You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ You must do the thing you think you cannot do.

            This was the quotation that was going through the mind of David Roche as he prepared to give his first public speech. The quotation is from Eleanor Roosevelt and her words seemed to lift him each time he faced his fears. David was facing this time a giant of a fear. It has been said that the number one fear that people have is the fear of public speaking – of standing in front of an audience and drawing a blank, or looking silly, or worse, appearing ignorant – (by the way, as someone who stands in front of people each Sunday, this fear never really goes away!!!)

            Still David’s fear of public speaking was even beyond the normal range due to his disability. David Roche was born with a severe facial disfigurement. On the left side of his face is an extensive cavernous hemangioma, a benign tumor consisting of blood vessels. As an infant and child he underwent many facial surgeries and heavy radiation therapy, which left radiation burns on his temple and eyelids. While David is a bright and personable young man, whenever people first came into contact with him they would immediately be take aback by the ugliness of his condition. Often people would stop in their tracks and their faces would freeze. They would try to hide their amazement, but David learned to accept the stares of others and their whispered comments.

            David wanted to face his fear of public speaking and so he attended the Lee Glickstein Speaking Circle and volunteered to be the first one to stand at the podium. On this particular day the audience shifted uncomfortable as David stepped up the makeshift stage. David kept repeating to himself Roosevelt’s mantra: You must do the thing you think you cannot do. He stood before the crowd as dozens of people looked down at their hands to avoid his face. David simply stood there silently until in an awkward moment everyone finally met his eyes. Then he began his first speech.

            I was born with a face that is a gift from God! The crowd seemed perplexed as he continued. Perhaps my face is not the kind of gift that you rip open on Christmas morning and exclaim: ‘How exquisite! How did you know? How beautiful!’ No my face is more like ‘Oh you shouldn’t have! The audience couldn’t help but laugh at David’s self-deprecating humor. Then David turned serious and explained to them that he was able to master his fear by remembering that indeed his face was a gift – a gift from God. God gave me this face to remind you of what you already know, but sometime forget – that it’s OK to be flawed.

            I looked up David Roche’s website www.davidroche.com and saw a picture of his face and after reading his story I went to a mirror and looked at my own. I asked myself: Do I believe that I am a gift from God? Do I truly believe that God has given me to the world as an instrument of love and life? Do I really believe that it’s OK to be flawed and that God will use my flaws to do great things? These are the questions that Jesus confronts in our scriptures each week. He addresses the fears of the disciples that they are not smart enough; he addresses the fears of the lepers and the Samaritans and the poor that they are not clean enough; he addresses women and children and the marginal that they are not powerful enough. And always Jesus assures them that they are tremendous gifts from the Creator – that they ARE enough! Jesus allowed people to face their fears by reminding that they were enough and had enough and that it was OK to be flawed. And more, Jesus called them to trust in the God who would use them and their flaws as they were to bring about the Kingdom of God. David Roche has traveled the country inspiring people to see themselves the way God sees them. Like Jesus, he reminds us that we can face down any fear with God on our side; we can do great things with God on our side; and it it’s OK to be flawed because God is always and forever on our side.

The other night we took the kids to the Madison Mallards Baseball game. They were playing the Wisconsin Rapids Rattlers – the second of a three game series. We were the guests of Dunham Sports, thus Ben and Joey were each were able to invite a friend. The evening would include hotdogs, brats, burgers and soda in the Dunham Sport’s tent. Believe me, I’m aware of how much that same meal would have cost me at Miller Park!

            Anyway, on the way into the ball park, a young woman, an employee of the Madison Mallards, asked three of the boys if they would be interested in running in the fruit race at the bottom of the second inning. In the fruit race, three young children dress up as healthy snacks – an apple, an orange and a strawberry and race around the bases. So there I was in the stands watching my little Joey race toward first base dressed as a giant strawberry along with his friends Sean and Kyle Fahey. Melissa and Ben were down on the field urging them on and Rachel and I were up in the stands with thousands, literally thousands of screaming people. Even as I watched them run I thought: Why are all these people cheering? Certainly no one really cares who wins this race? Certainly they’re not cheering for a particular favorite fruit? There was such joy in the cheering, such effusive energy, and such pure abandonment. Why all the cheering? And as the race ended and the cheers died down, I looked around the ballpark and took in the scene.

It was a spectacular June evening and the stands were full. The smells of summer abounded – the grills were fired up, the beer and soda were flowing freely, the children were eating cotton candy and licorice ropes and popcorn; the home team was ahead, the flags were flying in a gentle summer breeze and the Duck Blind was rowdy as usual; there would be fireworks following the game, tee shirts were being tossed into the stands, and free custard was being given away. It was summer at its best! I smiled and thought to myself: They weren’t cheering for fruit…they weren’t cheering for a race…they were cheering for life! People were watching three young boys run around a baseball diamond dressed as fruit and cheering for life, the beauty of life, the gift of life!

