In “Circle of Grace,” one of my favorite artists and authors, Jan Richardson, wrote a blessing she titles “Blessing When the World Is Ending” (a blessing for those moments in our lives when it feels that the world is ending):
“[This blessing] is here simply because there is nothing a blessing is better suited for than an ending, nothing that cries out more for a blessing than when a world is falling apart.
“This blessing will not fix you, will not mend you, will not give you false comfort; it will not talk to you about one door opening when another one closes.
“It will simply sit itself beside you among the shards and gently turn your face toward the direction from which the light will come, gathering itself about you as the world begins again.”
We can choose to let our light shine, to use the gifts we’ve been given, to be a positive presence, to love. We can choose to be about bridge-building and healing. We can choose not to let fear find a permanent home in our hearts, not let it rule our lives.
This message is excerpted from “Making the new year as good as it can be” by Sonia C. Solomonson from the January 11, 2021, blog of the Women of the ELCA. Today we commemorate Lydia, Dorcas and Phoebe, witnesses to the faith.
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