After a busy and beautiful Christmas season our city was blanketed with record snowfall that quieted the hum of typical activity. In the deep snow out my window the only footprints for days were from rabbits. I welcomed the chance to read, catch up on sleep, watch football while munching popcorn and sipping hot cocoa. The solitude arrived as a welcomed guest. Sometimes my Christian calling keeps me hopping to the next task but somehow the blizzard forced me to yank the parking brake on and just sit by the fire watching the falling snow. The accompanying plummeting temperatures granted permission to be enveloped by nature’s exquisite beauty.
But about four days into this winter surprise I was ready to leap back into communal life: in person meetings, lunches with friends, family gatherings and hallway conversations with my church colleagues. I missed the energy in between us. Some enlivening force awakens in me when conversing with other humans. Email and phone and Zoom are all good but the subtle nuances can get lost. (Yesterday we convened a staff joke telling session over zoom and I had flashbacks to covid when we all realized that zoom doesn’t allow you to hear everyone laugh at the same time). Whether it’s checking in at the YMCA with the very kind desk clerk or breaking fresh baked bread with friends, I sense something sacred unfolding in the gathered community.
The life of faith revealed in Jesus encourages us to practice both solitude and community. Finding the rhythm that fuels our faith may prove tricky. Jesus often withdrew for solitude and rest. And he often pressed on with the crowds pushing and pulling and demanding more. Our scriptures remind us to “Be still and know that I am God” and they nudge us to remember that “where two or three are gathered,” God is in the midst of us. One of the great gifts of our church is that you can find solitude here: in the Prayer Garden, the Prayer Room, the Sanctuary or Chapel. And you can find community here: over cookies, in a study or fellowship group, at the table or in a service project.
Blessings to you as you begin this new year,
Carla