There are many performances of "Over the Rainbow" that are memorable.
None can forget Judy Garland singing this "secular hymn" in "The Wizard of Oz."
However, it was late in her life when she gave her most memorable, compelling, mournful, and longing offering of her heart through this piece as a gift to the world.
The pathos is present and it is the most beautifully moving of all of her performances. With the pain, there is longing, and through the longing, there is a glimmer of hope that extends itself.
This performance of a "Somewhere" speaks to the human struggle in the crucible of suffering and how beauty emerges from the flames of that struggle. Our resistance to pain takes a heavy toll on our lives, our art, and our souls.
Philip Yancey calls suffering the gift that no one wants. It is true that Judy Garland did not learn to cope with her pain and died far too young in the despair of addiction. While it never has to end there, each of us must go there.
By there, I mean, to the place of despair.
The power of grace transforms and the Giver of grace heals, but grace and face rhyme and grace only flows when we face our humanity with courage and hope and receive that which we cannot manufacture within ourselves.
Decades after her tragic death, we are still lifted, encouraged, and moved to believe.
Pastor Tom's Community 
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