Here in South Africa winter is in full swing. We are just approaching the coldest part of our year (which, granted, is not nearly as cold as other parts of the globe), and the world around us is dormant. Trees are bare, and the whole countryside is tinged with brown. The world as I know it has entered a little death.
In ages past winter was a frightening time of year. Resources were scarce, food was hard to come by, and illness frequently led to real death. The ‘little death’ of winter was a time when life was under threat, and it took every bit of faith to believe that the world would come alive again. But, come alive it did - as it always does. Although I am fortunate enough to live in a time when the fears of winter are small and insignificant, and although I enjoy the winter months in Africa, I still long for the outbreak of new life - the resurrection - that awaits the Spring. The world is in a little death, but the resurrection is not far off.
This cycle of death and resurrection is built into the universe, and it is a gracious, God-given reminder of a fundamental principle of our living. Jesus put it this way: “People who try to save their lives will lose them, and those who lose their lives will save them.” (Luke 17:33). It’s always tempting to hold on, white-knuckled, to the things we value, to the moments of joy and celebration. But, inevitably, if we try to do this, we simply lose both the thing we are trying to save, and our ability to really live.
As we see the signs of a ‘winter’ approaching our lives, whether it’s a time of suffering, the loss of something or someone of value, or some sacrifice we know we must make, it is all too common for us to try and build protective walls around us to keep the little deaths at bay. But, Jesus’ words are a comfort and a challenge. Instead of seeking to save our lives, we must lose them - willingly embrace the little death, and enter into its pain. It sounds completely ridiculous, to our pain-avoidant minds, but it is in this losing - this dying - that we find life. Like the earth that needs the winter in order to nurture new life and growth, we need the little deaths, the times of suffering and sacrifice, in order to find abundant, vibrant, deep, meaningful life. So, in whatever little death you may be facing, you may want to consider what it would mean for you stop trying to save your life, and to surrender yourself to the loss.
The practice of worship is a profound gift to those who face a little death. Each week we are given the comfort of a community which can share our grief and sustain us through the pain. Each week, we are invited into the life of faith - of placing our lives and well-being into the hands of God. And each week, we are reminded that resurrection is alive and real among us, that resurrection is always at work where there is death, and that as we lose our lives, we also find them. And, then as we leave the sanctuary, we are encouraged to live out our resurrection faith in every moment and every situation.
So, if you’re facing a winter - a little death - in your life, perhaps now is the time to find your way to a church and to allow worship to give you the gift of faith, the gift of resurrection and the gift of new life. You may not see it right away, but if you continue to open yourself to it, life will emerge again, in all of its colourful glory.
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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.
Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.