“When the Lord restores the fortunes of the people,
Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad” Psalm 14:7
Reflection: I love the Church. Sometimes as an institution it has been awkward, foolish, hurtful, and abusive. I have suffered because of it. Sometimes it has lost its way and forgotten its purpose. I have gotten caught up in its trivia. Yet eventually the sin in it weakens and dies away. Ultimately the truth in it gains strength, lives on and grows new life. In fact new life springs up in spite of the Church and solely because God’s Spirit chooses to work through the gathering of imperfect humans in Christ’s name—of which I am one. I look at my congregation and the congregations around me. Something old is dying and something new is happening. I am not sure where I fit in except as a midwife. I honor the best of the old with gratitude. I celebrate the new with joy and tentative hope. And I content myself with being a part of a transition of which I will not see the ending. My call is to rejoice; my hope is to be glad that none of this is in vain. I love the Church…and love its Lord more.
Suggestions: (For those of you who like to comment directly on this blog, the comment feature had been inadvertently turned off. It is now reset to accept comments after approval. You may also comment, of course, on the Facebook link.)
1. Take this verse with you and ponder its meaning for you throughout the day. What do you notice? What do you wonder? (Clicking on photo enlarges it.)
2. Or read all of Psalm 14 to discover how this verse fits into the psalm.
3. Or comment with a photo of your own that illustrates this verse’s meaning for you.
Tomorrow’s verse: Psalm 15:1
Starting January 1, 2016, for 150 days I am posting a daily psalm verse with a photo that is a visual meditation on the text for me. Each day a verse from the next psalm is chosen until all 150 psalms have been featured. To participate you may subscribe to my blog at https://elainedent.net or “friend” me on Facebook and watch for the daily links to blog posts. Disclaimer: I am not a photographer and most of the photos are from a cell phone or small camera while hiking the Appalachian Trail or the C&O Canal/Great Allegheny Passage Trail.
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