Was God Delighted?

By John Townsend

They got whopped.

The University of Oregon Ducks put the University of Colorado Buffalos in the hurt locker. Even if you don’t follow college football, it would be hard to miss the news that the University of Colorado, which had one win and eleven losses last season, defeated Texas Christian University, which played for the national championship last season, in its opening game, then won its next two games. But the Ducks put an end to the Buffalo’s winning streak. Big time.

With a grandson who attends Oregon and a sister and brother-in-law who are Colorado alumni, the Oregon – Colorado game turned into a mini-family reunion. I doubt, however, that God was rooting for either side.

There was, nonetheless, a “Christian” presence. The quotes are intentional, as the presence that was there ran counter to my understanding of what it is to be a disciple, of what Christ commanded us to do. It also has caused me to wonder if I, in some way, failed to do that.

Here’s the story.

At the University of Oregon, you pretty much walk to the stadium. We had rented a house a couple of blocks south of the campus. So, we walked through campus, merging into an ever-growing stream of students and fans, crossing the Willamette River, and on to the stadium. It was a gorgeous afternoon for a walk like that.

Just outside the stadium, where three or four “trails” converge, we came upon a small group of folks exercising their right of expression as guaranteed by the First Amendment to the Constitution. They were from the Wellspring Bible Fellowship in Roseburg, Oregon, about 70 miles south of Eugene.

Their large placards contained short declarative statements. To me, anyway, the most startling was that “Christ does not accept you as you are.” Other statements caused me pause, mainly because I thought they were not only incorrect but hurtful. Far from any kind of civil discourse. Far from any kind of loving one’s neighbor.

Immediately after passing by that display, we crossed a small stream where I happened to look over the edge of the bridge. There, sitting on the bank, was a young woman. A student at Oregon, I suppose.

She looked somehow forlorn, and I wondered if those short declarative statements had impacted her. While most people walked on by, more-or-less ignoring the Wellspring folks and their signs, perhaps she had, like me, out of curiosity, read them and had been hurt. And that is where I wonder if I, in some way, failed to “love my neighbor.”

A few months ago, I participated in a Mental Health First Aid training program offered through the Heal the Sick program of Wesley Theological Seminary. Like a first aider’s “ABC,” mental health first aid also has a mnemonic, “ALGEE.” The first three letters stand for Approach (assess and assist), Listen, and Give (reassurance, support).

Although I had pointed out the young woman to my daughter-in-law and had said something about how she looked forlorn, and perhaps she had been impacted by the views expressed by the Wellspring folks, I did not approach her. After all, maybe her date had stood her up. Or she had lost her ticket to the game. But then again, perhaps not – especially given some other clues – and she had, in fact, been hurt, injured, by that “Christian presence.”

So, perhaps I failed to “love my neighbor” by not taking that first step and simply saying (as Lucinda Williams sings), “Are you alright?” “Are you going to be OK?”

If you were at, or “Zoomed in,” to the Annual Conference this year, you might recall that the opening hymn of the opening worship service was “A Place at the Table” (also known as “For Everyone Born”). It was sung with great gusto and joy. *

The whole theme of that hymn runs counter to what I experienced in my “encounter” with the “Christian presence” on the path to Autzen Stadium in Eugene.

The hymn’s refrain goes like this:

And God will delight when we are creators
of justice and joy, compassion and peace:
Yes, God will delight when we are creators
of justice, justice, and joy.

While I am incredibly thankful to live in and be a citizen of a country where we have a right to free expression, as exercised by the folks from Wellspring Bible Fellowship, I cannot help but wonder if, in doing so, they had hurt that young woman I saw. Certainly, reading their signs, I did not find justice, joy, compassion, or peace.

And so, in their “Christian presence,” did God delight?

Does God delight in ours?

*To learn more about the background to “A Place at the Table,” click here.

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John Townsend serves as lay leader for the Inland Missional District in the Pacific Northwest Conference. He also chairs the Conference Committee on Certified Lay Ministries.