We have Moses and the Israelites stuck at the entrance to the promised land with several of his followers wanting to turn back.
In all of the churches my husband Ken pastored and most of the other institutions I was involved with there was always a "Back to Egypt" committee - people who were afraid to move ahead.
But Pastor David's message is not my topic today. My topic is Snakes. Almost all of us are afraid of snakes. Even Indiana Jones is afraid of snakes. In the Bible they are portrayed as symbols of evil....but, later on, a symbol of life and healing. Moses was the first to put a bronze snake on a pole and that symbol is still used by health care facilities across the world.
My husband, Ken was a complicated, brilliant, eccentric person who knew the Bible will and knew the snake, viper, serpent symbols. He was also very familiar with the creation story, as most everyone is. He had to put of with my season of life where I hung my "Eve was framed" poster over the washer. In the last few weeks of his life, his body and mind were barely hanging on. I was being pressured to stop dialysis which would result in his fast but painless death.
During this time I, of course, wrote a poem. Therapeutic for me but I've never had even one person respond to it. I'm thinking that they just didn't get it. At the time he was pretty much non-speaking So his words were astounding to me on several levels. Here it is.
THE ADVICE
Remember when you were
Fading in and out of consciousness,
Drive you to the hospital?
Call an ambulance?
I could not decide.
And there was a snake in the garage.
What should I do?
Lying on the couch,
You whispered to me.
“What? I can’t hear you.”
“Are these your last words?”
I leaned close,
With my ear to your mouth.
You barely gasped,
“Cecily,
Don’t let the snake tempt you.”
(If you want to see last week's sermon, you can find it on YouTube at FUMCWP.org)
