My Thumb

My favorite image for the church is the Body of Christ. Paul’s desciption of the Body and its interrelated parts is found in I Corinthians 12. It is an extended metaphor of connections working together in order for the body to function. My senior project as an undergradate was an extensive look at the Body of Christ.  

I have jokingly said that ‘In the body of Christ, we Presbyterians are the brains of this outfit.’ There is some truth in that phrase. We are part of a long line of folks who have put a great deal of emphasis on learning and literacy; our ordination standards have required a wide-range of skills that take some mental acuity. Even writing about it now you can tell that I’ve been to school before. Several schools actually. I personally am responsible for untold trees heading to the pulp mill to make paper so that I could think things through and write them out for professors to grade. Jesus himself told us that we are to love the Lord God with all our minds (Mt. 22:37). A well-working brain is a blessing. 

But I recently got to have a new experience in the Body of Christ. I got to be the thumb! Probably the first time I’ve had this part to play. Let me explain. 

We’ve been attending Washington Presbyterian Church in Corryton, TN. It’s a wonderful, small church with a rural feel to it. It’s been around for a long time—in fact, they have Revolutionary War veterans buried in their graveyard. Good people who like to work and worship together. Rev. Lyn Oakley is the bright and energetic pastor. 

The other thing they’ve been doing for a long time is the Apple Fest. This year was the 47th Annual Apple Fest. On the third Saturday in October they set up tents and tables and chairs and signs and welcome the community to come and buy fried apple pies, apple butter, tamales, jams and jellies, salsa and green beans, and more—all made by the church folks. There’s music and storytelling. There are antique tractors on display. There are lots of things going on. It is truly the highlight of the year. 

All of this is arranged by the Apple CORE—a group of folks who have been there and done that and have the t—shirt. In fact, I’m sure that some of them have a whole collection of t-shirts. Folks have been making this work for a good while. Folks have the whole process pretty much worked out and polished. 

So what does one do when a newbie shows up? What do you have for someone who hasn’t worked with this part of the Body of Christ? That’s where I come in this year. I hadn’t even attended the Apple Fest before much less participated. I had some vague ideas about all of this but no concrete experience. It was also not like I was going to be getting an extended training session. I showed up Friday to help set things up, but the big event was the next day. 

So one of those wise people who have been doing this for years recruited me to run the photo booth. Sounds simple enough. Have people get in front of the backdrop, get them to smile, and take their pictures. Didn’t even have to have any equipment—just ask them to hand me their phones so I could take a few shots. 

So you see, all I really needed was my thumb. Well, that and a smile and an openness to help people enjoy themselves. As I told most all of them I had asked for a ‘low-skill to no-skill’ job since this was all new to me. I didn’t want to direct traffic, or make change, or be involved in the food—at least until I knew what was happening. So, yes, in a divine appointment, I became the thumb of the Body of Christ. Smile, snap, on to the next. 

Julie really was the brains of the body when she picked me for this task. It was something that I would have a hard time messing up. It was a spot where I would be greeting people and engaging in conversation which is something I always had to do as a pastor. I would get to interact with children which I’ve always enjoyed since I’m just a big kid at heart. I even got to pet the doggies—and there were lots of folks out with their pups on this pretty day. Maybe she could see all of that ahead of time. 

Folks thanked me for doing my task. I was sure to thank all of them for coming out and wished them a great time at the Apple Fest. I was busy most all morning. It was a new activity for the Apple Fest, but it seemed to go well. People seemed pleased. I had only one child who decided that taking a picture was not a good idea. Some came back more than once after they had found family and friends. 

The next day after all the work was done and the money counted and things put away for next year, we gathered in the sanctuary to celebrate. We told stories about how together we had been the Body of Christ to our community and to one another. We got to pat people on the back for jobs well done. We got to rejoice that we had had a great year. The Body of Christ got to applaud one another—each members of one another, each one doing their part, each part participating fully, each mindful that we couldn’t do this alone. 

I have to say that being the thumb was pretty good. With some more practice I may get even better at it! Thumbs up! 👍🏽