Encountering Paradox Upon the Eve of My Retirement

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One week before my retirement, I tripped and fell down the steps of the local newspaper where I had completed an interview about my retiring from 42 years of church ministry. This resulted in the breaking of my left ankle, and led to 3 surgeries the first of which was on June 28th and the third surgery on the Friday following Labor Day. Walking with many people through difficult times in their lives, the one question that never gets answered is the question, "Why?" Having had some serious health issues in my life, I have, as I did this past June, utter a cynical, "Really?!!" However, my fall back question is usually, "What am I to learn from this?" A question whose answer is gradually revealed over time.

God of changing changelessness. God of endless surprises, confounding the confoundless. You are the God of Paradox, revealing to children, that, which you hide from the learned. Those mortals you touch, utterly transformed, Divinely refereeing matches between angelic wrestlers and mere mortals, Jacob becoming the limping Israel, Moses’ staff raining down plague, terrorizing those who terrorized, the vanquished becoming vanquishers. The angel adorned ark, the secret weapon of your Covenant, the enslaved now the rulers. Shepherd royalty, blossoming deserts, lions at peace with the lambs, children playing with cobras, Angelic announcements a Virgin conception of the God/Human who serves but refuses to be served, creation murdering the Creator, the Dead not remaining dead. Divinely bestowed paradox, abundantly planted in history, who am I to question You about a broken left ankle on the Eve of my retirement? (c) 2019, Robert Charles Wagner. All rights reserved.

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