“My soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol.”
My wife, Laura, took a class on Scripture interpretation this summer, and at the beginning of a lecture on psalms of lament the professor read from Psalm 88. In her written response to the lecture, my wife commented on how life-giving and soul-refreshing were the words of the psalm. Laura’s colleagues were startled by her response: “How can lament such as Psalm 88 be life-giving and soul-refreshing?” In a summer of family tragedy, and with her family living in Houston, and with my family living in Florida, she found the unflinching, unapologetic honesty of Scripture to be the balm in Gilead.
“I am shut in so that I cannot escape, my eyes grow dim with sorrow.”
This week I had the privilege of meeting the new class of Young Adult Volunteers (YAVs). One of the YAVs, Leah Bishop, asked my thoughts about the pain and suffering they had already encountered, even in their first week: parents locked in detention centers, homeless families, the list continued, even as they knew they would bear witness to more pain and more suffering. Our conversation swirled around the notion that the Christian life invites a cruciform spirituality. In Christ, through Christ, and with Christ, we do not avoid the darkness but move through it to encounter the light. We do not escape brokenness but accompany it - within ourselves and others - trusting we are accompanied by Golgatha’s most famous resident who himself bore our suffering. One expression of cruciform living is the ability to rise to the occasion in times of crisis, to allow the Spirit’s life to be expressed as tangible compassion. As a people, we respond.
This week I had the privilege of meeting the new class of Young Adult Volunteers (YAVs). One of the YAVs, Leah Bishop, asked my thoughts about the pain and suffering they had already encountered, even in their first week: parents locked in detention centers, homeless families, the list continued, even as they knew they would bear witness to more pain and more suffering. Our conversation swirled around the notion that the Christian life invites a cruciform spirituality. In Christ, through Christ, and with Christ, we do not avoid the darkness but move through it to encounter the light. We do not escape brokenness but accompany it - within ourselves and others - trusting we are accompanied by Golgatha’s most famous resident who himself bore our suffering. One expression of cruciform living is the ability to rise to the occasion in times of crisis, to allow the Spirit’s life to be expressed as tangible compassion. As a people, we respond.
“They surround me like a flood all day long; from all sides they close in on me.”
Many of you have reached out to the presbytery asking about our denominational response to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. You want to respond! Let us also remember the fires in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Washington, and California. And, yes, help is needed and your response will be appreciated. Here is the good word from Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, which is funded through your gifts to the One Great Hour of Sharing:
- Put together Gift of the Heart kits, especially hygiene or clean-up buckets: pda.pcusa.org/page/kits.
- Contact the PDA Call Center about volunteer opportunities: 866-732-6121.
- Give directly to the crisis of your choice: pda.pcusa.org
- Stay aware by getting connected: Facebook.com/PDACARES.
“O Lord, God of my salvation...incline your ear to my cry.”
Grace and peace,
Brad Munroe
Another good one Brad! Very timely!
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