Christ in the Chaos

All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. – Romans 8:22 (MSG) 

My daughter and I have a longstanding tradition of cutting down our own Christmas tree, and drinking homemade cocoa on the tailgate right afterward to celebrate our lumberjack skills.  

One year we went on a hike beforehand and came back to a smashed car window, a stolen electric saw, and a spectacular amount of broken glass all over the car seats. We drove to the tree farm and met my sister and her 4-year-old. We wrestled the 6-inches-too-long tree into the car amidst the sparkling glass, and toasted our mixed morning.  

Then the 4-year-old splattered a tsunami of cocoa all over himself, the tree, the glass, the ground. He looked down. He looked up. He looked at us, paused a beat, and said loudly: “It’s all right. It’s just a mess.” 

My nephew’s prophetic pronouncement has become my mantra. With every fresh setback in my life, I hear his little voice. Every time I am tempted to give in to despair or fury, I hear his little voice.  

“It’s just a mess” isn’t meant to dismiss the complexity and horror of what is happening in our wounded world. It’s not an encouragement to hide our heads in the sand and ignore the suffering and systemic change that needs our attention. After all, you can drive around with a missing car window for a few days, but that broken glass is going to hurt someone eventually if you don’t clean it up.  

But acknowledging that something is a mess, and somehow it’s all right, can help us stay engaged when we feel overwhelmed and want to check out. It’s an entreaty to keep our hearts soft and open, to avoid assigning blame, lashing out or shutting down. To see the mess for what it is: a temporary setback, or even, a portal to birth. 

Advent reminds us we worship a God who isn’t afraid of a little chaos. Contractions, wrenching pain, pungent blood and placenta, squalling squished infant savior. These are how the world gets remade.  

Prayer
May this mess we are in be the last of the birth pangs, Mother God. Amen.

About the Author
Rev. Molly Baskette is the lead pastor of First Church Berkeley UCC and the author of books about church renewal, parenting, spiritual growth and more. Sign up for her author newsletter or get information about her newest book at mollybaskette.com.