Love One Another: Love Jacob
Stories
Lectionary Tales For The Pulpit
Series III, Cycle C
Jacob can be so annoying. He talks loudly during Sunday School. He comes to class late, sits down, and demands that coffee be brought to him. Not just any coffee will do: it has to be decaffeinated with a little water so it won't burn his lips.
Jacob can be annoying. But Jacob is also part of the class. He is part of the church. He is part of the community of God.
When Pastor John speaks, Jacob knows not to interrupt. When the teacher speaks, Jacob knows not to interrupt. But when the class participants speak, Jacob gets very agitated. He puts up his hand and when the teacher acknowledges him, he asks them to be quiet.
Although he's nearly fifty years old chronologically, Jacob's mind is at about a five-year-old level. He lives in a bedroom of a large apartment with three other men. An attendant lives next door. The attendant makes sure Jacob is properly dressed, eats well, and gets everywhere on time. And Jacob has hardly missed a day of church in the seven years he's attended.
The last church asked Jacob to leave: he often interrupted the church worship time and people felt very uncomfortable around him. But when Jacob started coming to this new church, he was welcomed. People asked him his name, and they remembered it the next Sunday when he came again. He thinks they are nice. They bring him coffee in class, they remind him when there are potlucks so he won't eat before coming to church. And most of all, they hug him when he comes.
Pastor John spoke with him one Sunday after church and asked him not to interrupt. He said Jacob should raise his hand first. And Eunice, the teacher's wife, sits next to him to remind him to let others talk. During church he sits next to Ted, a retired doctor who always sits on the fifth pew with his wife, Mary. Jacob sits on Ted's side and he makes sure he stands up straight: Ted is six-foot-eight. Jacob is five-foot-six.
Jacob can be annoying at times. But Jacob is a part of the church, a part of the community of believers. And he enjoys going to a church where people hug him.
Jacob can be annoying. But Jacob is also part of the class. He is part of the church. He is part of the community of God.
When Pastor John speaks, Jacob knows not to interrupt. When the teacher speaks, Jacob knows not to interrupt. But when the class participants speak, Jacob gets very agitated. He puts up his hand and when the teacher acknowledges him, he asks them to be quiet.
Although he's nearly fifty years old chronologically, Jacob's mind is at about a five-year-old level. He lives in a bedroom of a large apartment with three other men. An attendant lives next door. The attendant makes sure Jacob is properly dressed, eats well, and gets everywhere on time. And Jacob has hardly missed a day of church in the seven years he's attended.
The last church asked Jacob to leave: he often interrupted the church worship time and people felt very uncomfortable around him. But when Jacob started coming to this new church, he was welcomed. People asked him his name, and they remembered it the next Sunday when he came again. He thinks they are nice. They bring him coffee in class, they remind him when there are potlucks so he won't eat before coming to church. And most of all, they hug him when he comes.
Pastor John spoke with him one Sunday after church and asked him not to interrupt. He said Jacob should raise his hand first. And Eunice, the teacher's wife, sits next to him to remind him to let others talk. During church he sits next to Ted, a retired doctor who always sits on the fifth pew with his wife, Mary. Jacob sits on Ted's side and he makes sure he stands up straight: Ted is six-foot-eight. Jacob is five-foot-six.
Jacob can be annoying at times. But Jacob is a part of the church, a part of the community of believers. And he enjoys going to a church where people hug him.
