I could hardly believe my eyes. As I looked out my office window, I saw a person on top of our very high, very steeply pitched sanctuary roof. Soon there was another, and then another. These men were, of course, workers for the roofing company that was putting a new roof on our sanctuary. I was fascinated by the way they were able to be up that high on a roof pitched so steep. I could hardly watch at times because I am a bit afraid of heights.
I found out that they key piece of equipment in this process is called a tripod. It is what the name implies, with the addition of three retractable rope lines. The tripod is screwed to the roof decking straddling the peak of the roof. The workers then clip the rope lines to the safety harness they are wearing and that is how they are able to work on such a steeply pitched, high roof. They move around with a surprising ease. They carry shingles and nail shingles and put sheets of nail base in place. They even painted part of our steeple!
At times, it looked like they were dancing a choreographed dance. All this was done while they were tethered by the rope lines to the tripod.
I must admit I have been like a little kid, watching with fascination as the roofing project progresses. After a couple of weeks, I have gotten used to seeing the men up on the roof connected by a rope to the tripod, but it still amazes me.
I guess the project had been going on a week or so when it dawned on me that what I was looking at was an awesome illustration of what faith in God is all about.
I cannot imagine how much trust the workers put in the tripod and the ropes connected to it. The roof of the sanctuary is so high that you would only fall from it once. The roof is so steep that one slip would mean a slide to a crippling injury or even death.
Despite the danger, the men I saw working had complete faith in the equipment they were using to keep them working safely. You see, experience had taught them that they could depend on the equipment. They had used it job after job and it had always kept them safe. Their trust was based on a history of being held up by the equipment.
How much do you and I really trust God?
The way I see it, the tripod is like God, and the rope is like our faith that keeps us connected to God.
Are you and I willing to put our very lives into the hands of God? Are we willing to believe that as we stay connected to God we too will be able to dance through dangerous situations tethered to God by faith? Don’t we have enough experience with God to let us know we can count on God to keep us from falling?
God is more than able to hold us up and keep us from falling.
The real question is this: Are we willing to connect to God and trust God like the roofers do their equipment … even on top of a very high, very steep roof?
nnnThe Rev. Vance Lowe is senior pastor of First United Methodist Church, China Grove.