Southpoint News January 5, 2017

“Work is Love Made Visible”

I found that phrase scribbled on the edge of an old notebook yesterday: “Work is love made visible.” It struck me as so true as I remembered the labor of the Christmas season. Mary’s labor in the manger? Love  made visible. Joseph’s careful attention to Mary’s needs as a young mother?  Love made visible. God’s work of becoming incarnate?  Love made visible.  Choosing Christmas presents, visiting family, cooking meals? Love made visible. For my Christmas present, I asked that my family would help me paint my bedroom furniture, and they did! More love made visible. I was so energized by their gift to me that we committed on Tuesday to painting Johanna’s room and Adam’s bedroom furniture. We worked non-stop for 17 hours, not stopping til their bedrooms were all done and put back together!  More love made visible!  What a lot of love is flowing into the world through ALL of our labor, yours and mine, the works of our hand! Yesterday I wrote the phrase at the top of my to do list: “Work is love made visible”, and then I dove in, trying to remember that even emails can be love made visible.  At the end of the day,  I had only worked my way through 2/3 of the list! My oh my, there is a lot to catch up on after Christmas!  My heart is bigger than the hours of my day.  Slightly disappointed by the really important things left undone, I wrote “Rest is loving myself” at the bottom of my unfinished to do list.  And then I went to bed. What does loving God look like, if not eagerly and trustingly participating in this steady flow back and forth between laboring and resting, working and playing, paddling and coasting?  If I allow this movement to be led by God, sustained by God, and companioned by God, then this flow also becomes my love of God, and the way that God loves me.  I share this with you in case you, like me, are just a bit overwhelmed by your to do list, aware that there is always more you could have done, would like to have done, either for yourself, or for God, or for others, at the end of each day. Be gentle with yourself as you enter back the routines of ordinary life while trying to live out your hopes for the New year.   Remember, at the end of the day, that you ARE enough, at least for God, even if others aren’t quite satisfied by your efforts.   Be patient with one another too, and see the love they ARE giving, even if it is not always as much as you would like, or in the form you’d like it to take.  Remember, at the end of the day, That God is also ENOUGH. There is always enough manna in the wilderness. This too is love.   Epiphany is upon us. Love is manifesting itself. There is much love flowing around us, in between us, more than we know, more than we can imagine. Lord, give us eyes to see.

EPIPHANY CALENDAR

January 8th:    11:15 am,  SUNDAY SERVICE – Speaker: Leah Kostamo
January 13th:  Youth, 6-8pm @ Jen and Andrews
January 15th:  11:15 am, SUNDAY SERVICE – Speaker: Anne Smith
January 22nd:  ALL OUT GATHERING GROUPS
January 27th:  Youth, 6-8pm @ Jen and Andrews
January 29th:  11:15, SUNDAY SERVICE – Speaker: Anne Smith

Prayers and Community News:

…Pray for our winter retreat @ Camp Tulahead February 10th-13th. Forms and checks are due January 15th!
…Pray for Matt and Roxy, Abi, Eli, and Mary as they adjust to their new life in Victoria, having moved Jan. 2nd.
…Pray for Shirley and Ron Baxter, Anne’s mom, as she undergoes surgery Jan. 12th.
…Anything you’d like me to include as prayer request or personal news in the next Southpoint News? Just send me an email, in the format you’d like it to appear.