Not Your Typical Church Lady

If you've ever had your feet shoot out from underneath you, you know that falling down is no fun. It happens suddenly and unexpectedly. When I was young, if I fell down, I would immediately spring back up again. Now when I fall down, I lay there for a few moments, trying to assess the situation. I've had a few memorable spills. Usually with witnesses. The time I wiped out on the pogo stick at Toys-R-Us while Christmas shopping comes to mind. A few summers ago I tripped most spectacularly on our brick patio, ran a few steps trying to regain my balance and finally flailed to the ground as one of the neighbors drove past. I rolled over on my back, laughing at how ridiculous it must have looked. Our daughter, who was only four or five at the time came over, examined me closely and announced that I'd be fine, it was only a scuff.

My grandmother is an expert at falling. She has been falling down for years. Her many experiences have taught her the best way to handle the situation. When she knows a fall is imminent, she takes on a jellyfish like persona and just goes limp. The more relaxed she is when she lands, the better off her body is for it. Every now and then a fall will result in a serious injury, but for the vast majority of her falls, she just slides to the floor unharmed. This does not mean that she likes to fall. It simply means that she has learned the art of landing.

Just this past week our daughter and I were carefully making our way from the driveway to the house, trying to avoid the icy spots that had developed overnight on the sidewalk. We held each other's hand tightly. Coming upon an icy patch, the realization washed over me that she is no longer a toddler. If she fell, I would have little chance of keeping her upright using just one hand. "Be careful here," I said. "If you fall, I can't keep you up, but I can help you fall gently." It burst out of my mouth in a moment of parental concern, but as soon as I said it, the truth of it became clear. God helps us to fall gently too. If we are holding his hand, he will soften the landing.

Sometimes, spiritually speaking we bounce around with reckless abandon, oblivious to the fact that danger is looming. We might make careless choices with no thought of how they may affect us or those around us. We give no thought whatsoever to God and what he would have us to do. It's the spiritual equivalent of climbing on a pogo stick in the middle of a toy store and after a few joyous hops, finding yourself on your back, counting the lights on the ceiling. (Please, just trust me on that.)

Sometimes we realize we're falling so we try to catch ourselves and only add to the momentum of the landing. Back peddling, we try to un-do the damage that has already been done. Lying to cover one's tracks only ever ends up making things worse.

We all fall, in many different ways. Nobody looks forward to it. Nobody wants to. Peter certainly wasn't expecting to deny Jesus three times before the rooster crowed and yet.... It's so easy to fail, to fall short, to disappoint ourselves and/or others. It's so easy not to trust, not to believe, not to forgive, not to love. It's so easy to fall into pitying ourselves over our circumstances, to blame others and be angry.

Every day, we face the risk of falling. Every day we have the opportunity to reach out, take God's hand and ask that he'll help us in whatever it is we are facing. And he will. If a child asks you for help, even if it was a child you didn't know, who among us wouldn't help them? When someone asks for help, help is given. It may come in various and unexpected forms, but help will come. We may still fall, but we will fall gently. If we are able to relax and trust God, in spite of the current circumstance, our landing will be even sweeter yet. To do this requires absolute faith. It goes against everything we'd normally do as humans, which is to struggle against, try to do it ourselves, not trust anyone and prolong the process. To have absolute faith we must let go of ourselves. When we let go of ourselves we are able to put our trust fully in God. When we put our trust fully in God, He knows and He responds. When He responds because we trust Him, our relationship grows. When our relationship with God grows, so does everything else. Our love grows, our faith grows, our hope grows, our compassion grows, everything multiplies in ways we can't explain. But we have to let go first. We have to be like my grandma who falls gently, relaxing with the full faith that she'll be alright. And we have to ask God to hold our hand.

We will still have challenges. We will still have struggles. We will still be faced with situations that we don't like. God will be with us in every circumstance. We will still fall, but with His help, we'll fall gently.