The 20^th century psychologist, Carl Jung, coined the word, “synchronicity.” The term refers to “meaningful coincidences” in life. An individual experiences profound significance in seemingly random events.

I wrote a pastoral letter that highlighted Jesus’ words in Matthew 11:28, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” The following Sunday’s anthem planned weeks ahead of time by the music team echoed the same passage. The next week a devotional from another source quoted the verse.

The world might call this happenstance. Christians experience a spiritual synchronicity that sees divine meaning in worldly coincidence. The Holy Spirit wanted to impress Christ’s words upon my heart.

“God-winks” occur on a daily basis for those with eyes to see and ears to hear; but we are a goal-oriented people who have no time to turn aside for burning bushes. The tyranny of the immediate blinds us to theophanies along the way.

Jesus called out to God in John 12:28-29, and the Lord answered. Some said they heard an angel speak. Others said it thundered. The crowd experienced the same event in two radically different ways.

Pay close attention to the coincidences of life. We might just spy the Holy Spirit hovering in the wings.

I gave up Facebook as a spiritual discipline during Lent. Most of us have a love/hate relationship with social media. It displays and promotes the best and worst of people.

I joined Facebook to connect with parishioners, colleagues, and friends. I quickly discovered its addictive nature, unconsciously checking posts in idle moments.

Therefore, I gave up Facebook during Lent. The seven-week hiatus broke my habit of constantly glancing at a phone. It enabled me to be more mindful of the world, enjoying my surroundings rather than staring at screens.

I returned to social media after Easter, but I only check Facebook twice a day. This strikes a healthy balance between connecting with others and wasting time on inane posts. Perhaps others feel the need to set appropriate boundaries, too.  

To misquote Jesus, Facebook was made for people, not people for Facebook. Social media makes a wonderful servant but a terrible master.

April showers bring May flowers.

My mother taught me this couplet in childhood. The meaning seemed obvious even to a little boy. Flowers need rain to grow.

According to the Internet, the source of all factual knowledge, the short poem originated in the 12^th century. Thomas Tusser included the verse in his collected works titled, A Hundred Good Points of Husbandry. I apologize, good reader, but I did not research the other ninety-nine points.

Tusser may have “borrowed” his rhyme from a passage in “The Canterbury Tales.” Chaucer wrote:

When in April the sweet showers fall
That pierce March’s drought to the root and all
And bathed every vein in liquor that has power
To generate therein and sire the flower.

I personally prefer Beverly Burch’s version to Geoffrey Chaucer’s verse!

Others seek deeper meaning in the words. We live in a fallen world where it rains on the just and unjust alike. God uses life’s storms to cultivate spiritual virtues. All sunshine a desert makes. We discover divine blessings grow in the aftermath of earthly torrents.

April showers bring May flowers; but do you know what May flowers bring? The Pilgrims!

May God grant appropriate measures of rain, sunshine, and flowers in our lives.     

I lived beside church cemeteries during my first two pastoral appointments. I often visited the graveyards, pausing to read the monuments. The tombstones inspired me to write my own epitaph, including:

• Gone But Not Forgotten Asleep in the Lord
• Beloved Husband, Father, and Nobel Prize Winner
• I Told You I Was Sick!

Regardless of the words they grave for me, one day I will not be. Even lines etched deep in granite will weather and fade over time; but I will not be forgotten. One will still know me by name. God’s children never perish.

John Donne wrote in this class poem, Death Be Not Proud: “One short sleep past, we wake eternally, and Death shall be no more: Death, thou shalt die.”

The apostle Paul declared in 1 Corinthians 15:55-57: “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!”

We celebrated the good news of the Resurrection on Easter Sunday. No tombstone marks Jesus’ grave. The first disciples discovered an empty tomb. The angelic proclamation echoes in our ears, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen, just as he said!”

Simply inscribe my name and the two customary dates on my gravestone. Place a comma rather than a period after the date of death.

Easter reminds us that death is not THE END but a new beginning for all who trust in the Lord.

Join us this Easter Sunday as we celebrate the good news of the Resurrection! Northside Church is offering five opportunities for worship:

• 8:30                 Traditional Worship               Sanctuary
• 9:00                 Contemporary Worship          Faith & Arts Center
• 9:45                 Traditional Worship               Sanctuary
• 10:30               Contemporary Worship          Faith & Arts Center
• 11:15               Traditional Worship               Sanctuary

The 8:30, 9:00, and 11:15 services will be live-streamed on the church’s website at http://www.northsideumc.org. Easter animals will be present before and after the services.

I look forward to worshipping together as we hear the ancient words that are forever new, “Christ is risen! Christ is risen, indeed!”

