There is Love (Litany for Holy Trinity)

At the beginning of time, there was chaos and darkness- disordered nothingness

But that harsh environment, in the sharp edges of confusion and potential,

There was Love.

God’s own self existed- Truth does not exist in a vacuum.

There was a relationship within God that is beyond our imagination.

There was Love.

The Word of Life and the Shaping Spirit worked out the soil, the water, the plants, the animals.

The Eternal Creative birthed people for the sake of creation.

There was Love.

In the calling to co-create through farming, ranching, planting, cultivating, parenting,

Friending, building, dreaming, cooperating, and expanding,

There was Love.

Together, God’s own self revealed kin-dom in one way and then another.

Despite rebellion and rejection, brokenness and stubbornness, in the plan of Three in One

There was Love.

Oil and flour sustained. Wellsprings flowed in the desert. Prophets heard whispers.

Women dreamed and did not abandon hope. The tilling of the soil continued through generations.

There was Love.

God took on flesh. A necessary separation of powers,

deepening the relationship between the One in Three.

There was Love.

Healing. Teaching. Men. Women. Children. Water. Wind.

Words in the dirt. Voice in the air. Dove descending. Forgiveness. Forgiveness. Forgiveness.

There was Love.

Darkness. Death. Deep grief in the Eternal. Curtain torn in two.

Hush. Hush. Hush. There is nothing but patience. They wait. God waits. Earth sighs.

There was Love.

Bright! Bright! Up. Up. UP! Life reigns. There is no division. Of the same substance,

The same truth, the same eternal being. The omnipotent resurrection is the revelation of eternity.

There was Love.

Mystery in water. Mystery in bread. Mystery in the fruit of the vines.

Community. Communion. Consolation. Confusion. Correction. Capability. Creativity.

There was Love.

There is no explaining what was, is, and ever shall be.

There is trust. There is hope. There is God: Holy Parent, Holy Son, Holy Spirit.

There is Love.

Comments

When the Body of Christ is Fat

Bitmoji Julia enjoys tea Within a very short amount of time, two people whom I love were called "fat ass". One of these slurs occurred in the church building and the other occurred in the same building and within the context of worship. Both incidents were the result of a person with already impaired judgment lashing out at the person who was in front of them, perceiving them to be unhelpful or denying aid or service. Regardless of the "why", the reality is that the name was uncalled for, hurtful, and aimed to be a deep cut. The reality is that a person who is under the influence of legal or illegal substances and often displays impaired judgment can still tell that body shaming- comments about shape, appearance, or size- is a way to lash out at someone who is frustrating you. That means those words and that way of using them are deeply rooted in our culture. An additional truth is that when we, as a congregation, attempted to console and listen to those who h...

God on the Go Kits

Like many congregations, we have lots of members who travel during the summertime. They may spend three months fishing or camping or traveling or hiking or playing. Given Alaska's long daylight hours, making it back into town on Sunday morning or even Sunday night doesn't always happen. One could rail against that or one can ask for guidance in the Spirit for how to keep community and communion alive in these months of family and personal sabbath in the woods and wilderness. (Still, if you're in town, come on down!) Inspired by Take Out Church, I made "God on the Go" kits for the faithful Alaskan family with kids. The kits and all their contents fit into the 64 ounce Ziplock containers with the lid snapping snugly. This should keep things watertight and just-right-sized for throwing in a duffle bag, backpack or suitcase. Or pushing under the seat of the camper. Or having at the foot of a sleeping bag. I have included below the list of items inside and the...

God's Punctuation

We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. - Romans 8:28 Never place a period where God places a comma. - Gracie Allen Some of you may be familiar with the comedy duo of George Burns and Gracie Allen, who were active together in show business in the middle of the 20th century. George played the straight man to Gracie's comic timing. They were also married and had children. They were deeply in love. When Gracie was dying and George was deeply grieved, she wrote him a final love letter. One sentence that George shared from this letter was this, "George, never place a period where God places a comma." This was Gracie's way of reminding George that his life wasn't ending. There was a pause, but there would be more the sentence God was writing as the life of George Burns. That sentence, which may have been a proverb before Gracie wrote it, has taken on a life of its own. The United Ch...

Faith, Grace, and Hope

Search This Blog