Celebrate † Invite † Restore
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LETTER FROM OUR RECTOR
Summer 2008
Returning Beauty to God
Returning Beauty to God
Now that summer has finally arrived in its full splendor, I have had the pleasure of spending more time outdoors. Whether it is taking my daily walk at six in the morning, weeding the garden, spending time swimming at the pool, or picking strawberries up at the Davenport farm, it has been great to be outside surrounded by more daylight and greenery. After the mission trip returns from Puerto Rico and Vacation Bible School is over, I, like some of you, am really looking forward to spending some time outdoors at the beach this summer. Walking along the shore, hearing the wave’s crash, picking up shells and stones, all remind me of the beauty of God’s world and the awesomeness of creation.
I came across this poem/prayer in the book, Women’s Uncommon Prayers: Our Lives, Revealed, Nurtured and Celebrated. It reminds me of our lives lived together here at Emmanuel: our spiritual beauty, our uniqueness, our blessed differences, the grace that helps us through the storms of life, our jagged edges smoothed in the journey to become even more beautiful offerings for God. I offer it here for your reflection.
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When first birthed
From its mother rock
Each stone was sharp, jagged, unbending
Now, eons of storms and pounding surf
Have rounded the edges,
Smoothed the surfaces.
Each stone different.
Some black, others white-
Speckled ones abound.
Many flat, more round-
Mica glitters from granite globes.
None shaped like its neighbor.
All together make one rocky beach-
A rough-hewn edge to the sea
Sparkled by the sun.
May one stone chosen from many
Be a reminder that we are each like these-
Born of the same Source.
Each is unique,
Each is being worn smooth
By the storms of life.
Together, with our various shapes,
Sizes, colors-our varied gifts-
We return beauty to God’s world.
By Susan Blanchard
May your summer be blessed with more time outside enjoying God’s creation.
May you find quiet, reflective times
in order to see your entire life as part of a greater whole.
Bask in the knowledge that your unique life,
lived faithfully in Christian community,
is a beautiful offering to God.
I am grateful for all of the beauty I see in all of you.
See you in church.
From its mother rock
Each stone was sharp, jagged, unbending
Now, eons of storms and pounding surf
Have rounded the edges,
Smoothed the surfaces.
Each stone different.
Some black, others white-
Speckled ones abound.
Many flat, more round-
Mica glitters from granite globes.
None shaped like its neighbor.
All together make one rocky beach-
A rough-hewn edge to the sea
Sparkled by the sun.
May one stone chosen from many
Be a reminder that we are each like these-
Born of the same Source.
Each is unique,
Each is being worn smooth
By the storms of life.
Together, with our various shapes,
Sizes, colors-our varied gifts-
We return beauty to God’s world.
By Susan Blanchard
May your summer be blessed with more time outside enjoying God’s creation.
May you find quiet, reflective times
in order to see your entire life as part of a greater whole.
Bask in the knowledge that your unique life,
lived faithfully in Christian community,
is a beautiful offering to God.
I am grateful for all of the beauty I see in all of you.
See you in church.
