the importance of liturgy

This is another I-Am-God's-Toddler post. I'm just warning ya.

Last Sunday church was really good. Weird, because we had a weird bishop visiting, but very good in the way liturgical churches consistantly are. That is, it was good, for two hours, to be in a place where every word I said was exactly the word I ought to be saying and exactly the word I wanted to say. For two hours I responded to scripted statements with scripted answers: "The Lord be with you." "And with thy spirit."

Most times our words are less than perfect. We say things we don't mean, or that we did mean but shouldn't have said, or we can't find the words to explain everything we're feeling. But the liturgy, drawn from the deep wells of scripture and psalm and tradition, gives us the words to talk to our Lord, our Most Loved One, in a way that says exactly what we mean, exactly how we should and do mean it. It's a very good, comforting thing. He gives us the words we need.


Yesterday, Adam and I had the experience of giving Brie the words she needed. When Mom fell down and broke her leg, she was holding Brie's hand. Brie was very traumatized by seeing her dear Grandma Mouse in pain. So we've been talking about it, it seems non-stop, for the past two days. And our words are giving Brie the framework she needs to understand what happened. Now Brie can say:

"We fell down the stairs. Grandma Mouse broke her leg. They give her a BIG bandaid! They fix it! She be okay."

And why can she say that? Because we repeated this conversation over and over:

Brie: "Grandma Mouse?"
Us: "Grandma Mouse fell down. She broke her leg."
Brie: "Where is Grandma Mouse?"
Us: "She's at the hospital. They're FIXING her leg."
Brie: "She okay?"
Us: "She's going to be okay. They're giving her a BIG bandaid. Her daddy is with her."
Brie: "Poor Grandma Mouse."
Us: "Poor Granma Mouse. But she will be okay."

Over and over and over and over.

But we're glad to talk to her about it over and over and over, because then it's normal, then it's okay, then she understands, then she knows that we'll hold it for her and she doesn't have to.

Just like the Lord's okay hearing from me over and over and over, "Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be thy name . . ." Because when I say the words He gave me over and over and over, then I know He's there, He's with me, and it's all going to be okay.

-Jess

p.s. we got to go and visit Mom in the hospital yesterday, and Brie got to see her "big bandaid." It was a good visit. Do please keep praying for her as she recovers.