Thought for Today
Genesis 11:4 Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens . . .
2 Samuel 7:11 . . . the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house.
Mark 6:3 “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?"
Matthew 11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
Confession: I am not very handy! Over the years, the simple economics of being married and raising a family necessitated that I develop some skills in maintaining, mending and repairing things around our homes. I am much more skilled at such minor things than was my own father (and, thankfully, than was Greta’s father); but, I am not very handy. I did learn to change the oil in our cars, lubricate the joints, do minor tune-ups; but, unlike most of the other husbands of Greta’s friends, my ‘go to’ response to most things automobile related was, “Take it to the mechanic.” To this day, Greta still doesn’t like to hear, “I’m a mechanical engineer, not a mechanic.” I am not very handy.
My (very) rudimentary skills were much on my mind this morning, as I was faced with a minor repair job around the house. Nothing major, but a needed job I have been delaying for some time became ‘critical’ this morning. So, after my first cup of coffee (first things first!), I got my screwdrivers (Phillips and hex) and other tools and set to making the needed repair. Not unexpectedly, the job called for epoxy glue, and our only tube had solidified, so the job is only partially done until I can get to the store.
Most long-married couples of our generation have settled into some pattern of division-of-work in their household. Until late in the 19th century, there had been little change in the gender assignments of division-of-work since our earliest ancestors came down out of the trees and evolved into hunter/gatherer societies. Men hunted the saber-toothed tigers and mastodons, women swept the cave and nurtured the children. Men made the big decisions, handled money and property, women ‘merely’ trained the future leaders, thinkers and doers of society. Men made war, women inculcated the values of civilization and perpetuated the accumulated knowledge.
Thankfully, times have changed (are changing?). Most careers and endeavors are now open to everyone, irrespective of gender. We no longer waste a large percentage of our talent and ability through a poor alignment of that talent with interest and ability. Greta and I learned early in our marriage that most chores can and should be equally shared. On many things, we did deliberately choose traditional roles, so, this morning, I initiated this particular repair. On some things, however, we have been more innovative. Greta took the cooking and shopping for the first 40 years of our marriage. My mother had taught me how to cook when I was young; however, so upon retirement, I offered to take on the cooking and shopping for the next 40 years of our marriage (Yes, she immediately accepted the offer!) After that span, we agreed we will just get takeout.
We don’t know much about Joseph, Jesus’ earthly father. We know that Joseph was a part of Jesus’ life until at least Jesus’ 12th year. Presumably, Jesus had spent much time in Joseph’s carpentry shop. Was Jesus handy in making repairs? Was Andrew, Peter, James of John? Was some other of the 12 the designated ‘go-to’ for fixing things?
Jesus did not accidently or carelessly make reference to yokes in those words from Matthew’s gospel. In an agrarian society, a lightweight yoke that would not chafe or bind the one pulling the plow would be of great value.
Was Jesus literally telling us we need to put yokes around our necks? Obviously not. Even if one does live on a farm today in the U.S.A., most of the plowing would be done by a tractor. For those of us whose families have lived in cities for generations, it is quite likely we have only seen yokes in antique stores or picture books.
But, even if we are not handy, we can understand the implication that our faith does not tax us with complicated rules and regulations, does not burden us with impossible, unattainable goals. Our “yoke is easy, and” our “burden is light”. All we are called to do is to love, to love God and to love each other . . . even those of us who are not handy.
Stay safe, live lives of love, trust God,
Pastor Ray