We are the Light!

Today is Family Sunday so we will gather for lunch after our gathering this morning to share some time as a community of faith. Everyone is welcome to come and join us.

We will be reading the story of the Transfiguration today and trying to find the relevance for us in our lives today. This is one of those stories that we are not quite sure what to make of. Did it happen? Does it matter? What is important for us when we read it? Do we every have experiences like this? These are the questions I asked myself this past week as I was trying to figure out what to say this week. What I discovered is that we all have times when we feel a sense of the sacred very close to us and other times where we don't feel anything at all. Either way we have lots to offer one another and ourselves. We all have light and love in us and it is that light and love that helps bring the sense of the sacred closer in our living. My friend Kim reminded me of a Leonard Cohen song called Anthem which I used to think of all the time when I was feeling down but haven't thought of in a long time. However, it has very powerful words for us to learn from. The chorus has these words:

Ring the bells that still can ring,
forget your perfect offering,
there's a crack in everything,
That's how the light gets in.

These words just remind me that I am a vessel of light to everyone I meet, I just need to stop trying to be perfect all the time and allow the light to shine from me in whatever I am doing. It also gives me comfort that when I am having a very hard time, that same light can enter whatever I am doing and remind me that I am part of the light. None of us are perfect but it is in our trying to be all that we can be when our light shines the brightest. So go, shine your light, be the best YOU, you could ever be.

Have an amazing Sabbath!

Time Outs!

It has been very quiet in the MacNaughton household this week since our baby grandson and daughter went home. We are missing them already. It is amazing how quickly you get used to having a baby around again. I miss his giggles in the morning. They are home safe and sound and reunited with Cody and Hannah. Can't wait until July when we see them again. All of you who have access to your children and grandchildren consider yourselves very lucky and give them a hug and tell them you love them often. I so wish I could do this.

Anyway, it is a beautiful day outside, the coffee is on, the church is warm so come and join us and find out what "Time Out" means for you. When was the last time you were given a time out, or perhaps handed one out to someone yourself? Is this the way of punishment or a way of renewal? Let's explore this together today in church.

Family

Well this week has been a wonderful one. My daughter, Amy and my grandson, Xander are here visiting. Sadly they leave tomorrow. It has been so wonderful having them here. What fun to have a baby in the house for a visit. I am hopeful my daughter Tracey will make the trek next. It is a long trip from Nova Scotia to Saskatchewan and not particularly flight friendly There are no direct flights from Halifax to Saskatoon or Regina. So Amy and I spent some time visiting, cooking, and quilting. Amy made her first quilt and completed it. It is ready to go home except for the label which we will put on it today. So not only do I get to visit with my oldest daughter and youngest grandson, I also get to spend some time teaching her my favourite pass time, Quilting.

So this week in church we are going to look at the gospel of Mark and talk about what it is that sets people free. Do we have demons in us that need to be liberated. The story in scripture today tells of Jesus setting a man free from an unclean spirit that has been part of his life. The surprise to me is no surprise from the folks in the story. The thing that shocks them is the authority that Jesus seems to have to be able to exorcise an unclean spirit. This was something only the children of Gods or archangels could do. So as well as a story about liberation, it is also a story about honour and authority which was a very important thing in the time of Jesus. As westerners we don't understand that culture, but still today in parts of the middle east, honour and authority are totally important. You must do things correctly so as not to offend another person. Perhaps that is why Jesus was always getting himself into so much conflict, he didn't give a hoot about authority or honour. He went against the societal norms of his time to do what he felt was just and loving. Are we living that way today? Is there more we could be doing? Maybe we should spend some time thinking about what it is we do in our lives to make the lives of others around us better.

So come and join us for coffee before church and our service, enjoy the music, talk and fellowship of our service. All are welcome!