Avoiding an Epiphany

I love the season of Epiphany. It means the end of the journey, the ability to find something that was sought. It also means that you didn't get lost. That's exciting for me because I get lost on a shockingly regular basis. 

The other meaning of epiphany is the sudden understanding of something divine. I heard an interesting sermon not too long ago about the necessity of avoiding epiphanies. There was a very interesting point behind it. 

We must avoid epiphanies at all costs. When we allow epiphanies into our lives, we will never have any piece and quiet again. The ways to avoid epiphanies is to be deaf to the good news in Jesus Christ, blind to the effects of the good news in the lives of those who are around you. Becoming too busy to have time to reflect on the good news and when you have been so busy that you then become weary. All of these things will stop the beginning of epiphanies. 

It is not difficult to remain deaf when not everyone in the congregation will listen to you anyways. There is always something more important to think about like what to make for dinner, what needs to be done next. The immediate concerns of everyday life tend to overwhelm the amazing news that we are told. Becoming deaf to the good news very easily leads to blindness of what can happen after someone hears the good news. When you don't see the joy, the change, the willingness to let others in, then it is all right to keep the doors of the church closed and the food at church dinners will always remain scallops and ham. 

When we do not see the change that becomes a part of our lives, we don't have to share it. We can keep our lives and our faith secret. The allows us to not change, for life to remain peaceful and quiet. That is something we want. We like our routines and no change means peace. 

Being busy is something I should have a degree in by the end of my university career. When we remain busy, we don't get the chance to sit and listen. We become Marthas when we should become Marys. We move around and do our very best to be everything to everyone. That leaves us no time for ourselves and littler time to enjoy the life that we have. 

Weariness is something that follows closely on the heels of busyness. When we become weary, we don't have the energy to change. We can no longer see what others need, but most importantly, we can no longer see what we need. 

All of these are ways to avoid an epiphany. Or advice to let one in.