Who Journeys Alongside You?

A meditation for the joint Ash Wednesday service of the Church of the Village, St. Paul & St. Andrew UMC, and Rivers of Living Water UCC ● March 5, 2025

Rev. Jeff Wells © 2025

You can view the full worship video recording at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAxcdJjWcX4

We are all connected to the rest of humanity, to the rest of nature, to everything in the cosmos, and to God. I suspect that whales and elephants, birds and bees, butterflies and trees all feel this at some deep level. That’s why the impulses in nature toward cooperation and symbiosis are at least as strong if not stronger than competition. They tend to promote the common thriving of all. Yet, it seems that many modern human beings have trouble accepting this concept and, instead, have elevated competition over cooperation, chosen to build walls of separation and hate over practicing love, and repeatedly turn to war and violence, rather than seeking peace.

At this moment, we see this being played out in widespread and horrific ways in the U.S. and across the world. Yet, we cannot lose hope. Because we know that God is love and God continually calls us and all of creation to love. And love tends to move us toward greater cooperation, collaboration, creativity, compassion, and mutual care. 

This is a very difficult journey with detours, reversals, and counter-revolutions. But we do not walk this journey alone. In fact, we cannot walk alone and survive. So, “who journeys alongside you?” Each of us could name those closest to us – persons who are very meaningful in our lives and who we can rely on for mutual love and support. Often, they inspire admiration and even joy in us. They may be family, friends, neighbors, or important collaborators. 

For me, it is not primarily my biological family. They are not good about getting together or even staying in touch regularly. But Diane and I have a group of good friends, some of whom are in the apartments next to and across the hall from us. Beyond that, I am privileged to journey alongside Jorge and Alexis and we are all blessed to be part of a very close-knit and loving “chosen family” in the Church of the Village. I imagine most of you feel similarly about your communities. Like me, I suspect many of you have a group of collaborators too – people you love and trust and who, though they may not be geographically close, you know you can depend on them. These concentric and interconnected circles of companions on the journey become especially important in difficult times in our lives – whether the challenges we face are personal, societal, or ecological.

This makes me especially grateful for the connection we share between our three congregations. We have come together for Ash Wednesday worship for several years. Our growing bonds have been forged, too, by coming together to mourn, to pray, and to lift our collective voices in outrage at injustice. We have drawn strength, courage, and resolve from one another. Our communities can rely on each other. That’s a really good feeling. And I am convinced we will need each other even more in the days ahead. So, let us keep our ears and our eyes open. Let us take courage as well as joy from our common life and our loving bonds. And, let us work, individually and together, in all the ways we are able, to share what we have and to keep safe all that we love.