Growing up Saturdays were housekeeping days. With six of us kids, two dogs, cats, rabbits, and fish, there was always stuff to do. We would finish our work in the morning and then we had the afternoon to play and roam. Even in the cold of the winter it was great to go outside. It would have to be frigidly cold, or a torrential downpour for us not to be outside. That was sort of our version of being free.
The line that has always inspired me from this weekends Gospel, is Jesus' command that Lazarus be untied and set free. Death has a stench which is most offensive. For Jesus it is beyond an offensive odor, it is an evil that cannot be tolerated in the Kingdom of God. So Jesus the Christ demands that those elements which disable Lazarus, the stone, cloth wrappings, and especially death, be taken away from him. In the mission and ministry of Jesus, he recognized the aroma of Sin and brokenness. It was no accident that Jesus came upon the hurt, hurting, crippled and sinful. He sought them out unbound that which hobbled them, and set them free.
Getting back to my family. I know that when we were together we got along most of the time. But I still remember wars of territory, T.V. time, food we were saving, and an assorted other. When we argued and fought the entire house was frustrated. I like to share with the little kids that just as we can bring hurt and pain into the house, we can also bring peace and joy. It really is that sense of being free from the yuck and gunk that hobbles us.
Being free is really about yearning for the fresh air and playtime. Seeking that which is good and proper and true really does keep us out of tombs and being tied up. So on this cold Saturday morning, I am thinking about housekeeping and doing good.
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