Lean on me, when you’re not strong
Lean on Me – Bill Withers
And I’ll be your friend
I’ll help you carry on
For it won’t be long
‘Til I’m gonna need
Somebody to lean on
Last week, this world lost a great singer/songwriter, Bill Withers. Just about everyone can sing the above refrain from heart. And if by chance, you learned of Bill Withers for the first time last week, it was through heart-wrenching montages of our healthcare workers on the evening news set to the sounds of Lean on Me.
In the midst of the pandemic pandemonium, we all find ourselves needing someone to lean on.
When we all find ourselves wobbly and unsteady – where are we to lean?
Lean on Me is so much more than the timeless lyrics of a rock-n-roll ballad. The nuggets of wisdom nestled in the song’s lines provide real guidance for not only dealing with our current physical isolation – but more importantly the emotional and spiritual isolation that often plagues our lives.
While Bill Withers may have had a way of putting it simply and succinctly, he isn’t the first to suggest leaning on one another as the way to weather life’s storms.
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor;
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
If either of them falls down, one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
Also, if two lie together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
That is a circle that should not be broken.
- God comforts us;
- We comfort others;
- Others lean to God for additional comfort;
- Others turn and comfort us;
- We turn to God;
- God comforts us.
Like a water cycle, God is the never-ending supply of comfort raining it down upon us and we are filled. Yet, when we become “over”-filled, we are called to act more like clouds raining God’s comfort upon our neighbor’s fields. We become conduits allowing God’s comfort and love to flood through us when emotional, spiritual, or physical drought threaten the landscapes of neighboring lives. And they the same when our own fields become dusty.
That system works great – except when the land is dehydrated as far as the eye can see. What then? Where are we to lean when everyone suffers from wobbly knees?
Imagine Springtime in the Middle East. The evenings cool particularly under the shadows of a grove of olive trees. The picture of a world blooming stands in stark contrast to the arid inner turmoil taking hold of a man – Jesus.
On a Friday over two thousand years ago, Jesus fell to his wobbly knees in the Garden of Gesthemane. Two are better than one, but Jesus’ friends were in their own despair. Jesus had no where to lean. In a matter of hours, a close friend was to betray him for nothing more than a few measly ounces of silver. Not only would his friends not come to his defense, they would deny even knowing him.
Jesus knew in this moment that he could not lean on his friends. He couldn’t even count on them to stay awake and keep watch as he prayed. They were missing it. And “it” is the key for enduring and thriving in this world.
When everyone around him was tilling dry soil, Jesus turned to his Father. Jesus leaned on the one who could never fail him. Jesus held on to the Strand that could never fray, much less break.
When Ecclesiastes speaks of a three-stranded cord – God is the essential strand that binds us all together. The strength of His bind protects us from becoming broken.
Jesus knew this. He humbled himself in the Garden turning to the Father for strength and comfort. Even though the Father’s will did not release Jesus from his calling – Jesus was reassured that he was not alone.
When we turn to the Father, we may not always get the answers that we want in the time that we want. Yet, we will always be comforted and reassured. Though Covid-19 may not disappear overnight, let us never doubt that we are never alone. We always have a place to lean. This was true two thousand years ago and it’s true today.
Scan the current landscape closely. The Desert of Social Distance is dotted with lush oases. While talking heads squawk of statistics and predictions of pandemic peaks, the evidence of God’s reassuring presence broadcasts from every corner of the globe:
- Neighbors are helping those around them to be sure that they are fed.
- Strangers are providing meals for those on the front line of fighting this virus.
- An army of seamstresses are making masks and other supplies for healthcare workers in need of equipment and/or ways to stretch the usefulness of the equipment that they have.
- All across the world, citizens are finding ways to sing from their balconies or to line up in a procession of cars to celebrate shift changes at hospitals.
- Individuals and corporations are flocking to the internet to provide free services such as daily work-outs, healthy cooking tips, or a listening ear so that isolation doesn’t feel so isolated.
- Teachers are showing up outside their students’ windows with whiteboards to explain concepts that can’t be grasped from just a video lesson.
- High school seniors producing a video journal as a gift to their underclassman friends.
- Teens making grocery trips for elderly neighbors to protect them from undue exposure to the virus.
- The Earth is “healing” – the water in the Venice canals and other areas is clearing; the hole in the ozone is shrinking; the Himalayan mountains are visible from a distance.
- Church services are streaming LIVE on social media!
This is just the tip of the lean-on-me iceberg. It’s just the little bit that we can see. I don’t know about you, but I can’t help be to get a lump in my throat and a well of tears when I hear of these inspiring stories or see the video montages set to Lean on Me or Amazing Grace. My heart fills with hope.
We are not merely witnessing history. We are witnessing an historical outpouring of God’s grace – the Grace that inspires perseverance, which produces character and in character we find HOPE!
And that, my friends, is something we can all lean on!
Dear Father, times are tough and feel like they are getting tougher. Thank you for not giving up on us. Thank you for being our reassurance when isolation threatens to suffocate. Thank you for being our strength when fear crowds our faith. Thank you for standing tall and sturdy as a firm foundation when our knees and hearts are weak. Thank you for propping us up when despair bullies us into doubting whether we have the courage to be there for our brothers. This we pray through your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen!
SDG
RIP, Bill Withers (1938-2020) – May you forever bask in the glory of heaven, where the Son always shines.
