Sadness, June 18
I am so blessed to share an hour with several from our congregation on Thursday evenings as we travel the journey of the Psalms. We began at the end of May, reading a Psalm a day, and will read most of the 150 Psalms by the time we finish in mid-August. Each week, we read a selection of Psalms grouped together around a theme. This week, the theme was sadness.
Oh no! Sadness! Who wants that? But, sadness comes for all of us, whether we want it to or not. As our group read this week’s Psalms, the psalmist carried our burdens of pain, frustration, disappointment, betrayal, grief, and heartache. Consider these few verses from Psalm 69:
1 Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck.
2 I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me.
3 I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God.
How grateful I am that the Psalms are a resource for the range of human emotion and experiences. When they grace our life of faith, they make a way for us to bring all of our feelings to God. As timing would have it, this has been a sad week for me.
I am saddened to tell you that I received Hannah Phillip’s letter of resignation as the Media Manager at Faith UMC. Hannah supports efforts to eliminate discrimination and oppression of the LGBTQ communities and the black communities. Hannah is ready to belong to a congregation that supports a stronger witness and action toward diversity, equity and inclusion.
Hannah has made extraordinary contributions to our staff and our congregation in her six years with us. Specifically, we couldn’t have made it through the pandemic without her leadership. We will feel her loss but pray God’s blessings on her and on her family with her spouse, Ethan.
If you would like to thank Hannah for a particular contribution she has made in your life or in your relationship with God, we are inviting you to mail a card of support to the church, attention of Hannah Phillips. Please mail them by June 30 and we’ll take them to Hannah right after the July 4th holiday. Hannah remains on staff with us through the end of the month, but will be in and out as she transitions her duties to others.
Last Saturday, I was with our 2nd and 3rd graders as we closed out three days of Faithcation. I asked them what their least favorite part of the day had been and they all said, “We don’t want Faithcation to end!” Friends, I remind us that life has seasons. We can hold onto the season that has passed, but it will pass anyway.
The hope I offer you on this Friday morning is that God is in the redemption business. From the torn and tattered shreds of our sadness, God can weave a lovely covering of grace. May it be so.
From the place of tears and rainbows,
