Pop

“There was a man, born in a small town, who grew up in the country,” the preacher began. “He didn’t have the most educational opportunities, but he learned a trade and became a skilled carpenter. He traveled from place, to place, doing good for the people wherever he went.”

With a pause, he added, “does that story sound familiar?”

For those who’ve heard the story of Jesus of Nazareth, that biography does sound familiar indeed.

“Laudell,” he said, “and Jesus had a lot in common.”

I agree. But I think my grandfather would have laughed at that idea, and pretty hard.

“If that don’t beat all,” he might have said.

“Well, we were both carpenters,” I can almost hear him say, followed by “…but I reckon that’s about as far as it goes.” Comparison with Jesus would have overwhelmed and embarrassed him.

Admittedly, on the surface our Pop might have seemed like an unlikely candidate for a Jesus Christ comparison.

“Plain talk makes for fair understanding,” he used to love to say, explaining away his penchant for “salty” language.

If you don’t know what that means, then you’ve just never spent much time with hammer-swinging, nail-driving, World War II naval veterans from Cypress, Tennessee.

And you don’t know what you’ve missed.

I'll tell you right now...plain talk does make for pretty fair understanding.

He was as tough as the nails that he drove for a living. While visiting this past week, I loved hearing my uncles talk about how, even after pneumatic nail guns came into use, they couldn’t frame a house as quickly as my Pop and his colleagues could finish the job with plain old hammers. One swing to set a 16-penny nail, and another to drive it in. If you had to hit it again, then you were just plain old soft.

I heard others throughout the weekend describe Pop’s work ethic, and I think my favorite comment was, “he picked cotton like a machine, before cotton picking machines were ever thought of.”

His whole life, was pulled by force from the West Tennessee dirt. He taught himself, worked for himself, and was incredibly disciplined about doing what needed to be done, no matter what.

Laudell Spitzer was made of iron.

But Pop was also “soft,” in all the ways that matter most. He loved his family with all his heart. His kids (6), grandkids (14) and great-grandkids (17) can tell you how much he loved to be with every one of us. He made his peace with God and I believe that he followed Jesus in every way that he could. His worn-through Bible tells the story of his faith.

He was a friend to all kinds of folks, and he never met a person who was “better” than him, and he never met anyone that he thought he was “better” than because God made us all.

He loved my Grandmama with deep devotion throughout their 60+ years of marriage.

The truth is, I could go on and on about him all day. I loved my Pop, and he was a hero in my eyes.

Last week, telling his stories with my family made our time together sacred and began the process of healing. As I looked around at the faces of my family and thought of the influence that he had on us all, I knew that in a real and powerful way, Pop’s not really gone.

This Palm Sunday, we remember the moment when the devoted followers of that other carpenter welcomed him triumphantly into Jerusalem. They believed that he was the messiah they’d always hoped for --- the one who would free them from Roman occupation and re-establish the throne of King David.

What they found instead was a pretty unlikely candidate for savior.

He was just a carpenter from the country.

“He welcomes sinners and eats with them,” they declared. And as the charges continued to mount against him throughout the week, Jesus consistently declared the arrival of a new kind of “kingdom.” When he finally stood before Pilate, his words were few, but piercing. He did not fight…he sacrificed.

When that bad Good Friday had ended, I can only imagine that those closest to him, shocked and full of loss, must have told his stories to help them find their way. Despair may have ruled for a time, but I hope that some of them remembered the promises he’d made, even in the midst of their grief.

Before I left West Tennessee, I spent some time at Pop’s grave, all by myself. He’s buried just yards from the country road that connects the family church and the family homeplace.

With a sense of happy irony, I realized that the very road he traveled over so often (at a mighty fine rate of speed, by the way) will now stand watch over him for years to come. That same ground holds the bodies of my great-grandparents, an aunt, and now my grandfather.

If I truly believed that a burial place marks the end…that there could never be more at the end of life than a tomb…then the living of that life would be so sad and hollow.

But there is more. There is this moment, and there is the forever God has prepared for us. “Because I live…” the resurrected Jesus told his disciples, “you will live also.”

I believe it. And in the core of who I am, I know that promise holds true. This Easter will celebrate the sweetest promise of resurrection that I have ever known.

We will all see each other again.

Grace and Peace,
Adam

I want to say a special word of thanks to all of you who have called, written and prayed for us this past week. Our time of loss continues, as this morning we received word that Holly’s grandmother Audrey had died after an extended illness. We are learning just what it means to be loved by a family of faith and supported in every way. We will be traveling to be with family in East Tennessee and will return after the funeral on Saturday afternoon.

I think it's appropriate, and would be a beautiful thing, for any who want to leave a word or comment about any loved ones they're remembering during this upcoming Holy Week. I hope that some of you will take the opportunity to tell your stories and remember. Adam

LIFE AT SOTH:
This Sunday is “Palm Sunday” and we will gather for worship at 9:00 and 11:00 a.m., on our regular schedule. Following worship, we are already expecting a huge crowd for lunch and an Easter Egg Hunt for the kids. For more info, visit our website, www.sothumc.net and follow the “Easter Egg Hunt” link on the home page.

Don’t forget Good Friday! On Friday night, April 6th, we will gather at the church at 7pm for a special time of worship. Please plan to join us as we remember the crucifixion and prepare our hearts for Easter Sunday’s worship celebration.

Easter Sunday Schedule:
7 a.m.: Sunrise Service @ The Pavillion, led by our youth group, “The Flock.”
9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. Easter worship in the Sanctuary
Again, for more info, go to www.sothumc.net