We Need Each Other
 
TED is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks. TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged and today it covers almost all topics. In 2017, Pope Francis gave a TED talk where he said:
 
“First and foremost, I would love it if this meeting could help to remind us that we all need each other. None of us is an island, an autonomous and independent ’I,’ separated from the other, and we can only build the future by standing together, including everyone.”

In Genesis 7, we hear of God making His covenant with Noah and his sons. It is the story of a man who built an ark and took every kind of animal and plant aboard. A flood of water came on the Earth — a purging baptism. Only Noah, his family and the living things on the Ark survived.

It could be said of Noah that he endured. He endured the 40 days of rain, the 10 months it took the water to recede and the months it took the Earth to dry. He weathered the storm. When we go through difficult times, when we feel we are being tested and if we hold on to our trust in God, we will see the full effect of God’s grace, mercy and love.

Noah also obeyed. He did what God told him despite everything. He took the animals and plants on board. How did he feed all those animals for such a long period? It had to be with God’s help. God’s help is available to us as we sail through the storms of life as well.

Because Noah endured and obeyed, God provided for his needs. Through His covenant with Noah and his descendants, God makes a promise to keep and not destroy every living thing ever again, and He gives us a visible sign of His promise. That sign is a rainbow. The thing about a rainbow is that it is born out of the rain as well as the sunshine. If that is true of a simple rainbow, how much more is it true for our lives? We need each other just as the rainbow needs the rain and sun.

Do not forget it is a promise of God that He will walk with you. And remember that we all need each other.
The Rev. Gill B. Keyworth
Deacon, Pastoral Care
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