The coming celebration of Holy Communion stands in stark contrast to the reading this coming Sunday, which is the continuing saga of Jacob. He is in another mess - wanting what he wants, and again, not waiting for God to work in his life. The story is from Genesis 29: 15-28.
I share these stories with you each week because they remind us of our human frailty, and vulnerability, in a world that demands quick answers and efficient response. Jacob's world did, too. Not much has changed. All that has changed is the way in which we communicate the unrealistic expectations we have of ourselves, and each other.
God does not have these expectations. God just wants us to "lean on the everlasting arms."
All of this reflection has brought me to another thing happening this Sunday; we are sharing the old, old hymns a little more, I have noticed. And one of them is "Tell me the Stories of Jesus".
Telling the story of Jesus is all we are about here.
Hearing these stories, and then sharing them with a world that is lost in the crush of materialism and competition for success - that is our mission.
I wish you peace in these gentle summer days. I look forward to being by the sea on Vancouver Island, where I will be from the 3rd to the 10th of August.
Till then, I continue to visit with great joy. Your hospitality is endless.
I remember the old song that Carol Burnett used to sing: "I'm so glad we had this time together, just to have a laugh and sing some songs, seems we just got started and before you know it, comes the time we have to say 'so long'."
But we never do say 'so long'. We live in God's time, which is eternity. God is the centre of our lives, and I continue to thank you for showing me the love of the Divine in my time here.
Peace be yours, Rev Jackie: Supply Minister
Rachel & Leah: Broken by "tradition" but held by God.
