To be able to look out on Sunday morning and see the wonderful faces of my faith family (even with masks on!) is simply amazing and fills the spirit as nothing else can.
On Sunday, later in the evening, I stopped to reflect on these past few months and the return to the sanctuary. The week preceding was filled with a lot of anxiety for me as I prepared, and prepared some more, for opening up our space.
But it was well worth it!!!
As I was reading posts from others who also returned to their sanctuaries this past Sunday, one woman wrote
“I felt like the psalmist who wrote ‘I was glad when they said, let us go to the house of the lord”.
And since Sunday many of you have written me expressing your joy about being back together. This time of separation has brought with it many hardships but I think that it has also highlighted for many the reality that their faith family, the support of community, the spiritual renewal and empowerment of worship is something that is vitally important.
The Wonderful Faces of My Faith Community
We have so much to be thankful for in the midst of these strange times and I am particularly grateful for the ability to have on-line worship; for the technology that allowed us to gather on Zoom; and for the phone that enabled us to connect. However, none of this compares to being in community. To be able to look out on Sunday morning and see the wonderful faces of my faith family (even with masks on!) is simply amazing and fills the spirit as nothing else can.
A number of years ago I wrote a piece called “My Faith Community” . This is as true today as it was then and it came to mind for me as I reflected on the experience of returning after our separation
Each Sunday I stand before this community of faces
Faces that reflect many different stories
Stories that tell a tale of celebration and sorrow
Hope and joy
Each Sunday I stand before you and look into your eyes
Eyes that invite me to be part of your lives
Lives that are incredible examples of determination
Courage and love
Each Sunday I am transformed by Divine power
Power that can fill a soul with love
Love that empowers and enables
creating space for life
Blessings
Valerie
© 2020 Rev. Valerie Peyton Kingsbury. All rights reserved.
Soul Songs, A Reflection on the Psalms
Soul Songs is a book of morning meditations! It is an easy read and I hope for you as much as it was for me, it will be an inspiration. Inspired by the Psalms, I wrote these morning meditations the summer of 2018. Each day I sat with the sun rising over my beloved river, surrounded by the wonder of creation and the psalms open before me. Here I was transported to a place of deep connection with the energy of the universe. As is often my reality, when I enter this place of holy mystery I am compelled to take pen in hand and the images translate into words, In the pages that follow I share with you the result of my journey.
Rev. Valerie Peyton Kingsbury