Pastoral Thought--October 26

As you know, this weekend we will celebrate worship from a different perspective—one of memory. 

Here at Plains, our worship service is often a time of joy that we engage in. When we hear stories about how God is at work with us, or in us, we notice that this practice brings joy to our hearts. Much of our worship, and much of our story-sharing time, re-orients us in a joyful direction. 

Even when express sadness or grief in a time of loss or suffering, those moments often flow from a perspective of thanksgiving or joy because we remember that Jesus is Emmanuel—God with us. We notice how God is, joyfully, at work and that helps us address the daily struggles we engage in. 

This understanding does not overwhelm or diminish the grief and pain we feel; those wounds still hurt. But this practice, and how we remember, reminds us of God’s closeness when we need God to be close. To that end, I have been thinking today about memory. More specifically, I have wondered how we ‘remember’ as Christians? With the All Saints Day memorial coming this weekend, I want us to think about how we remember those whom we have lost over the past year. 

Charles Kuralt’s words seem helpful to me as I think about this idea and practice. He wrote:

“The good memories are all of stopping and saying awhile. I realize I’ve always driven too fast through life, carrying in my baggage too much impatiences and apprehension, missing too many chances, passing too many good people in the dust.” 

As we get ready to remember the lives of our loved ones, as we remember how they blessed us, and how much their loss hurts, I wonder if Kuralt’s words could be a helpful starting point for our memories. Maybe God wants us to remember slowly. . . deliberately. . . carefully. Perhaps as we get ready for worship, even on Monday afternoon, we can begin to make space in our daily practices to remember graciously and slowly. 

I wonder, if dwelling longer in that place what that could mean for our faith and how we share that faith with another person? 

Blessings

Rev. Derek