You are a Pumpkin/Being Emptied Out by Anna Woofenden
You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy. Psalm 30:11
When I hear these familiar lines, I’m drawn to the second-half of the equation. Let’s talk about the dancing and this joy-filled clothing.
You brought me up from the grave, you spared me from going down into the pit. Psalm 30:3
Rescue and new life—excellent! I’ll avoid even acknowledging that the pit is there…thank you very much. Let’s stick with the new life, the joy and the springtime states. They’re pretty, new and shining, light and fluffy.
But look outside for a moment. Fall is upon us. Look outside. The leaves are dying and falling to the ground, the plants are curling up and drawing in. Things are rotting, decomposing, returning, dying. The cycle of the seasons around us reminds us… Surrender comes before growth. Read More
The Lord is my Shepherd by Rev. Julie Conaron
If we look back on our lives we are often able to see the way the Lord has lead us: often like a shepherd leads his sheep. And sheep are not easy creatures to look after. As one shepherd described it: “sheep are high-maintenance creatures,” which is certainly what we often are as human beings! I’d like to show the Lord’s leading of me and others through stories from my career as a hospice chaplain linked with passages from the Word about shepherding. Read More
Tearing Down the Walls by Rev. Sarah Buteux
“The walls of Jericho” meant the falsities that defended evils.
Secrets of Heaven (AC) 8815
I’d like you all to relax, open your minds, and imagine something with me for a moment. Now, this may be a stretch, but I want us to imagine that we are all part of a small, no scratch that, very small—all right let’s be honest, compared to everyone else we’re miniscule—I want us to try and imagine that we are all part of a teeny, tiny, and yet vibrant, extremely vibrant, spiritual community. Do you think you can do that with me? Good, then let’s continue. Read More
One Wild and Precious Life: An ordination address by Emily Jane Lemole
The poet Mary Oliver asks,
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”
The stand-out word for me here is do. What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life? For our brief moment on beautiful planet earth—what will we do? This question is for everyone.
Actually we do what matters to us— or what we love. Swedenborg teaches that we are or become what we love. However, we can fool ourselves (masters of self-deception that we are) that we are living our beliefs—our deepest values—that our principles have become our process. But often we are asleep at the spiritual switch and sleepwalk through life. What will we do? Read More
Faith, Trust, Belief by Rev. Kathy Speas
Have you been to the top floor of MOMA? It is all glass, completely clear. Even though you KNOW it is perfectly safe, you still feel queasy stepping out on it. And there’s a Skywalk over the Grand Canyon where you can stand out there and look down 4,000 feet into the Colorado River. Imagine that! You’d feel like the coyote, chased over the canyon by Roadrunner. I’ve heard people say, “No way I could go out there.”
That must have been how Abram felt, setting out in response to God’s call, going out into the desert. This is the journey of faith – stepping out, looking down, you’ve read the Book that explains that you are safe, but you don’t FEEL safe. Read More
