By Joel Reyes — I am at the school every day. I typically spend the day in the office with a headset pressed to my ears, instructing my students from a distance. It’s a blessing to see my students every morning and to get to talk to them. It does my soul good to know I am still relevant to them. It is also good to see them laugh, and interact with each other, even if it is only through a small window via an electronic device. During worship today, one of them said, “I just want this to end!” We all said, “Amen!”
The mailperson was here today. I’m usually busy teleconferencing with the kids and unable to answer the door; but today I had just wrapped up one of my classes and was able to open the door. The mailperson came in carrying a large package for the church. Our school and church share a large building, separated by a lobby. Needing to stretch my legs, I made my way across the lobby to the church office to place the package by the door. For some reason, the lobby seemed larger today. As I turned around to return to my office, it hit me. Right there in front of me. Empty. Silent. Lonely. The sanctuary.
I have walked through those doors so many times. I have sat in those chairs and have felt the joy of being home. I have seen the genuine smiles of those who like me, have come into that special place to seek refuge. Today, I opened the doors and sat in a chair in total silence and tried to remember all those faces. I saw so many. I saw smiles. I heard the music, and I felt the presence of the One we worship. Today I couldn’t help it but think of David’s words, “Oh Lord, how lovely is your dwelling place… My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord.” (Psalm 84: 1, 2.)
Today, I sat there in silence, and prayed for all my friends, my brothers, my sisters, my students, my pastor, my staff, my family. Today, I worshiped in my own silent way in this special place. Today, I have felt that unexplainable presence and heard a small whisper.
I don’t know how long it is going to be before we see each other again, worship together through music and the spoken word, share our stories, and smile, glad to see each other. I don’t know, but one thing I do know. We are a family, and this is home. We are all unique, yet so alike. And it is this place with all its significances that brings us together, and gives us identity, and makes us one.
“…that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John 17: 21). My prayer today is, “Lord make us one”.
—Joel Reyes is Principal and 5th -8th Grade Teacher at Intermountain Adventist Academy, Grand Junction, Colorado. This reflection was first published in the Grand Junction Church newsletter, May 14, 2020. Photo by Rajmund Dabrowski
