Beloveds,
Last year, the Mental Health team decided that we would coordinate three services each year that are devoted in some way to the mental health ministry of this community. In the cold, dark months of winter we’d have a service focused on providing comfort and solace, most recently we’ve attempted that through our Longest Night service. In the spring as the world awakens, and the NAMI walk approaches, we would hold a service dedicated to raising awareness about mental health challenges and energizing our advocacy. Our fall service, we decided, would be focused on grounding and re-centering, because it’s easy to feel a little off-kilter in the fall. The seasons are changing, the daylight hours are fewer and farther between, for those of us who are students or work in schools our daily rhythms are changing, it’s hurricane season, it’s election season, the days are getting colder, need I go on?
We find ourselves a bit in the wilderness this time of year, and a journey through the wilderness often carries with it more than enough anxiety to go around. When the Israelites were deep in the wilderness, afraid that God had abandoned them, they cast a golden statue of a calf to serve as their new God. We all have our own ‘golden calves’ that we impulsively turn to when our anxiety is high enough, but they often leave us feeling…still anxious.
What did the Israelites learn from their experience? What does that mean for us? How do we ground ourselves when there is so much…stuff… going on around us, nipping at our heels?
Join us in worship on Sunday morning at 11am in the Sanctuary or on our YouTube channel to learn, pray, sing, and ground ourselves in community together. It won’t be the same without you.
In faith,
Amy
Image credit: Sefira Lightstone
