Dear Friends of South Bay and Picton United Churches;
Greetings on this somewhat wet spring morning. By the time you read this, according to Environment Canada, the sun will be shining. Since the grass is too wet to mow, this “Reflection” will be arriving earlier than it otherwise would have done. 😉 (I’ll wait to settle the dandelions down until tomorrow morning.)
May these words be for you a blessing – helping to make your burdens lighter and your way smoother through the day ahead.
Grace and peace with pastoral love and concern,
Rev. Phil
“This is the day that God has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
(NRSV Psalm 118.24)
“. . .No storm can shake my inmost calm, while to that Rock I’m clinging: since Love commands both heaven and earth, how can I keep from singing?”
Her career began with an assignment as a vocalist on local radio programs. Before long she went on to a stint as a singer with Big Band legend, Benny Goodman. Peggy Lee, (1920-2002) in 1946, recorded the song “It’s a Good Day”. (I’ll let you look it up on YouTube.) I can’t say as I’ve ever heard it before catching it on “The Sunday Edition” with Michael Enright on CBC Radio yesterday. (The song was covered by many others including Perry Como.) This is a very cheery, upbeat song that can lift our spirits on any dreary day – a reminder of the way the gift of music can touch our hearts. It has a good message for us as we walk through these very difficult days caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic. (I must add as a footnote that there is one line in the song with which I must take exception. The author suggests that we throw away our pills. Not a good idea for those of us on prescription meds! 😉)
There is no doubt that the experience we are living through will be forming us – we will never be the same as we would have been had this virus never entered our lives. Though we don’t have a choice in sharing this tribulation with the rest of humanity, we do have a choice in how we respond to the ordeal. We could spend our days focusing on the darkness and difficulty that is being visited upon us; and goodness knows that the 24/7 news feeds encourage that approach. Or, alternatively, we can choose to make our focus the beauty of the world around us – and to find even the bright side in the midst of and despite the darkness. Many of you are finding ways to focus on the grace and loveliness of the world. From the charm in the smiles on a Grandchild’s face as seen on Facetime; to the allure of bees busy collecting nectar from blooming pear trees (but two examples) you are taking time to witness the beauty and to share it with others. As we do so we are helping to ease the burdens that folk around us are carrying – and as we do so, lifting some of the weight from their shoulders, we find our own steps are lighter.
“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6.2)
As we choose to live this way, we are taking up Jesus’ own ministry. Remember his words from Matthew’s Gospel:
“Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (11.28-30 NIV)
As we follow Jesus in the Way, the promise is that we will be empowered and enabled for the important work of burden sharing.
I leave you this morning with another great song that I heard on CBC yesterday morning. (The Gospel comes to us sometimes from unexpected sources.) This song, sung by Ottawa’s Shelley Posen, is entitled: “The Long, Long Tunnel”:
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