Goodness Weekly 9.12.22
“God is here. We are loved. It is enough.”
― Kate Bowler, Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I've Loved
Message from Jess:
I recently stumbled on a Will Smith and Kate Winslet movie from 2016 called Collateral Beauty. We’ve heard the term collateral damage–the infliction of harm on something or someone other than the intended target—and some of us may have even seen the movie with the same name (starring Arnold Schwarzenegger from the early 2000s) but the idea of collateral beauty was new to me.
In the film, a woman is grappling with the final moments of her daughter’s life and a stranger in the hospital waiting room says, “Be sure to notice the collateral beauty.” If you followed our friend Taylor Bates’ social media after the loss of her son Ellis, this is a perfect example of the concept. Taylor searched daily for beauty in the middle of her grief, spotting rainbows that represented Ellis to her. The mother in the film was able, after a time, to begin to notice little bits of beauty around her and said once it started she was unable to not see them.
In my own experience of grief or trauma, I can attest to the reality that in the midst of our suffering God’s presence is tangible. In suffering we are living in a way that requires us to find hope purely for the ability to get out of bed in the morning. I fear if you’re like me, that we go through ordinary time on autopilot and we miss so much. We miss beauty, we miss connection, we miss God’s presence that is nearer to us than we can fathom.
In our liturgy and worship this week, we took the time to slow down, listen, and pay attention to what God was doing within us. We believe that God is actively at work in our world and deeply desires to bring our attention to that presence. We also believe that each of us is called to bring presence to the people in our path.
We can choose to seek out beauty, to share goodness, and to spread love and joy in our days. We can choose to find good in the most difficult person, to find grace in the hardest moments, and to come out of hiding and into the safety of the shelter of God’s mighty wing.
May we be people this week who actively, attentively work for a kinder and more beautiful world.
Join me in seeking beauty this week— naming it, and creating it. For the good of the world and to the glory of God.
Partner Update:
As we enter a new fall season and the rhythms of summer begin to fade, it’s a good time to reassess our own ways of doing things. For us, one of our values is being good stewards of the earth and we’re constantly working to make progress in that area.
One easy change you can make that has a big impact is becoming a Compost Queens member. They make urban composting super simple by taking care of all the dirty work for you—all you have to do is fill up your bucket with organic material including food scraps and paper goods and exchange the bucket at the nearest drop-off location. We’ve partnered with Compost Queens to offer a drop-off location on our campus.
Do your part to keep biodegradable material out of landfills and instead return it back to the earth where it can become regenerative soil!
Upcoming Events
Sunday, September 18th, 4:30pm Chapel Worship & Liturgy
Friday, September 23rd, 7:30pm Outdoor Worship: Root Beer & Hymns
Tuesday, September 13th, 9:00am Story Time on the lawn
Wednesdays at 7:30pm Youth Group at The Stirmans
Morning:
God of justice, you are already at work today
for those who are poor, marginalized, and disregarded.
Help me to see and to act upon
an opportunity to participate in your love and justice.
Strengthen me to pray and work without losing heart—
for goodness and mercy for all people.
Amen.
Evening:
God of mercy, I come to you now with my energy running low as the lights of the evening.
Like stars in the darkness, I send out my prayers for justice to you.
May this small effort of mine send a ray of hope, however faint,
to someone in the darkness of suffering, depression, or loneliness tonight.
I pray tonight for peace. Lord hear my prayer.
Amen.
