They create space for fun and joy and cause us to look at things differently because of what they do in day to day life. They have created quite the following both in people who show up for the improv assignments now or those like myself who watch what is coming up and highlight faves. Here is one of my faves from the past…..
In this particular video at a certain time a large group of people freeze in the middle of Grand Central Station. They freeze in whatever poses they are caught in at that time. They have chosen to follow the leader into what seems crazy and yet will highlight something in life for everyone involved. This craziness catches people off guard, makes everyone pause for a minute (literally and metaphorically), and causes quite the scene. When the people following the scheme say yes to idea, the world changes and this moment is remembered. It is remembered for the craziness but also for it’s poignancy.
Get where I might be going with this one?
In our scripture this morning, Jesus proposes something so crazy that it could be an improv everywhere sketch. In the middle of the average work day, he finds some fishermen and asks them to do something out of the ordinary, that seems crazy, causes everyone to pause, and yet will make the ultimate point. He asks them to follow him, this new rabbi, into a totally different life that will transform the world. And by saying yes, it seems to cause a scene that reminds us to pause for a minute to appreciate what is about to happen.
We have a chance to take a minute and choose to follow this crazy journey. We have a chance to say yes to the next great improv of following. We have a chance to cause a scene today. What would seem so crazy to change the world? What could you do today to cause everyone to pause to say how awesome this following bit is? Could it be reaching out? volunteering? reconnecting with someone? extra prayer? or even getting out of your norm to do something like find out what is needed in the community and do that?
Prayer: O God, we are ready to follow where you might lead us this morning. Open our eyes to see what is happening in our midst. Allow us to hear your crazy call. Amen.
Peace,
Court
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