High (Priest) Jinx

A Good Friday Paucity

It happens so often that once-upon-a-time I kept a log of the phenomenon. The little pad of paper listed each instance when a word confluence occurs: when the words falling under my eyes jinx with what emanates from the radio/CD player. The silly hope was that some really cryptic message would appear; an extra-biblical word from God or something, because it would happen all the time, and even multiple times a day.

I tossed it in the trash last year after finding it long forgotten in a drawer. Just a bunch of dates and notes on the time of day, which word, who said it and what I was reading... No, the entries did not seem to spell out any urgent sense of meaning.  How just like my dad to feel singled out by God for some serious, urgent MESSAGE. "Be-- sure-- to -- drin---k -yo--our-- O-- VA--L--TINE!"

I confessed this silly need for attention, and confessed the immaturity as the Emergent Church type of sin that it is... I figured if God wants to jinx people, He'll do it while they're reading scripture, not listening to NPR.

But earlier this month, an unprecedented (jinx: Silvia Poggoili just said unprecedented in a story on Good Friday celebrations... no kidding! OOOH!) such coincidence did take my breath away recently. And there I went again, scribbling down the event, date and time and all. I was searching non profit websites wondering where to pay a tithe on $$ from my Mum. As I scrolled down a Living Well Medical Clinic blog [dated 12/28/09, posted 11:48PM!], my eyes stopped at some indented scripture:

             For we do not have a high priest who is 

unable to empathize with our 

weaknesses, but we have one who 

has been tempted in every way, 

just as we are —yet he did not sin. ¹⁶ 

Let us then approach God’s 

throne of grace with confidence, 

so that we may receive mercy 

and find 

grace to help us 

in our time of need

(Hebrews 4:15-16)

Well. There on my radio was Mr. Chas Stanley doing what he does so well, practically yelling in that emphatic, scolding way of his, reciting the exact passage, word for word, same translation, at the same instance and in the same cadence.  Like a slap in the face jolts and stings and turns your head, I had no choice but to take notice of this Word Incarnate begging me to listen. And what was my first thought in response? I am ashamed to say. I wished this word had come from anyone BUT Charles Stanley, my least favorite radio teacher.  Ewwww... I sense the LORD here, taking my critical spirit to task. (--BUT, I say back to Him,  how many needy folk did YOU long to lambast, tempted in every way as you were?!  And, well now, you did call the Pharisees a few names, so name calling is warranted, because you were WITHOUT SIN! I doubt, however, any pharisee reminded Jesus of his dad. In my mind, Stanley and JGM (dad) are so alike in their brassy, demanding overtones. Unlike, I hope, St. Joseph.)

Well, I see a call to pray. To deny self-abasement. To trust Grace. To win confidence by rejecting fear. To recognize The High Priest as my Good Friday LORD, Saviour, Healer, Friend. (AND...to honor your father more?)


Good Friday. Good Saviour. Good Healer. Good Friend. (Good Father!)

Oh, and. It was April 4, 2011. 9:48 AM.  Just so you know.