What Can I Do?

             “What Can I Do?”             

A meditation delivered electronically by Rev. Dr. Randy K. Hammer - May 10, 2020

Matthew 15:21-28 CEB

There aren’t that many stories in the Bible that jump out at you as being warm, fuzzy stories appropriate for a Mother’s Day meditation.  And after being in the same pulpit for twelve years, as I have been, you soon exhaust those warm, fuzzy Mother’s Day passages.

But Matthew’s story of the desperate mother seeking to do whatever she could to get help for her daughter seemed appropriate for today, especially in light of current circumstances.

Both Matthew and Mark relate that the daughter had a demon or evil spirit. At that time, having a demon or evil spirit was a broad description for a variety of issues that easily could be diagnosed and possibly treated today.  So we don’t really know what the daughter’s illness or condition was.  None of the Biblical commentators I consulted ventured to speculate what the daughter’s natural condition might have been.  But such is really beside the point for today’s purposes anyway.

The chief point is, the distraught mother went to great lengths to seek whatever help she could get for the daughter she so loved. As a Gentile woman, the barriers she sought to cross were nigh impossible: cultural, ethnic, political, economic, and religious barriers stood between her and Jesus and the blessing she sought for her daughter. Even as Jesus and his disciples continued walking down the road, she followed after them making a scene as she cried out, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”  When Jesus stopped, the mother fell down at his feet and humbly begged, “Help me, Sir!” When Jesus told her that his mission was only to the people of Israel, she pressed him further, begging for just a crumb of mercy. Such struck a chord with Jesus; and through her quick wit, mother’s love, and great faith she won Jesus over and he gave her and her daughter his blessing.

In the course of life, many are the occasions when mothers (and fathers) go to great lengths to do what they can for their children, or in many cases grandchildren.  I remember how that one night in the early 1960’s, when I was quite young, a very disturbing story was aired on the evening world news. At least it was disturbing to me, a child of six or seven. The story showed a group of people who had sold or given away all their worldly possessions and had moved into a large cave somewhere in some remote area because it had been revealed to them that on a certain day not too many weeks in the future the world was going to come to end, be destroyed.  Now, today we might pass off such a story as another example of misguided zealots who have been led astray by another cult leader. Such things happen every now and again.  But to a boy of six or seven, this news report was quite disturbing. 

My Mom, I have always believed, realized that the story had upset me, and she sought to do what she could to change the mood of the evening when she said, “How about I make us a batch of chocolate fudge?”  Granted, it was a small thing, but she did what she could under the circumstances.  And it helped.

And then there was the time when I had to be hospitalized for the better part of a week just a couple of weeks before Christmas because of complications from strep throat and scarlet fever. My Mom stayed with me in the hospital around the clock. That’s what Moms often are called upon to do – to do what they can for their children.

Well, changing focus, lately I’ve been feeling a bit guilty as I’ve watched the evening news day after day and seen story after story of how difficult life has become for so many of our country – doctors, nurses, and other medical personnel working tirelessly around the clock to treat and care for the sick; hundreds of cars lined up and waiting for hours in hopes of receiving a box of groceries only to be told, “Sorry, we are out of food.”  Stories of people who can’t pay their bills and have tried calling dozens or hundreds of times to apply for unemployment benefits. People separated from their loved ones who are in hospitals or nursing homes battling the coronavirus.  The depressing news, it seems, never ends.  After awhile, it becomes overwhelming. 

But it has caused me to ask myself, “What can I do?”  “What can I do to help, even in a small way, to respond to the present crisis and meet someone’s need and alleviate at least a little bit of human deprivation and suffering?”  And so, this week I compiled a list of ten things I might do – many of us might do – in response to our current situation:

1.   Say some prayers for those who are battling the coronavirus and for those in medical fields treating them, and for others who are risking their safety to provide needed services.

2.   Continue to observe social distancing, keep 6 feet away from others, for your own good and for theirs.

3.   Wear a mask when you have to go out and be around others, for your safety and for theirs.

4.   If you can sew and have the necessary materials, make cloth masks according to CDC recommendations to be donated to medical personnel, nursing homes, and others who need them most.

5.   If you can’t sew, and not everyone can, then make a financial contribution to those who can and are making masks for others.

6.   Make some phone calls to people who may live alone or have special needs to check on them.

7.   Support a local restaurant by buying one of their gift cards or by ordering take-out or curbside service, and be as generous as you can when you tip the server.

8.   Write some short notes and send some cards in the mail to people who may live alone or may be struggling with isolation.

9.   Make a financial contribution to Second Harvest Food Bank or another organization that is working hard to supply out-of-work families with groceries and put food on their tables or to feed the children who have relied upon schools to feed them.

10.        Use your imagination to come up with some other way to respond to the world’s great need.

These suggestions may seem small in comparison to the problems around us; and in many ways they are small.  But we feel the need to do something.  And the suggestions are things most of us can do. 

Like the Canaanite mother who faced tremendous odds to seek help for her daughter, we face tremendous odds too.  But let us do what we can.  Amen.