It is afternoon now, and the sun sits just above the trees, silver against the gray clouds. The wind has blown and blustered all day, straight to the bone, as it is said. Days like this are not my favorite and yet still I have noticed signs of God's wonder and presence -- the particular pattern of blowing leaves, wild turkeys walking through the neighborhood, the snowcapped peaks. There is the phrase: God is good.... All the time! And it is such a good reminder, an invitation to be on the lookout for God's goodness and the beauty of the world.
Thanks to everyone who came out last night to help take down and carefully put away our Advent and Christmas decorations. I do so enjoy doing work together!
This coming Sunday is our annual meeting. And, as has been the case every year. we have so much to celebrate! So many reminders of God's goodness and presence and grace. I'm tempted to give lots of spoiler alerts, but instead I'll just say, join us! We do indeed have so much to celebrate together.
I also want to celebrate what a joy being with our youth was this last Sunday. We engaged in a contemplative practice called "Praying in Color." It is a practice that engages the body in prayer by doodling as part of the prayer time. For those of us who get easily distracted, or who are drawn to creative outlets, it can be a wonderful and grounding alternative to trying to simply pray in our heads or even out loud. We had six youth and four adults engaged in the activity! What a gift!
Finally, if you have not yet received a Star Word and want one, please let me know. If you'd like, share your word with me or others. Mine for this year is "righteousness." Yep. Your response is probably similar to what mine was. And I trust that God is doing something with me and with this word. And hopefully with you and with your word. May it also be a reminder that God IS good.... All the time!
