From the UCC Network - Devotional 9/13 "Falling"

Falling

Excerpt from Psalm 73

“But as for me, my foot had almost slipped, I had lost my foothold.”

Reflection by Donna Schaper

Lots of people are afraid of falling—and they aren’t all old or frail.  A wise physical therapist told me that we should be less afraid of falling than we are of not being able to catch ourselves when we fall.  I have watched my 85-year-old mother climb stairs.  She knows how to catch herself—and she catches herself so well that she doesn’t fall.  Catching has to do with muscles and alertness and practice and foresight, as in scanning the whole route ahead of you before you step.

Falling is a serious physical matter, attending to human fragility, muscle development, that wonderful word, “balance.”  It is also a spiritual matter and may be something that concerns the young as well as the old.  It is way too easy for a kid to fall in with the wrong crowd.

Spiritual balance involves attention to the communities who might catch us if we start to fall. It has to do with having friends or parents who will notify you when you are off the path or in a dangerous pattern.  It has to do with strengthening our core muscles of nation, congregation, and family in such a way that we keep an eye out for each other—and don’t relegate the frail to social insecurity.  And it has to do with catching each other, lest when we trip, nobody is there to break our fall.

Prayer
O God, stumblers and bumblers we are, each and all.  Hold us when we fall.  Amen.

About the Author Donna Schaper is the Senior Minister of Judson Memorial Church in New York City.  Her most recent book is Sacred Chow: a Guide to Holy Eating.