Our gardens are planted, our pools are prepared
for the warm and lazy days to come, our campers are ready for the
road, our closets and garages have been cleared out, and plans for
our wonderfully unscheduled weeks of summer have at least been
sketched out.
As we take a break from our usual routines,
it’s important for us to keep in mind the ways in which St. Andrew’s
is “home” for all of us. Our worship together is the basis for our
friendships and our shared ministries in the community. It is the
starting point for our work and our play. Our shared reflections
and prayers transform our hopes and longings into practical plans
for sharing God’s love and abundance. In the give-and-take of our
various ministries we learn to open our hearts and minds to the
unexpected ways that God touches us through our companions.
In our busy schedule of church activities, we
can lose sight of the fact that the church is not just another
workplace. We can forget that we have come together not just to
do but to be. We can forget our promise: To deepen
our individual relationships with God, together.
I recently discovered this hymn by Cyril V.
Taylor, which I think expresses what we seek and offer at St.
Andrew’s. In your comings and goings during the coming weeks, may
the peace and strength that God grants us through each other remain
with you.
God is here! As we his People
Here our children find a welcome
Meet to offer praise and prayer;
In the Shepherd’s flock and fold.
May we find in fuller measure
Here, as bread and wine are taken,
What it is in Christ we share.
Christ sustains us, as of old.
Here, as in the world around us,
Here the servants of the Servant
All our varied skills and arts
Seek in worship to explore
Wait the coming of his Spirit
What it means in daily living
Into open minds and hearts.
To believe and to adore.
Judith+
