“We Can’t Go Alone”
Second Sunday in ADvent
December 8, 2024
Ruth 1
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
Children’s Message:
Our second reading today from Ecclesiastes tells us about the importance of relationships. It says that one alone is not very strong. Two together are much better for support. But a cord of THREE is the strongest. So, I’ve brought along some yarn and a 15-lb dumbbell. And we’re going to see if Ecclesiastes is right.
I have a strand of one yarn—all by itself. Do you think it can pick up this weight? Let’s find out.
Well, that didn’t take long. Do you think that two yarns twisted together will be better?
It was better than one, but it didn’t hold for very long. Now, let’s try 3 strands braided together.
Wow! That was the best one! There are times when life and faith is going to feel really heavy, and sometimes you’re going to feel like just dealing with it alone. But that’s a pretty sure way to break, isn’t it? Instead, we need to know who we can trust with our heavy feelings and ask them to help us carry those feelings.
And you know who is the best at carrying heavy feelings? God is really good at that. I think that Ecclesiastes is trying to tell us that we need each other for strength, but when we weave God into the mix, we get even stronger.
Let’s pray. Dear God, you are our strength. Help us lean on you and on one another, whether our feelings are heavy or light. Amen.
Message:
This week has been a bit of a challenge to figure out what to say. First, the theme for the week rubs me wrong. “We can’t go alone.” That’s all well and good—except when you are alone. This is a season that seems to bring focus onto those relationships we don’t have but wish we did. Or onto those relationships we wish weren’t quite so demanding.
Second, being alone isn’t always a bad thing. Being lonely is different. You can be alone without being lonely. And you can be surrounded by people and still be very lonely. The Surgeon General has stated in a publication put out last year that the lack of social connection is more dangerous to your health than smoking 15 cigarettes a day. It raises your risk for hearth attack, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, depression, and anxiety. And it decreases your immune system and your cognitive function.
Third, there are groups and relationships that are simply not healthy. Ones that prey on loneliness; ones that suck the energy out of you; ones that thrive on spreading disappointment and disdain. And those seem worse than being alone. So, the statement, “We can’t go alone,” needs a little unpacking.
The bottom line is that we are created for relationship. In Genesis 2, when God tasked the first human to name the animals, none of the animals served as an appropriate companion for the human. So, God took the human and created two where there was one. Flesh of flesh and bone of bone. Out of God’s own abundance of love and relationship, God created relationship—between humans and God, between humans and creation, and between one human and another.
And in Genesis 3, we see how sin created chasms in those relationships. All of them. But that doesn’t change the fact that we need each other. We need each other for companionship, for support, for joy and fulfillment. We need each other for life, itself. Social connections build empathy, problem-solving skills, cooperation, and resilience. They create in us the strength to face difficult situations and move toward the future.
Now, our Advent theme is ‘Words for Beginnings.’ It is meant to help us consider what we need to take new steps into a new year, into new life, into a new vision of our future. Whether the newness comes from loss—as Ruth and Naomi’s story—or it comes from life and hope—as we anticipate Mary’s story of a newborn baby, the journey is easier when we share it with others.
Let me come back briefly to TJ Klune’s book, “Somewhere Beyond the Sea,” that I mentioned last week. Arthur, the director of the orphanage for magical beings, finds himself on a new journey as he takes on the government and their unjust laws. As much as he keeps trying to shield and protect his children from the harsh reality, they keep showing him how much he needs their help on this road. And in the end, the whole community stands with them. Because they know that their lives and the lives of the magical beings are intertwined. They recognize that none of them can stand against tyrants alone. But together, they’re a force to be reckoned with.
Sometimes you choose your lonely—pushing others away, like Naomi or Arthur. Sometimes it’s chosen for you—being abandoned, cast out, left behind. But the truth remains. We can’t go alone.
Visionary and author, Simon Sinek, gives the example of Navy SEALS. He says that the ones who successfully complete the training aren’t necessarily the ones who were star athletes or super buff or overly confident. The successful ones are often the ones shivering in fear. But even in the midst of that, they’re the ones encouraging and supporting the person beside them. Those are the people who make it through training.
So, perhaps the theme for today is less about getting out of your loneliness and more about recognizing the needs of others and meeting them in their loneliness. Visiting people. Calling people. Sending cards. For the record, our visitation team meets after education hour today, and there’s a list of FEAST-related folks who would love to receive your Christmas cards this season.
In all the best ways, it truly isn’t what you know but who you know. Or more importantly, who knows you. Who you let into your circle of trust. Who you rely on and who you support. Ruth and Naomi were both at an impasse. Their lives, their hopes and dreams, all died with their husbands. Ruth could make another go of it if she went home to her father’s house. But she chose Naomi. She needed Naomi. Their shared grief connected them. And Naomi needed Ruth, whether she wanted to admit it or not.
Serving each other and being served is the very purpose of creation. We were made for and from connection and relationship. God’s love overflowed and created a universe filled with interdependence—a mutual need of life.
When do you feel most connected—most a part of something?
That connection—that’s life. That’s the Holy Spirit weaving God into our relationships.
Pastor Tobi White
Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church
Lincoln, NE