Southwest Community Church
August 16, 2026

      • Psalm 65NRSVUE

  • This Is Amazing Grace
  • Trust In You

      • Isaiah 43:1–2NRSVUE

      • 2 Corinthians 4:7–10NRSVUE

  • Slow Down (part 2)

    Readings

    From the Old Testament
    Isaiah 43:1–2 NRSVue
    1 But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.
    And from the New Testament, Paul writing to the church at Corinth:
    2 Corinthians 4:7–10 NRSVue
    7 But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us. 8 We are afflicted in every way but not crushed, perplexed but not driven to despair, 9 persecuted but not forsaken, struck down but not destroyed, 10 always carrying around in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies.
    This is the word of the Lord.
    Thanks be to God.

    Intro

    The Cut story:
    One day, when I lived in North Vancouver, I was returning home from spending some time out in West Van. And, if you know that stretch of the Trans Canada Highway, it’s a 2 km stretch between Lynn Valley and Mountain Highway. It’s a pretty steep hill… so you’ll test your car engine on the way up and your brakes on the way down. It’s a pretty common spot for a fender bender or just merging volume that will slow things down.
    But one particular day, I noticed it slowing as I got to the Lonsdale exit… didn’t really think twice about it. Continued on and as I passed the Lynn Valley exit, I thought, “Wow. This is really slow and even… stopping.” I was about 100 m past the on ramp to the highway from Lynn Valley… so. Committed to going “down the cut” to wherever my final destination was. Traffic did indeed slow. And then came to an absolute standstill.
    We sat in our cars. Tuned into local am traffic radio wondering what was going on. And then, bit by bit, we settled into a new reality. We turned off our cars. People even started to get out and go for a stroll. Talking to the car in front or behind. Passing along the news as we started to learn what was going on.
    There had been an accident. (Which again, is not that unexpected.) But this one had blocked all three lanes. We were going to be here for awhile.
    This is the experience that I have been thinking about this week.
    The inconvenience of something stopping us with our consent.
    The frustration. The fear. The need to cancel things and communicate with the people or the jobs that were waiting for us when we arrived wherever it was we were going.
    The inner experience of annoyance, fear, frustration, uncertainty. And often, disbelief.
    I don’t remember now where I was headed, but I don’t remember missing anything un-reschedule-able. But there was the pain of helplessness and lack of information. The pain of not being in control.
    And, of course, there was also the acceptance that I was stuck here and was not going to be able to anything to change it. I did have control over HOW I would spend whatever time I was there for. And I can tell you that I did meet some lovely people - there was a whole meet and greet happening on that hillside as we ventured out of our cars, checked in on anyone who looked particularly anxious or in trouble. Let people use our phones to call friends and family. Commiserated over the situation. And I can tell you, I almost always had a book with me in those days and somehow that day, I hadn’t put one in my bag. Something I regretted deeply!
    This is a visceral memory of being stopped - not of choosing to stop or to slow my pace. But of being stopped in my tracks.
    Humans need to slow down sometimes.
    Last week, we saw how God demonstrates this in the second creation narrative. Does six days of creative, generative work and then rests. Later, when telling the humans how they can best live - reflecting both how they’ve been made and how life will work best, God reminds them that working 7 days a week will not be how they function best. They will need to choose to stop - and God suggests that one day in seven is a good pattern.
    Humans need to slow down sometimes.
    But humans also get stopped in their tracks by life sometimes. We slow down, not out of choice, but out of necessity. We receive terrible news. We age and thus sometimes get slowed down without ever consenting to the changes we’re experiencing. We struggle with pain - either physical or psychological/emotional that renders us unable to do what we once took for granted.
    aging
    circumstances/tragedy/crisis
    illness
    As humans we need to slow down. And we do. Sometimes by choice. And sometimes in a more forced way.
    [share stories?]
    My sabbatical experiences of being stopped or slowed:
    flight cancellation Calgary-Paris… this long planned, long awaited trip had just gotten started and then all of a sudden, it felt STOPPED. And the flurry of plan B just about stopped us in a second way. ;)
    physical pain (achilles) - slowed me down!
    wheel bearing - had to drive slow. Anything above 60 was dangerous. No highway driving. No speeding.
    grief - time and space to process - and even to take stock of the things I was processing
    When everything grinds to a halt… there are two truths that are foundational.
    God is present. (Psalm 34:18, Isaiah 43:1-2) (don’t read texts yet)
    This slowing down or sudden stopping isn’t a sign of God’s absence. Even in this, God is present.
    Present pain does not have the final word. (Romans 8:18, Revelation 21:4)
    The hard thing is not the last thing.
    God is present.
    Psalm 34:18 NRSVue
    18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.
    Isaiah 43:1–2 NRSVue