• Daydream
• Post on social media
• Count the organ pipes
• Doodle on the bulletins
• Study the stain glass windows
• Draw caricatures of the preacher
• Create a To Do List for next week
• Rank the worst songs in the hymnal
• Determine where to eat Sunday lunch
• Time how long you can hold your breath
• Tally how many times “just” is used in prayers
• Check whether the flag and cross stands are straight
• Furtively play Candy Crush on your muted smart phone
• Critique the preacher’s annoying hand and speech mannerisms

Or . . .

• Be where your feet are and hear God’s Word

Hermann Rorschach published his self-named “Rorschach Ink Blot Test” in 1921 to identify personality characteristics. As an armchair psychologist, I have created the “Bill Burch Bookshelf Test.” It’s easy to take—just list the items on your bookshelves, and let a friend diagnose how messed-up you are!

Here’s a partial list of things you will find on my office bookshelves:

• 18 Bibles
• 15 pictures of family
• 13 Coca-Cola commemorative bottles
• 8 Nativity sets
• 5 ocean polished stones from Iona, Scotland
• 2 Communion patens and chalices
• 1 plug-in, bubbling, Christmas candle
• NCAA baseball from a Georgia Tech foul ball
• Foam bison from a Northside staff retreat—long story!
• Bound collections of “Calvin & Hobbes” and “The Far Side”
• Various cups, including a Dunder Mifflin coffee mug
• Model of Snoopy perched atop his doghouse
• Shadow box with fragments from the Berlin Wall
• Hand painted Easter egg
• Oh, and books!

The test reveals that I am a highly intelligent and gifted person of character who is well balanced in every way with no neuroses or psychoses!

How does your list reveal what’s important to you?

I enjoy hot foods and beverages HOT; and I enjoy cold foods and beverages COLD. Warm and cool have no place on the Bill Burch Temperature Scale. Jesus himself said something about spewing the lukewarm out of his mouth. I am proof texting Revelation 3:16, but the point remains.

I like my black coffee piping hot. I use hot water to pre-warm a mug before pouring the life-giving elixir. The java always reaches the dreaded WARM STAGE before complete consumption.

A coworker visited my office one day with an Ember temperature control mug. The “smart” coffee cup uses an internal battery and heater to regulate temperature. Color me intrigued.

An amazon.com visit caused sticker shock. $150 for the mug, accessories, shipping, and taxes left me cold. I explored lesser priced options before settling on the Nextmug. It included all the bells and whistles for a price in the double digits.

The mug sits on a charging station with three temperature settings: WARM (see above), HOT (Goldilocks’ “just right”), or PIPING HOT (prepare to sue McDonalds). It keeps the liquid at the desired temperature for at least an hour, which more than suits my needs.  

I recognize that self-regulating coffee mugs rank midway on a list of first-world conveniences, but a hot cup of joe provides one of life’s minor joys. A social influencer would provide a product hyperlink to generate advertising revenue. This exceeds my IT capabilities, so consider this to be a Public Service Announcement for hot-coffee lovers everywhere.  

I saw a sign on Highway 11 near Covington, Georgia. The handmade placard declared, “IT’S ALL GOING TO BE ALRIGHT.” I contemplated the message while traveling 55 mph eastbound.  

The author referenced “ALL.” The global statement encompassed every contingency, both individual and corporate, with no qualifications. Whatever we face, it’s but a part of the greater human experience.

The future-tense “GOING TO BE” recognized that “ALL” is not “ALRIGHT” here and now. Rain falls on the just and unjust in a fallen world. No one escapes without an unfair share of bumps, bruises, scars, and stiches.

I wondered what “ALRIGHT” looked like from the person’s worldview. Perhaps s/he espoused a Pollyanna optimism that somehow everything works out. Maybe the sentiment expressed a theological certainty of divine deliverance in this world and the next.

Scripture testifies that the Lord is the Alpha and Omega, forming the bookends of existence. Nothing occurs outside the context of God’s mercy, grace, and love. Frederick Buechner noted, “Resurrection means the worst thing is never the last thing.”

Remember: “IT’S ALL GOING TO BE ALRIGHT.”

Clergy are religious professionals. The church sets apart ordained ministers for specialized ministry. Our job description includes worship, Bible study, prayer, and service. We get paid to do the very things God calls Christians to do.

If pastors are not careful, then church work can become a job rather than a vocation, a career rather than a calling. Temptation constantly beckons:

• To worship rather than worship
• To lead prayer rather than pray
• To practice sermon preparation rather than spiritual devotions
• To prepare Bible study rather than study the Bible
• To chair committees rather than provide leadership
• To attend meetings rather than perform ministry
• To preach sermons rather than practice what we preach.

Laity face the same temptation. We can all act like professional Christians. Temptation constantly beckons us:

• To go through the motions rather than experience the emotions
• To keep the letter of the law rather than the spirit
• To do church work rather than be the church.
• To offer the minimum amount required rather than the maximum effort necessary.

Do we possess a “HAVE TO,” “OUGHT TO,” or “GET TO” attitude about our faith? Choose carefully because the response shapes our entire relationship with God.