Reflection for December 1, 2014

"Martha said to Jesus, 'Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.'"(John 11:21)

If.  Pretty potent word for just two letters.  I usually say or hear if from a place of regret.  It also is usually followed by the word only.  If only I had been there, If only I had more time.  If only......

If rarely leads to action, it often leads to reflection.

Martha says this to Jesus because she'd seen him heal others and why should her sick brother not have been one of those healed?  Thanks for showing up now, a couple of days earlier really would have been great.  Then I wouldn't be mourning a loss.

We know from the rest of the chapter that something great did occur, just not what she'd expected.

But what do we expect when we say if?  Do we believe that something remarkable might happen, or is it just a way of coping with frustration when things don't go the way we'd hoped?  The word if can also be used as a bargaining chip, the old if-then of logic.  If you do x then I'll do y.

There is a part of me that would like to avoid using the word if.  But what word really suffices when you're feeling that frustrated or lost.

Blessings,
Ed