Dear Rose Park,
I’m sure you’ve all heard a joke involving a pastor, a priest, a monk, or some other religious figure but I doubt you’ve heard this one…
A pastor, upon retiring, was going through his closets, sorting out stuff. He was cleaning out his daughter’s closet and came upon a shoe-box with three eggs and one hundred one-dollar bills in it. He showed his wife and said, “Our daughter forgot to take this when she moved out.”
His wife said, “Oh, that’s not hers, that’s mine.” He said, “What are the eggs for?”
She said, “You don’t want to know.” He pressed her, saying, “After forty-five years of marriage, are you going to keep secrets from me?”
She relented. “When you became a pastor, I decided that every time your sermon bombed, when you laid an egg in the pulpit, I would put an egg in the shoe-box.” He said, “Well, that’s not bad, three eggs in forty-five years. What are the one hundred one-dollar bills for?”
She said, “You don’t want to know.” He pressed her. She relented. “Well, when I got a dozen eggs, I sold them to the neighbors for a dollar.”
There’s a thousand different ways this letter could go; we could talk about how it’s good to be humbled. We could talk about how many eggs I’ve laid in the pulpit. We could even talk about how important it is to be gracious and truthful with one another. However, as we transition into a new calendar year I wonder if we all just need a good laugh. So much has happened this past year that has hardened our hearts and thickened our skin, but perhaps the old adage is true: laughter is the best medicine.
I look forward to being able to laugh with you all again. I miss hearing the jokes between Rog Wolters and Jim Boeve after worship. I miss hearing the laughter of children running through the sanctuary. I miss seeing you all smile during greeting time and I miss your cheerful hearts. Scripture speaks often of the importance of laughter and joy; it’s my hope and prayer that each and every one of us can find again the simplicity of laughter and joy every day.
Grace & Peace,
Pastor Mark