After you read this please share your most interesting communion or Eucharist story.
My mom's church served communion the day I rode the bus back to Little Rock. Also that day two new elders were ordained and a third installed on session. One of them was only 16.
I am an elder too. During services of ordination other elders in the audience are asked to come forward and lay hands on the new elders for the ordination prayer. S.A Lockridge., Kathleen Phillips, Peggy Ruleman, and some others did that for me and Dorthea during a windy day in March 2007 at Rocky Spring. I invited a few school buddies to come see me get ordained. It felt like the roof would blow off the church that day in the wind. We joked the "spirit was moving" since spirit and wind are the same word in Hebrew (ruach ר֫וּחַ). It was a moving time in my faith journey. I've come so far since then.
As Elder one of my jobs became serving communion at Rocky Spring. Most often with just six elders we would decide who was serving based on who showed up. I rarely knew it was a communion day until I got there and S.A. and Kathleen would tell me, "ok Alex, you weren't here last time so it's your turn." Most of those days I arrived, unshaven, wearing my tennis shoes with my khakis. Days I forgot my belt, or forgot to put on deodorant. On those days I felt, "What in the world am I doing? Shouldn't I be looking a little nicer if I'm going to hand out the body of Christ here? I didn't even wear a tie and I've got to carry Jesus. What if I drop something?" I can be hard on myself but there was something so sacred about communion I felt like someone else should be doing that rather than little ole Alex who was told at the last minute most of the time.
I often get similar feelings when I visit a church during ordination days and I'm asked to come forward with everyone else to lay on hands. Some of those days I haven't shaved, or I didn't wear a tie. Most often with campus ministry and YAV it's at a church where nobody knows who I am, and I'm twenty years younger than everyone else who gets up. I think, "I shouldn't be here they don't know who I am." This happened again at mom's church last Sunday.
Since I started YAV, I've felt there have been moments when I don't feel like I should be an Elder or missionary, or one of God's leaders. Times when that "spirit moving" feeling isn't there. Times when I think others are better suited for the work. (JONAH........)
There are days I want to give up. Days when arguments with non-believers have left me exhausted and hung out to dry. Days when people don't understand food justice. Days I speak up against an issue to fellow YAVs and don't know all the facts but still have an opinion. Days people don't even know what I'm doing. Days I don't know what I'm doing. Days I'm unorganized and not accomplishing much. Days people's hospitality of taking me out to lunch supports injustices in our economy and I don't know what to do.
I was thinking about all this after Sunday's service when I heard the new elders talking. They were kind of jokingly talking about the times they almost messed up communion that very day, when one almost tripped.
My mom, being the pastor chimed in with a story. "It wasn't as bad as the summer they set up communion the night before and forgot to turn on the air conditioning. The juice molded in the pitcher over night and the elders had to secretly scrape off the mold after they uncovered it before they served it".
I remembered a time when they ran out of bread and had to hurry back to the kitchen for more. Mom told of a time when the communion lady forgot the bread entirely and snuck out during the hymn with her brother. She had him and her husband smuggle the bread in coffee cups during the communion hymn, to pour on the plates before the elders distributed it. A story came out about the time a guy literally tripped over his two feet and spilled the grape juice everywhere.
In a way these stories were comforting that I never was that bad at serving communion. My guilty feelings of unworthiness were justified. The stories reminded me, just like all church committee meetings do, that we are human.
We are all people who sometimes forget to wear a tie, shave and clean up. Sometimes we forget more important things than our appearance. Sometimes we let the Christ's body get stale or moldy, Often times we are clumsy and we break things, or ruin them.
We don't behave as perfect angels.
God knows that. God knows we forget. God knows we mess things up. God knows we are clumsy daffy old fools sometimes, and he still loves us for some reason . Not only does he love us, but he trusts us to carry his body, his blood, and his spirit. As Elders we literally carry and serve the elements for communion, but as Christians we ALL literally serve Christ to others every day. God entrusts us with his everything no matter how forgetful, sinful, and destructive we are.
Somehow I think it's working when all this inspires me to put my best foot forward, clean up my own act, and try not to make a fool of myself as I carry God with me.
I still need to forgive myself for the times when I'm unprepared. And to be ready to serve in those times impromptu style. Times when S.A and Kathleen say it's my turn. Times when the discussion takes a turn to God and I need to explain faith in a non-proselytizing, non-condemning way that keeps others interested. Times when I see someone who might be needing a prayer. Times when someone is begging for money and I'm not prepared with cash. Times when Heaven asks us to serve and we're not quite ready.
That's all of us every day. We are given God's body, God's blood, God's life. And we are to share it. To pass it along. No matter how silly and awkward we are with it, we've got it in our hands, and we've got to share it. We're up.
I am an Elder, I am a Christian, I am a YAV, I am someone who believes Jesus is real, and serving God is what I'm here for. I may trip, I may spill it, I may forget something, but that's my job.
Let's do it. It's where we are. It's the task before us. Let us serve God to one another.
Please share a communion or Eucharist story in the comments below. How does serving communion or taking communion apply to your everyday life?
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