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Praise the Lord! I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation. – Psalm 111:1
Today is the first Sunday we are offering in-person worship since the beginning of this global pandemic. For the first time, some will gather together in the sanctuary, with the congregation to worship God together.
I know that many of you will not be with us in person, and I truly understand, respect your decision, and love you where you are. For those who will join us, please help us to keep each other safe, check in, and wear your mask.
I am grateful that God’s wonderful works will be among us no matter where we are, today. I know that God is meeting us with blessings anew, and our hearts will be uplifted with praise because it is another day that we are alive and have the opportunity to let God’s blessings overflow with joy. My hope is that we can spread that joy. I think we all could use a little joy- spreading around the world right now. Like many, I have a hard time keeping a positive outlook, I get worried about what is happening in our nation, I forget that a positive attitude can be simply changing perspective, and I have my bad days like anyone else. Those days have certainly been hard this year, and they seem to have been closer together than in other years. Sometimes, we might wonder if it will ever get better, but then I have this glimmer of hope.
That hope might be in a tight hug around my neck from my daughter, it might come in seeing my son’s learn a new skill, it might come from reading, or simply feeling God’s presence in the midst of prayer. There are so many things that are in this life in which we can still find joy. There are so many things in which we can still give God praise. We may be praising him in the midst of hurricane type storm, but God still deserves the praise.
The psalmist reminds us that the wonderful works of God are never ceasing, and even if we might not see them in our lives at the moment, when the congregation gathers we shall know, because someone will have a blessing in which to share. So, to help share joy today, find a way to share a blessing with others, make a phone call, smile, wave, send a text or an email. Let someone know that they are blessing today, and even if you aren’t physically present in the congregation, let them know we are all still present with God’s congregation in this world below, looking forward to join the one above, to ever sing in His Awesome Presence.
Grace & Peace,
Sam