    1 But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.
    We read a verse like Isaiah 43 nd we look for a way OUT. But God seems to be telling Isaiah here… it’s not IF you pass through the water, IF you walk through fire… it’s WHEN.
    And WHEN we experience the pain of slowing down in ways we have not chosen, we affirm that God is still present. Even there. Even here.
    Present pain speaks. And sometimes very loudly. But it does not have the final word. The hard thing is NOT the last thing.
    We see this when Paul writes to the church in Rome…
    Romans 8:18 NRSVue
    18 I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us.
    Present pain doesn’t have the last word.
    And of course, the images painted for us in Revelation 21 remind us of what are first things and what are last things… speaking of Jesus’ promise to make all things new Rev 21:4 reads…
    Revelation 21:4 NRSVue
    4 he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.”
    Martin Luther -
    Verse 1
    A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing; our helper he, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing. For still our ancient foe does seek to work us woe; his craft and power are great, and armed with cruel hate, on earth is not his equal.
    Verse 3 begins
    And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us, we will not fear, for God has willed his truth to triumph through us.
    Verse 4 ends:
    Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also; the body they may kill: God's truth abideth still; his kingdom is forever!
    These ideas are also in the texts Judy read for us…
    When we are stopped,
    2 Corinthians 4:7–10 NRSVue
    We are afflicted in every way but not crushed, perplexed but not driven to despair, 9 persecuted but not forsaken, struck down but not destroyed,
    Temptation is to “skip to the good part” …
    We are not crushed, not driven to despair, not forsaken, not destroyed
    And while this is true… we can quickly morph from “this is hard, but we’re making it through” to “I’m okay. Everything is okay. There is nothing wrong here. All okay.”
    Sarah Bessey posted this this week… and I had to chuckle.
    I think what happens, to many of us anyway, is that we want to skip over the whole truth…
    We are afflicted in every way, perplexed, persecuted, struck down
    And, if we are unwilling to admit that the first part of these pairs is true, I don’t see how the second half can be true… they go together!
    afflicted in every way BUT not crushed
    ++perplexed BUT not driven to despair
    ++persecuted BUT not forsaken
    ++struck down but not destroyed
    There is a tension here. There is no need to be “not crushed” or “not driven to despair” unless we are afflicted or perplexed. If we’re all okay. Everything is okay.
    When we are stopped, I think there are at least three common reactions/responses that are typical (or at least they’re typical for me):
    Rest must be earned. Better keep at it.
    INSTEAD: Slowing down is a feature, not a flaw. (See last week re: sabbath as built into the system)
    Pushing through is necessary, or even admirable. No one will value you if you don’t produce. No one will love you if you don’t demonstrate your usefulness, adding value, etc.
    INSTEAD: You can rest. It’s okay.
    How is God present even as I admit that I’m exhausted… coffee cup held at arms length.
    Porch chair as part of my image -
    photos from Gordon
    Independence is the goal. And when overemphasized, an idol.
    INSTEAD: asking for help, admitting my need or the reality of my situation, invites interdependence and even COMMUNITY
    For me, this looked like naming that I was not having the time and space to process some of my grief. My Mom died in September last year and I discovered what so many of you have experienced, which is that one grief is often connected to other losses. So, I had no special compartment for “Mom grief” … and every time I experienced a thread of grief being pulled, I discovered it was attached to a whole jumble of other threads.
    Dad
    Auntie Arlie
    relational defecits and defects within the wider Buhler family AND my love for these dear people, sometimes not always able to be expressed in the ways I’d like it to be
    etc.
    Spiritual direction/spiritual friendship - clergy women’s group (Dwell) that has been really important to me over the past several years.
    Friendships within the congregation. I missed you! And that was a really good thing. Required the disentangling. Because even though I really love being your pastor, it’s hard to know if I’m ever fully “off duty” if I’m hanging out with you all. But I’m willing to risk the messiness of that.
    When everything grinds to a halt… there are two truths that are foundational.
    God is present.
    This slowing down or sudden stopping isn’t a sign of God’s absence. Even in this, God is present.
    Present pain does not have the final word. (Romans 8:18, Revelation 21:4)
    The hard thing is not the last thing.
    Slowing down is a feature, not a flaw.
    You can rest. It’s okay.
    Asking for help, admitting my need or the reality of my situation, invites interdependence and even COMMUNITY
    So, where does this intersect with your life, your story?

      • Isaiah 43:1–2NRSVUE

      • 2 Corinthians 4:7–10NRSVUE

      • Psalm 34:18NRSVUE

      • Isaiah 43:1–2NRSVUE

      • Romans 8:18NRSVUE

      • Revelation 21:4NRSVUE

      • 2 Corinthians 4:7–10NRSVUE

  • The Lord Our God Is Good
Southwest Community Church
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