I LOVE DISNEYLAND!
Now, at first glance, that little trivia fact may appear to have nothing at all to do with Covenant Sunday. Stay with me!
I love Disneyland…it is true. I cannot remember a time that was, for me, “before Disneyland.” Being born within a few months of each other, we grew up together, Disneyland and me.
Fortunately, I married someone who also enjoys the Magic Kingdom, and to make the point, in the past 12 days, John and I have been to Disneyland 3 times! As an aside, I thought that to be a good confession for Covenant Sunday when the numbers on your financial form have already been written, hopefully in ink…!
Why three times in just a short period of time? Celebrations, of course! Twelve days ago, John and I celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary. In 1988, we were to have been married under the Majestic Oak in the center of the Santa Ana Botanical Garden in Claremont…that is until two days before, one day before, and the morning of our wedding, southern California experienced downpours such as had not been seen all year. The wedding was quickly moved indoors, and like the good Disney fans we are, after the vows and rings were exchanged, guests greeted and food consumed, the two of us headed off to the Magic Kingdom!
While on sabbatical earlier this year, we (ok, I) decided that we ought to renew our vows, and the plan quickly morphed into revisiting the oak tree, reciting our wedding script to one another, and then following up with a day at the Magic Kingdom. So that was Tuesday, a week and a half ago…and it was a lovely day at the park!
This past week, on Monday and Friday respectively, we went back to Disneyland, taking each of the twin boys who have become like grandchildren to us. They are celebrating their 4th birthday, and these visits with Auntie Sharon and Uncle John gave each of them a chance to be “prince for a day” with our doting attention given over to their every need and most of their wants. Plus, these were their first conscious visits, so they were each filled with wonder and delight for most of the two days. On Monday—Owen’s day with us—the three of us were eating lunch in Toontown, enjoying a quiet respite from the many attractions. Owie was overly interested in John’s drinking cup; as you know, Disney never misses an opportunity to market its brand, and the soda cup was festooned with a parade of Disney characters as well as this year’s slogan…something about this being a year of a million dreams. We were quietly rotating the cup so he could see all the characters, and at one point John commented casually, “Disneyland…where all your dreams come true…” Several seconds of silence later, Owie responded, equally as casually, “Only the good dreams come true…not the bad ones… they don’t come true…”
For me, this was one of those moments where, if they could on cue, the clouds would part, angels would sing, and violins would be heard as accompaniment. Owie nailed it. And I’ve been contemplating his comment throughout this week leading up to Covenant Sunday.
Now as much as I love Disneyland, I also love the church and the Christ upon whose life and ministry the church is founded.
I cannot remember a time that was, for me, “before church” although I can remember many times that were “without church.” Where, for various reasons and seasons, I left the church or the church left me.
For sometimes, the church is a place where our dreams come true, even, as Owen would say, the bad ones. Sometimes we church people are unkind or lacking in compassion. Sometimes we fail to do what would be helpful and loving, and instead act in hurtful ways. What then? What is our response when we become the artisans of our own bad dreams? Unlike in the Magic Kingdom of Disney, where no-gooders are escorted out by security, our passes to be here are never torn up. For this kingdom, this realm of God in which we seek to live and love and have our being, is a kingdom of grace.
Here, there are no hours of operation…we are welcome always. Here, we are forgiven, even if not completely understood. Here we are appreciated for who we are, not used as a commodity for what we can provide. Here, most importantly, we pay no required entrance fee; rather, we covenant together to walk with God and with each other, and to support this walk with our finances as we are able, for yet another year. Here, in this covenanting community, as distinct from the capitalistic community fostered by all-things-Disney, here even when the bad dreams come true, we are met, not with security guards, but with the arms of grace.
Covenanting, friends, makes all the difference in the kind of community we are becoming. In our individual openness to the covenant process, we bring about openness and growth of the whole body. In our individual honesty, that value becomes part of the dreams yet to come true as the new year unfolds. In our individual praying and thinking, we contribute to the spiritual health and vibrancy of this collective we call our spiritual home. Covenanting makes a difference, like that proverbial pebble thrown into the imaginary pond. The ripple effects of each of our covenants is more magnificent then even the balance sheet for one month of Disneyland’s Magic Kingdom. For they can only boast of making a place for the good dreams to come true…here, in this kingdom of grace God promises us all that, no matter what we dream or which dreams or nightmares become reality, we will be loved through it all. And as much as I love Disneyland, I cannot think of a better turnstile to enter than the one right here! Can you?
