Happy Thanksgiving

-
D and I worshiped at the Thanksgiving Service at his church tonight. What a blessing! To be able to sit in that beautiful sanctuary (this is the church where we were married) and listen to a beautiful sermon, full of God's truth as I understand it, share a meal with good folks, oh! I felt God's presence and am grateful.

I do want to remember just a few of the many things for which I am grateful tonight:
  • my husband and my children-by-marriage, for my sister, niece, nephew and brother-in-law in South Carolina, for my brother and sister-in-law in Thailand, for my dear friends and other family members.

  • my church where, although it's been so tough lately, I have nevertheless been privileged to serve, where I have loved the people and the work of ministry, where I have had wonderful opportunities to do some creative programming, where the beauty of the building's sanctuary has nurtured me...and so much more.

  • technology and how it has allowed me to connect with some amazingly wise people via blogging.

  • the promise of First Congregational, UCC, to be a healthy place where God is worshiped and people are served, where confiict is handled creatively, where I can continue to grow spiritually.

  • prayer that connects us to God and to each other.

  • wise spiritual directors and counselors who work through love, and who help me see what is authentic about myself.

  • for D taking my hand as we prayed tonight at the Thanksgiving service.

  • for Hobbes, our cat ~ D adopted him as a kitten and loves him a lot.

  • so many other things, to numerous to mention here...
Happy Thanksgiving!

Comments

Rev SS said…
Happy Thanksgiving to you too! Blessings to you and First Cong UCC! Serena
November 21, 2007 at 1:33 AM
Stratoz said…
Good luck with those Utterly Confused Christians, you know those that want to come together, not splinter into more denominations. I was a UCCer for a few years when I returned to church 10 years ago and it was a great place to take my doubts and anger about Christianity and emerge on a journey of faith, joy, doubts, and anger.
November 21, 2007 at 5:56 AM
Jan said…
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family! Sorry I won't see you, but I'm glad to be home. Thank you for telling us your gratitudes. It's nice to peek into your life.
November 21, 2007 at 12:00 PM
RevDrKate said…
Happy Thanksgiving Katherine. Thanks for sharing your gratitude list. I'm grateful that you are in this blogworld and that our paths have crossed.
November 21, 2007 at 3:04 PM
Diane M. Roth said…
happy thanksgiving. A gratitude list is such a healing thing.
November 21, 2007 at 11:08 PM
Katherine E. said…
Yes, it is, Diane. Very much so.

Jan, I'm sorry you're not here, too, but I certainly understand about not wanting to make a long drive like that.

Serena, Kate, Wayne, thanks for commenting. Happy Thanksgiving TO YOU ALL!
November 22, 2007 at 8:52 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"The Bible does not close discussions; it seeks to open them"

-
From William Sloan Coffin in The Courage to Love: The opposite of love is not hate but fear. If we are to broaden our vision and enlarge our hearts, we must allow risk to enter our lives, permit doubt to walk hand in hand with belief. It is a mistake to sharpen our minds by narrowing them. It is a mistake to look at the Bible to close a discussion--the Bible seeks to open one.... The Bible is no oracle to be consulted for specific advice on specific problems; rather, it is a wellspring of wisdom about the ambiguity, inevitability, and the insolubility of the human situation. It sings praises to God who...provides minimum protection but maximum support.... Finally, the Bible is a signpost, not a hitching post. It points beyond itself, saying "Pay attention to God, not me." And if, as the Bible claims, "God is love, and she who abides in loves abides in God, and God abides in her," then revelation is in the relationship. In all Scripture there is no injunction more fu...
Read more

Mother's Day...and Children Everywhere, It Seems!

-
Image
Diane has such a beautiful post, " Mother's Day Reflections from a Non-Mother. " She expresses so eloquently much of my own feelings. Thank you, Diane. I blogged last year about the grief I finally was able to experience at not being a mother. (See: Two Souls ) And I was so blessed to receive comments from dear Lovely Passionate Feminist and from blogging friends that, to this day, have stayed with me and given me such solace. LPF, GannetGirl, Linda, Jan, thank you. (GG, I am holding you in prayer, holding you in prayer, holding you in prayer...) This past year I have seen mothering in new ways. Although I am childless, children are playing an increasing role in my life. The children at my church, to whom I am "Pastor Katherine," are amazing. I'm with them for a couple of hours once a week, but many have revealed their hearts to me. It's probably the best thing about my "job," relating to these children, loving them. This picture shows some of ...
Read more

Returning?

-
Giving birth has always been a powerful metaphor for me. Not that I relate it to physical pregnancy, but since I started awakening, 20 years ago now, in my early thirties, I could feel the creative element in life moving within me, making me something new. I'm listening to Jennifer Berezan's CD, "Returning." She chants throughout: returning, returning, returning to the Mother of us all... This music is haunting, smoky, with rhythms that sink to the beginning of time itself. She recorded the music is a subterranean temple/tomb used by the Neolithic people of Malta. The 3-level labyrinth has 33 chambers, stairs, passageways, all carved out of the limestone with flint and antler tools. Some of the chambers, 5.25 meters beneath the surface, are egg shaped. Maybe now you can begin to imagine the haunting quality of this elegant sound. Our local public radio station aired an interview yesterday with a scientist who is using DNA markers to track human populations movements ...
Read more