Dear Friends,

I wear blue jeans when I visit people in the hospital. Actually, I wear blue jeans almost every day to work. It usually doesn’t matter what my calendar may have me doing. I haven't always done this. I used to get spiffed up in the morning, putting on a dress or suit. I even wore a clergy collar to silently make a statement. I wore a collar for meetings (so that people would remember who I was!), nursing home visits, and hospital visits (no, I'm not her granddaughter!!!! I am her pastor!).  I wore my collar on planes and trains, and respect seemed to ooze out of the people who noticed.

One day, several years ago, I had to go to the hospital to visit an elderly woman who was in Intensive Care. She was diagnosed with heart and lung disease and, given her age, it was the doctor's belief that she wasn't long for this world. I got dressed. Black skirt, nylons and shoes. Black clergy blouse with shockingly white clergy collar to finish the outfit. I topped it off with a black cardigan (because I'm always cold in hospitals). When I walked into her room, her son and daughter-in-law were sitting by her bedside. Things looked grim. Her eyes were closed. After I greeted her family she woke up, took one look at me, and said, "Who are you, the Angel of Death?" I don't wear black to hospitals anymore.

 Some pastors these days wear blue jeans and sandals in the pulpit so that they appear to be more "down to earth" and "more available" to their parishioners. They seem like "regular folk" or, "your best bud".  That's not why I wear blue jeans. I wear blue jeans because they are comfortable and they are hanging over the arm of the chair in our bedroom (which I suspect drives my husband out of his neat-nick mind) which makes them easily accessible. I wore blue jeans under my robe to do Adon and Laura Staebler's wedding underneath the Rose Window, I hope they didn't mind. I have worn my blue jeans to the courthouse to sit in on a case. I have worn my blue jeans into the home of Ken and Fran Runciman who always look like a million bucks - each. Maybe I have worn my blue jeans to your house for some reason or another.

 Last Saturday Doug and I got up early and made the two hour drive over to Byron Center to visit Doug's dad. He lives on a farm and he was having "Plow Days" with all of his farming buddies. We wore blue jeans because what else would you wear to "Plow Days"? The Grau/Benedict wedding was later that afternoon, so we headed back to Chelsea and I put on my Sunday dress, grabbed my robe and headed to the church in Manchester. But following the wedding we were expected at a black tie event in Brighton. I got home from Manchester, took the short dress off, put the long dress on and off we went. It was quite the fashion Saturday!  

Here's the deal, I'll dress up (and behave properly) when it's necessary. But I don't think that what I wear will make you think I care any more or less about you.  I hope you know that what I bring to you on the best and worst days of your lives is love - faithful, true and abiding love.

 "As God's chosen ones, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness and patience...above all, clothe yourselves with love which binds everything together in perfect harmony." The Apostle Paul in Colossians 3  

 Paul knew what he was saying. He was writing to people who were trying to figure out how to be a church. People of all different social, intellectual, and theological levels. They were at risk because there was the rival teaching of Gnosticism being brought into the new congregation. Simplified, this would be a dualism between the spiritual world and the physical world. This was leading people to either live in extreme self-denial and self abuse, or the opposite, a life of complete debauchery because the physical life was so separated from the spiritual. The false teachers of Gnosticism did a whole lot of talking, not a whole lot of doing. The intellect was held up as a most prized possession.

 Paul was basically saying, “You can have all the brains in the world, but if you don’t understand the true prize – a selfless, other-focused, love, then you’re nothing.” He was using the imagery of donning clothing because of its practical nature. Everyone gets dressed and in that same fashion we must “put on” compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, and most of all love. If the spiritual clothes being worn are intellectualism, elitism, sarcasm, judgment, and condescension, just think how unattractive we all would be. Being the church means getting dressed in the spiritual clothes that bring harmony and understanding. Spiritual clothes can be harder to wear some days than others. But it is the wardrobe Paul has set out for us. Maybe having the words on our bathroom mirror would help us get dressed in the morning!  

I promise that I will wear the outfit that the Apostle Paul sets out for all of us in these verses. I may not have make-up on and my hair might be in a ponytail and I'll almost certainly be in blue jeans. Strangers may look at me and wonder why I'm walking into your hospital room - but I'll be dressed in beautiful "clothes" they just can't see.

 Last week I visited Doris Sannes at St. Joe's. Her daughter and granddaughter were both there with her. Her heart is feeling it's age. When the doctor came in he introduced himself. "And who are these people?" he asked. "I'm Kathryn," her daughter replied. "And these two must be your granddaughters," he continued looking at her granddaughter and me. Doris began explaining...

 I just smiled and crossed my blue-jeaned legs.

 Grace and joy,

Pastor Barb