_{^{Get up and eat. Otherwise the journey will be too much for you.  1 Kings 19:7}}                                                                             

_{^{These are words from our reading this week. Elijah, the prophet, is running for his life and has decided he has had enough. He lays down in the wilderness and wishes to die. But an angel appears, gives him sustenance and then moves him along on his way. I am not sure where everyone else is with the latest Covid variant, but after many months of feeling hopeful I open the newspaper and feel “done,” much like Elijah. I just want to lay down and say “enough.” And there are days I do that. But then, also like Elijah, I have angels break through into my world and “feed” me. Sometimes it is literally with food. Other times it is with a phone call, a listening ear, or encouraging words. Because this journey is not over - God has more for us to do. And there are hopeful things ahead. This reading reminds me that it is okay to feel “done.” It is okay to feel tired and even like giving up. But it also reminds me that we were not meant to stay in that place. That there will be angels along our way to help us, if we let them. And that there is more that we were meant to journey into. So, rest if you need to. Then, let the angels wait on you when they come. And be an angel for someone else when you can. The journey will never be too much for us if we rely on the gifts of God in our lives.}}

_^Peace,                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

 _{^{Pr. Nicole}}

We recently held our confirmation service. It was a lovely – and very hot - day! We were worshipping outside, of course, and while other Sundays people have been fighting for the spots in the sun, on this day everyone parked their chairs under the big shade tree right in front of the building. This caused a bit of a dilemma because the altar was facing straight ahead and the people were all sitting off to the side. After a moment of panic, thinking, “Wait, they can’t sit there. They are supposed to sit in front of the altar, because that is where the confirmation students’ chairs are set up,” I realized how silly I was being. The confirmation students’ chairs were moveable! And all I needed to do was pick up the table we are using as an altar and face it towards the people. We faced a different direction this Sunday, and it was a beautiful service. So often we assume things have to be a certain way and we panic a bit when they are not. But in those moments even a tiny shift in the way we see things can make a big difference. I only had to move the table 45 degrees. It was no big deal. And what really mattered on this day was the fact that we were all there to worship God and to celebrate with these wonderful young people. COVID has caused us to shift in many ways. Some of those ways have been uncomfortable. But I hope it has also taught us what is important. I hope it has given us a new perspective. And I hope it helps us to know that so many things we get wrapped up in God probably shrugs her shoulders at, instead asking us what really matters. As we emerge from COVID I pray we have the eyes, hearts and spirits to keep thinking about what really matters and to help each other remember that the chairs and altar might just be moveable when we get wrapped up in the rest.

 Peace,                                         

Pr. Nicole