            It was a wonderful evening, one that I will remember long. The Jewish people have a phrase for this experience – they say le-chaim – to life. I think that’s what we were feeling at the Mallard’s game last weekend. For a few hours on a beautiful Saturday evening we were reminded that in a world of flooding and destructive tornados we still say le-chaim – to life!  In a world where we are weary of fighting each other, tired of all the political dissension, and tired of the division we still say le-chaim – to life! In our personal lives that are filled with grief and stress, and health problems, and family issues we still cheer le-chaim – to life!

            This moment at a ballpark was I think a gospel moment. Jesus constantly urged his followers to drink deeply of those moments that gave them life – that allowed them to affirm life – that helped them to cheer le-chaim – to life! Jesus is often portrayed in the scriptures as lingering over a meal. It is recorded that he would steal away by himself to rest and be refreshed. Jesus allowed himself to be cared for by others. He would accept invitations to dinner, and have his feet anointed, and was the focus of attention at gatherings. He is pictured as a man who could enjoy the moment, and dwell in the beauty of life. Jesus was a man who had no problem cheering le-chaim – to life!

            So I suppose this July message is really more of a prayer for all of you. I pray that you will find those moments this summer to be refreshed and refilled. I pray that you will dwell leisurely in those times of family and friends. I pray that you will take time to feel the warmth of sunshine, or a cool breeze, or the sweet smell of flowers. This summer I pray that in the midst of a weary world you might find those moments of joy that you will remember long. And when you find them cheer for the beauty of life itself. Cheer for all you are worth: le-chaim – to life!

Do you have a worrier in your family? Recently I read a cute story that nearly every new parent can relate to. There was a man named Kais Rayes who became a new father. Not surprisingly, he and his wife soon discovered that their whole life had been turned upside down when their first child was born. Every night, the baby seemed to be fussy, and many nights, it seemed that their baby cried far more than he slept. Says Rayes, My wife would wake me up, saying, “Get up, honey! Go see why the baby is crying!” As a result, Rayes found himself suffering from severe sleep deprivation.

While complaining to his coworkers about his problem one day, one of his colleagues suggested a book on infant massage. Rayes immediately went in search of the book and that night, he tried the technique, gently rubbing his baby’s back, arms, head, and legs until the baby was completely relaxed and obviously had fallen into a deep sleep. Quietly tiptoeing from the darkened room so as not to disturb the rhythmic breathing of the baby, he made his way directly to his own bed in hopes of enjoying a well deserved full night of sleep.

No such luck. In the middle of the night, his wife awoke him in a panic. “Get up, honey!” she said as she jostled him awake. “Go see why the baby is not crying!”

Do you know anybody like that? Some people are just worriers. Even when things go well they worry, they fret, they fume. They worry that something bad will happen. Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen tells many memorable stories in her book, Kitchen Table Wisdom: Stories That Heal.

In one of her stories she asked one of her patients to describe her husband. The woman laughed and told a story about a visit they made to Hawaii. An organized and frugal man, her husband had re­served compact rental cars on each of the four islands months in advance. On arriving on the Big Island and presenting their reservation to the car rental desk, they were told that the econ­omy car they had reserved was not available. Alarmed, she watched her husband’s face redden as he prepared to do battle. The clerk didn’t seem to notice. I am so sorry, sir, he said. Will you accept a substitute for the same price? We have a Mus­tang convertible. Barely mollified, her husband put their bags in this beautiful white sports car and they drove off.

The same thing happened throughout their holiday. They would turn in their car and fly to the next island, only to be told that the car they had been promised was not available. They of­fered a substitute for the same price and each time the substituted car was an upgrade far nicer than the car they had expected. It was amazing, she said. After the Mustang, they had been given a Mazda MR‑10, a Lincoln Town Car, and finally, a Mercedes, all with the most sincere apologies. The vacation was absolutely wonderful and on the plane back, she turned to her husband, thanking him for all he had done to arrange such a memorable time. Yes, he said, pleased, it was really nice. Then, much to her amazement he added: Too bad they never had the right car for us. She said he was absolutely serious!

What do you do with people like that? Some people can see the dark side of any cloud, even one with a silver lining. They are worriers. They fume, they fret, and they stay stressed out.

Do they ever read the words of Jesus? More to the point, do I? After all, I’m a kind of worrier as well and I often let the little stressors of life get to me. How often I fail to see the gifts I’ve been given because my day, my project, my life is not going according to my plan. And yet Jesus said to his friends: Look at the birds of the air. They neither so nor reap nor gather into barns – and yet God feeds them. Is this not our challenge throughout the season of summer? Are we not called to look at the birds of the air and the lilies of the field and remember that God loves us? Are we not asked to drop our worrying and complaining and our desire to control every moment of every day and remember that we are of infinite worth? Enjoy the warmth of summer. Allow the breezes to wash over you and heal you. Listen to the world around you. Do not worry!