March 2008

A Bath and a Meal

(I wrote this story years ago as a newsletter but never got to put it on the website. After coming across it in my files, I thought it would be a good one for March. Enjoy!)

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God gave me the idea as I drove to school last Monday morning. By the time I arrived at the seminary where I am studying for my masters, a grin stretched across my face. Skipping up the stairs to my teaching class, I was thinking of the next Thursday morning when I would be giving the devotional for my Christian History class. As of that morning, I had not a clue what I was going to do. At George Fox Evangelical Seminary, devotions could be anything the students or teachers dreamt up, with God’s help. They could consist of a student giving a message, a Christian rock video, singing, reading out of ancient Christian literature, and a multimedia presentation of pictures around the world set to music with the last picture of everyone in the class around a candle. So you can see the sky was the limit for me.

The idea God gave me centered on a passage I had read several weeks ago in one of my books for school. It had been a piece to a puzzle I had been trying to put together in my heart as to the meaning of communion. I don’t believe it is the actual body and blood of Christ as the Catholics do, and I don’t believe it is both a symbol and the body and the blood at the same time as the Lutherans do. I think as a great reformer named Zwingli did, that the bread and wine are symbolic only and used to remind us that Christ is a part of us, and that we must make a conscience choice to follow him every day just as we consciously choose to eat the bread and drink the wine. But what did Jesus originally mean for us to do when he gave the first communion? I still don’t know but I really liked what this one book said about it. “Is it not interesting that the two sacraments consist of a bath and a meal?” I know when I get back from camping for the weekend with the historical reenactment group I am a part of, taking a shower and eating a home cooked meal makes all the difference in helping me to feel renewed and refreshed. So is it not intriguing that the two sacraments consist of the two things that give the traveler strength to continue the journey? Psalm 41:3 says “The Lord nurses them when they are sick and eases their pain and discomfort.” How do you nurse the sick? By keeping them clean and giving them nourishment. The sacraments are one of God’s ways of taking care of us.

Now if you could see my friends and I at school, you would know we need some tender loving care from God. Midterms are here in full force, students are leaving the library with stacks of books to read for all those term papers we have to write, projects are being worked on, and the load is weighty. Many students are in ministry, many have deep concerns about things going on in their lives, and it is now when we are in especially need of the nourishment of God and of each other. Blessedly, God has given us a wonderful community to learn and grow in, friends and professors to lean on, and a purpose we cherish. But sometimes, all times, what we really need is the Holy Spirit to move in us and sometimes he does that through a bath and a meal.

Two weeks ago my friend Lou gave us the bath. He brought in three sets of towels, tubs, and soap for his Christian history devotional, and along with myself and another friend named Sarah, we washed the class’s feet. So God told me what we needed now was the meal. I decided to do it intinction style, which means you break off a piece of bread and dip it in the cup, or in this case, grape juice. I first explained to the class about the idea of a bath and a meal and how since we’ve had the bath, now we were going to have the meal. While the class was going up to take communion, I had a song playing called “Holy Ground”.

When I walked through the doors I sensed his presence.

And I knew this was a place where love abounds.

For this is a temple where God abides.

For we are standing in his presence on Holy Ground.

Let us praise, praise God now, praise him anyhow.

For we are standing in his sweet presence on holy ground.

In his presence I know there is joy beyond all measure

And that at his feet sweet peace of mind can still be found

For when we have a need he is still the answer

Reach out and claim it for we are standing on holy ground.

He helps us in our hour of sorrow; he’s our hope, our hope for tomorrow.

For we are standing on holy ground.

I let everyone go up who wanted to and then I threw in the twist I had been planning. When we take communion at church, each person gets a small piece of bread or cracker, and a small amount of wine or juice and there is always a lot left over. A friend of mine once pointed this out to me and asked why we don’t pass communion around again as God’s grace is everlastingly abundant. I very much liked the idea and so had decided to include it in my devotions. At the appropriate time I went back up to the front of the classroom and shared with the class how God’s grace is abundant, how we each don’t just get a little piece of it, but instead, we should feast upon his passionate grace. As I said this, I pulled out the large bag of bread I had put under the table and opened it wide. The class laughed in delight and came back up, this time taking huge chunks of bread, dunking it in the grape juice, and then taking the food back to their seats to eat in several bites. At that point, I had planned to be finished. Meal done, grace served. Thank you God. But my preaching professor says that if you can make them laugh, you can make them cry.

As we finished communion, I felt directed by God to have the class share prayer requests and praises. Soon a hand was raised and a praise shared. Then another hand with a prayer request, then a third. For a moment I thought that would be all, then two more hands came up, and another. At that point I realized I should be writing these down so I grabbed a dry erase marker and started listing them on the board. By the time we finished, there were twelve prayer requests listed and several students in tears. The damn had been broken and as one student said later, the Holy Spirit was bouncing all around that room. Facades of I am fine were gone and cries of the heart were heard. It was one of those moments when you take a side seat and watch the awesome wonder of God at work. It brought me to my knees. After students volunteered to pray for each other’s prayer requests and praises, we stepped into God’s throne room together and shared with Him our hearts. The prayer went on for a while and as I closed and another prayer was added, you could feel that the emotional tension had been broken and swept away. Struggles were brought out into the open, concerns were shared, and joy was made known.

Jesus says to each of us, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yolk upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30. So come, all of you who are weary with papers and tests. Come, all of you who are heavily burdened with strained relationships, broken dreams, and busy schedules. Come, all of you who are tired of countless demands, lists of things to do and short nights. Come, and take your place with Jesus whose loving touch is gentle, comforting, and kind. Let Him teach you of freedom and of His all consuming grace. Let Him give you life and strength. Come, and let him nurse you, let him give you a bath and cook you a meal. Let him rejuvenate your soul. No matter how you come, just COME.

Sarah Katreen Hoggatt

P.S. As a post-script to the above story, that Christian History class became a very close community for the rest of the year and bonded us together as individuals for the rest of our time at seminary. To this day, that class is remembered by many for the gift it was to us all. Thank you God.

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Ideas I have had so far is to frame and matt them, put them on cards, or make a calendar.

If you have any ideas of ways I could use them, let me know!

Last Updated: 12/30/2011