Walk twenty miles! On Good Friday! Raise money for missions. It was a tradition in the church to which I had been appointed. The Chairperson of the committee was direct: “Jesus walked for you on Good Friday, won’t you walk for him?”
Prodigal Homecoming
A forgiving father welcomes home his prodigal son. (Illustration Courtesy of Bible Fun for Kids)
So we got our sponsors and early on Good Friday morning met in the Fellowship Hall. There was a brief devotional and we began our walk. Every age was represented, from children in strollers to folks in their seventies – women, men, boys, girls – walkers all. Those who couldn’t walk staffed crosswalks and checkpoints, made and served snacks and lunches, or drove cars to check on walkers and, if necessary, pick up those who had reached their limits.
Each checkpoint had water, fruit and cookies. We fell into groups along the way – there was a social quality about it. We shared stories, compared experiences, sometimes talking about the church and where we were on our faith journey, and the miles fell away. At little beyond half way we had lunch at one of the other participating churches, and turned around for our walk back. The last mile home was all uphill, but as we walked up the sidewalk to the church, we were greeted with cheers from supporter staff and those who had already returned. What a homecoming! One year, a professional masseuse in our church offered foot massages to everyone who had walked. That was heavenly! Occasionally, some of us would go out to eat together, and that was like a banquet!
As I reflect on this experience some 20 years later, I realize that it still has much to teach me, particularly in the midst of Lent. Lent, properly observed, is a long slog. If it isn’t, we’ve probably missed the point. It can be likened to a long walk that, near the end, seems all uphill. To be sure there are companions and refreshments along the way, and it can be for a ‘good cause.’ I think of the story of the Prodigal Son, which every three years is the Gospel Lesson on the Fourth Sunday of Lent. Can we even begin to imagine how hard it was for the Prodigal to turn around and walk back home, with no assurances of how he would be received. To get a cheering welcome probably never crossed his mind! Then a banquet! Amazing! Grace!
What emerges for me is a parable: once a person embarked upon a long journey, reluctantly, even unwillingly. Others had done it before her, and there was purpose in the endeavor. Along the way he met others and they talked, took nourishment together, learned each other’s stories and the larger story that connected them. In time they turned back for home, found that they were weary, even as the path began to go uphill. Then when it seemed that they did not have any more energy, they saw Home, a Welcome, and a Banquet. Amazing! Grace!
Let us see Lent as a homecoming. Let us hear again the stories of Jesus. Let us witness the healings at his hand. Let us see His compassion for the least and the lost, His challenge to be humble, just, and kind. Let us marvel that He would confront the powers that be. Let us be nourished by the Living Bread. Let us look with wonder that His Love was so great that He would not flee from a cross. Let us see ourselves sitting at a banquet hosted by the Living Lord. Amazing! Grace! How sweet the sound!
The Rev. F. Richard Garland of North Kingstown, RI, is a retired clergy member of the New England Annual Conference. He frequently contributes hymns to the Worship section of Discipleship Ministries.