The blessings of inconvenience

lived several blocks away. Her story seemed plausible, though one never knows for certain. But the fact that they were obviously not commercial and were among several similarly wrapped brownies lowered my doubts. Assuming that the goods were safe and the cause legitimate, someone had experienced a little inconvenience to make someone else’s life a little brighter.

Rev. Eldon Trubee

Like as a Fire

Luke 5:17-25.

And it came to pass on a certain day, as [Jesus] was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them. And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before him. And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus. And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, “Man, thy sins are forgiven thee.” And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, “Who is this which speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?” But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, “What reason ye in your hearts? Whether is easier, to say, ‘Thy sins be forgiven thee;’ or to say, ‘Rise up and walk?’ But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,)’ I say unto thee, Arise and take up thy couch, and go into thine house.” And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.

Helping Others

A junior high-aged girl stopped by selling homemade brownies to raise some money for a seriously ill neighbor. We did not know her. She

The inconvenience of bringing the palsied man through someone else’s roof comes to mind. It is the story of doing something unrequired for someone motivated out of concern by others.

A house of Jesus’ time and place was constructed with stone and brick. Its roof consisted of layers of palm branches covered with clay or clay tiles laid across rafters sufficient to shed the infrequent rains. Roof repairs and replacements were not too difficult; however, they still caused some inconvenience.

Jesus drew quite a crowd of followers and officials to this house. Some men brought their disabled friends to be healed. The hole they created in the house roof was not difficult to create, and we may assume that the homeowner had help patching the damage. We still should be impressed by the collective efforts of those who sought healing for this man. They had to take time from their busy lives to help someone.

One takes some risks when helping another person. You don’t always know what you are getting into. Many years ago, I offered to help a friend bury his beloved great dane. The topsoil was shallow and the dog was huge. It turned into a day-long project. The local priest, Father Hummer, and I made a few late-night trips to neighboring cities seeking lodging for transients when none was available locally.

The threat of bodily harm is often present when helping strangers. It’s wise to be wary, but often the innocent suffer when no one helps.

Blessings can come from the inconvenience of helping another person. Sometimes we gain new insights from learning new things from those