The Whistle
Originally scheduled for
August 23
Most
of us have owned a common police whistle at one time or another. Children are
fond of them; anything that makes a loud noise does seem to appeal to them.
But there are adult uses too:
Whistles
are used to get our attention. Sometimes we need to focus on the danger at
hand, and the sound of a whistle does that for us.
As
Boy Scout leaders know, giving each child a whistle makes it easier to find a
lost Boy Scout. All he needs to know is to whistle back.
We
also use whistles to direct traffic – drum majors start a march with them,
police officers direct traffic with them.
But
did you know there is another, more exuberant use of the whistle? It is used
as a musical instrument! Particularly in jazz, and Caribbean music, it
provides a joyous sound – very often like listening to a parade.
Communion
parallels much of that. Perhaps that seems an odd way of looking at it, but
think about it:
We
are commanded to do it regularly. It’s one way God gets our attention. By
this we must have a time to go before God Almighty; he thus has our attention –
and, we hope, repentance.
Often
enough, some of us are “found in the woods” – coming to Communion. The week
leaves us feeling lost in the world; the Lord’s Supper is a welcome home.
If
we are repentant, then it is at Communion we get directions confirmed.
Sometimes it is easier to hear the still, small voice when the room is hushed
in reverence.
But in
Communion there is also an element of exuberant joy, as if we had joined an
angel chorus. For if we share in the death of Christ, do we not also share in
his victory over death? Indeed, if you can take Communion honestly, is it not
an assurance of your own salvation? And exuberance? The parade will begin at
his return, but even now we proclaim his return in taking Communion. Let your
joy be full; Jesus has triumphed over the grave.
