Today’s Word from Pastor Jim…
“Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say rejoice… for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances, I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” The Apostle Paul
“Keep your thoughts positive because your thoughts become your words. Keep your words positive because your words become your behavior. Keep your behavior positive because your behavior becomes your habits. Keep your habits positive because your habits become your values. Keep your values positive because your values become your destiny.” Mahatma Ghandi
My grandfather’s sister, Alice Lindus, was a strong Norwegian woman who had been raised on a farm. She married Louie Lee and gave birth to my cousin David. My Aunt Alice would greet me and my siblings each week at the Sunday School opening at Trinity Lutheran Church in DeKalb, Illinois. She would hold our checks in her weathered hands, give us a kiss, and speak good news to us: “Aunt Alice loves you, and Jesus loves you.” I probably found this practice a little annoying as a boy, but it made a profound impact on my life.
My Uncle Louie was struck and killed by a train. The gravel roads that crisscrossed the farm fields of Northen Illinois were not well marked. There were no warning lights or indicators of approaching trains. Aunt Alice became a single mother quite suddenly, her husband and the bread winner of the family was laid to rest in the family burial plot. Her life was shaken, her faith was not.
David, her only child, would be raised to adulthood before being diagnosed with cancer. It was a brave fight, the prayers of faithful Lutherans ascended to heaven on David’s behalf, but some diseases lead to death. My Aunt Alice would stand once again at graveside as Pastor Thompson read the 23rd Psalm: “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want…. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil, for thou art with me…. Your goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.”
Alice Lee was an inspiration to me. She was there when I was baptized, confirmed, married, and ordained. She would always greet me with a kiss and a smile. In her final years, she lost her eyesight. Now blind, she could no longer live in her apartment. She was moved to the County Home—the Poor Farm as it was known in DeKalb, Illinois.
My father and I went to visit her there. We checked in at the nursing station. The nurse said, “She is in room 24, but good luck finding her; she is never in her room.” When we did track her down, the old, blind widow who buried her only son, was sitting with another resident, sharing laughter and a prayer.
She told us that there were so many lonely people in the County Home, she had decided that the best way that she could serve was to make the rounds each day and visit the residents. She smiled and gave me a kiss. She asked me about the church I served. When it was time to leave, she reminded me that she loved me and Jesus loved me.
On our beloved Whidbey Island, not unlike the County Home, there are many who are lonely, seemingly forgotten, longing for connection. There are many who have experienced the loss of loved ones and independence. And at this contentious time in our country there is considerable anxiety among our neighbors. But we need not be defined by what we have lost, or the fears that plague us. We are not alone as we walk through life or through the valley of the shadow of death. We can choose an attitude of gratitude. We can count blessings and ride through these difficult days knowing that better days are coming.
Some quotes for your day:
“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” Oscar Wilde
“It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” Epictetus
“Two things define you: your patience when you have nothing and your attitude when you have everything.” George Bernard Shaw
Blessed to be a Blessing, I am your,
Pastor Jim
PS: If you would like to respond directly to Pastor Jim, please email [email protected].
