15 August 2013

Holy Reverie: 14 August 2013

Holy Reverie is the weekly clergy column in Calvary's electronic newsletter, the e-Pistle.  Subscribe today!


In Denmark, on the very northern tip of Jutland, there is a sandy point named Grenen.  There you can watch the beachcombers, marvel at the fleets of fishing boats and massive container vessels tracing the horizon, or explore (if you dare) still-in-tact Nazi bunkers left over from World War II.  But, while scenic for many reasons, the most marvelous sight at Grenen is the ocean itself and the great waves and sprays made by two seas crashing into one another.  The spectacle, especially on a windy or stormy day, is breathtaking.  Take a live peak at Grenen.

Standing there several summers ago, one foot in the North sea, one foot in the Baltic sea, I was reminded of the majestic verses of praise from Psalm 104:
O Holy One, how manifold are your works;
In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures. 
Yonder is the great and wide sea
with its living things too many to number,
creatures both small and great. 
There move the ships,
and there is that Leviathan,
which you have made for the sport of it.
The parish offices are buzzing with final preparations for the Program Year.  I am so grateful for the work of Hilary Chipley and all of our Sunday School teachers who hosted an excellent Open House last Sunday.  I am equally grateful for Suzanne Darnell and Matt Seltzer and all of the members of the Adult Formation Committee for all of their hard work crafting an excellent slate of classes for our adults.  And that is only the tip of the iceberg!  From Ministry Matters to Pastoral Care Training to Confirmation Classes to Alpha, the activities and ministries going on in and through this place can seem like the sea at Grenen.  Not in a violent way (although sometimes we do crash into one another), but Calvary is blessed to be a place where a great variety of people can come together to create and empower and do great things.  We are capable of great deeds with God and as Christ’s Body in the world, we are participating in those manifold works, just as great as the natural wonders of the creation.

As we dive into another program year, I pray our work, our energies, and our passions reach their full potential and the power of this parish continues making God's love visible in downtown Memphis.

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