The Bungee Cord  -  9/21/20

Hello,

 

Psalm 150

Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
   praise him in his mighty firmament! 
Praise him for his mighty deeds;
   praise him according to his surpassing greatness! 

Praise him with trumpet sound;
   praise him with lute and harp! 
Praise him with tambourine and dance;
   praise him with strings and pipe! 
Praise him with clanging cymbals;
   praise him with loud clashing cymbals! 
Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!

Yesterday was a crisp September day, but not too crisp to keep us from having out worship service outside.  Hardy folks, these people.  Bundled up.  Sat in the sun.  And gathered together in thanks and praise to God for showering us with endless love and care.

 

But we weren’t the only ones praising God on this cool, sunny morning.  As I stood on the sidewalk waving to folks, I had some company. Squirrels, about a dozen of them. There’s a big oak tree that stands in front of the church, and as I was waving I could hear the acorns and shells falling to the ground in a chattering shower of praise.  Tap.  Tap. Tap.  A acorn-ic anthem of praise from some of God’s creatures.  Praising God for the food that God had given them. Praising God for the agility to reach those acorns.  Praising God for a harvest to carry them through the winter.

 

“Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!”

 

The soft praise of those squirrels fell loudly on my ears as I am trudging through these Covid months. The daily onslaught of the virus has a way of dampening life’s delight and making every day feel burdensome and heavy. The isolation that has been part of dealing with this virus has put roadblocks in the way of getting together with friends. The future carries an ominous echo reverberating caution and fear.

 

But thanks to the squirrels whose acorn-ic praise opened my ears and eyes to the truth that even in the midst of these days, God has provided me, as God has provided the squirrels, my daily bread, and in the chilling wind of the virus’ fetch of destruction, God has blanketed me with a divine promise that not even Covid has the power to separate me from God’s love.

 

The goodness and graciousness of God is indeed, far more powerful and prevalent than the struggles the world can throw our way.   It is there for us to see…hanging right in front of us, like acorns….hanging on the cross, hanging from kitchen cabinets, hanging from elbow bumps with friends, hanging from phone calls from people checking in on us, hanging from an e-mail from a friend who misses us, hanging from sunsets painting the evening sky…….  It is true.  The goodness and graciousness of God is far more powerful and prevalent than the struggles the world can throw our way.  It is just sometimes hard to see it under the world’s siege.

 

So…as the Psalmist says, “Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!”  Including squirrels.  Including you and me.

 

Have a great week.

God’s grace and peace, (ggap)

Pastor Jerry Nuernberger