The devotional thought was about covenant. It was powerfully made.

God has entered into a new covenant with us through the sacrifice of Jesus. We reaffirm our commitment to that covenant when we take the bread. Jesus has given his body to save us and include us in God’s family. Let’s never forget!

    Sometimes we sing while communion is passed. Other times we sit in silence. Often times a Scripture is displayed for us to meditate upon. As we sat contemplating the significance of covenant, the words of Luke 22:19, and the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross, I heard the clatter of several of the trays from which the bread is served chattering their way to the floor.

    “How embarrassing in such a special moment,” I thought. “I wish we would have sung this morning. It would have drown out the clatter and embarrassment, plus the babies are a bit restless today. It’s a shame to ruin such a holy moment.”

    Then I remembered something from one of my own messages given nearly a year ago. I asked that the next time we had one of those embarrassing moments in communion — somebody drops or bumps something, or there is too much noise and it’s distracting to the Supper — that we remember the setting in which the Lord’s Supper was established. It was chaotic; the disciples didn’t know what Jesus was doing. It was confusing; Jesus, their Lord and Master, bent down and washed their feet, doing the slave’s job. It was heartbreaking; Jesus told them that one of them would betray him and the most outspoken of them would deny him three times before the night was over. It was turbulent; Peter adamantly claimed he would never deny Jesus even if it meant his death while Judas left the table to go betray Jesus for 30 pieces of silver.

It was chaotic, it was confusing, it was heartbreaking, it was turbulent.

    The Lord’s Supper is not about a neat and tidy people in a pristine moment hidden away from the world’s distractions. No, the Supper is about our loving God who was willing to get himself involved in messy, noisy, earthly problems.

    Sometimes we want things too neat and polished. Life has a tattered and smudgy edge, no matter how much we try put a shine on it. Covering up the clatter and noise with pretty singing doesn’t mean the clatter is gone. Jesus came to a noisy messed up world. Occasionally, we need to be reminded of that experientially. We need to know that it is okay to sit in silence and then have that silence penetrated by unwanted noise that is distracting and irritating. Why? Because it was for such a world that Jesus died.

    We are not called to deny the chaos, confusion, heartbreak, and turbulence of our lives. Instead, we are called to come to Jesus in the middle of these distressing moments and realize that he has been here before. We desperately need to know that Jesus loves us in the middle of such messes, and that he died to liberate us from their grasp.

    So the next time you find yourself in a holy moment penetrated by unwanted noise or distraction, remember, Jesus came to meet us in the disturbances of everyday life. We don’t have to neat and pressed and perfect for his grace to touch us and bless us. Mangers and Crosses were not holy moment fare until they were slept in and died upon by the King of Glory. God chose to sleep where cows licked up their feed and die where criminals hung in shame. If you are willing, the Savior will meet you in the clatter and noise of your messy life. He’s been there before, he’s just waiting for you to invite him to join you there!

Title: "Clatter During Communion"
Author: Phil Ware
Publication Date: November 12, 2001

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