Then You Will Know
August 5, 2022
“I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live,
and I will place you on your own soil;
then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act,
says the Lord.”
~Ezekiel 37:14
I am so grateful to be home and with you all again! Sunday was a wonderful day of worship. Over the last weeks I have worshipped in elaborate cathedrals around the world but as Dorothy said in the Wizard of Oz, I believe that there is no place like home! I know you would agree with me that we are certainly blessed to have such a loving and caring church family.
Throughout my travels I saw first-hand the love and the work of God. I want to share just one occurrence with you. While I was in Oxford, I went to an antique bookstore that had a great number of theology books. It was a dream!
While in the store I found a copy of a book that I have always loved. The book is The Imitation of Christ and it was written by Thomas à Kempis. I have always kept a copy in the top drawer of my desk. The copy at the bookstore was one that had come from the St. Benedict Priory and had belonged to the nuns of Our Lady of Good Hope in the 1800s. I admired the book and put it back.
While in the store I met a woman who was as enthralled with the books of the bookstore as I was. We had a nice conversation, and then she checked out and left. A little while later I, too, needed to get going. As I began to leave, the proprietor stopped me and said that the woman had paid for book I was admiring and asked him to give it to me after she left. It was an act of kindness, of generosity and love. It is the language of love that we are called on to learn and to speak as children of God. It is the language of our God.
God speaks and God acts through and around us each and every day, uttering this language of love. Serving as witness to these words and acts is our privilege as children of God. We then have the privilege of sharing the testimony that comes from our witness. This act of sharing brings more light into the world.
Be attentive to all that happens around you so that you can serve as witness to acts of love around you. Be willing to share these with others that they, too, can know that the Lord has indeed spoken and acted. Bring light into the world!
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Caroline