Gathering Graces 3/22/2020 Finding Sanctuary

It is Sunday, and many churches closed their doors and broadcast their services online.  Our leadership at church went back and forth and decided to keep our doors open.  Partly because right now we have a unique congregation.  We are small.  Our sanctuary is big.  And we would rather have the members of our congregation come together in our sanctuary where it has been cleaned, we are spread out, and everyone knows one another.  I am glad we gathered together this morning.  It felt good to have some connection with people I love.  It was good to have a time of worshiping God together.  One of the people in our congregation celebrated her 93rd birthday today, and was able to spend some time surrounded by people she loved in a place she loved.  We sang "Happy Birthday" to her.  No hugs or hand shakes were shared this morning.  Everyone kept their distance from one another.  But connection was made.  People were encouraged to check on one another throughout the week.  We had 17 people in the service this morning, representing 9 households.  We created a sanctuary that was needed.  Others across our valley also created their own sanctuaries in their homes as they took advantage of the incredible technology we now possess and worshiped with their church in an online format.  But that was not what worked for us.  We gathered together this morning. And it was good.  

Psalm 134 says:

"Praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord who minister by night in the house of the Lord.
Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the Lord.
May the Lord bless you from Zion, he who is the Maker of heaven and earth."

Right now we need a sanctuary, a place of refuge and safety.  For many it is their home.  For others it is sitting next to a campfire on their river place.  It may be a walk along a river.

Paul, Zoe and I found sanctuary walking along the river today.

I

I also find sanctuary walking around in my backyard, watching it come alive and change from day to day.  One thing I discovered was a rose bush growing.  Last fall my friend Ann told me to take some cuttings from the climbing rose in her garden and put the cuttings in the dirt under a mason jar, and they will start growing in the spring.  It worked!!  I have leaves on one of the cuttings!!

There is a song we used to sing at church called "Sanctuary".  As I was writing this, it kept going through my head, but I couldn't quite remember how it went.  Ah, the joy of YouTube, where you can find almost any song that is playing in your head.  This song talks about how we, too, can be a living sanctuary.  I love this version of Jessie Dixon singing "Sanctuary".  Now I am asking myself, how can I be a sanctuary in such a time as this?

Gathering Graces 3/21/2020 Wood Gathered and Car Stolen

Earlier this year our friends John and Teresa let us come and get some wood on their property after they had cut down some trees.  John called Paul yesterday and asked if he wanted to come and haul some more wood out.  Paul said yes, so he borrowed Christy and Everett's pickup and went to cut, haul and load wood.

Once the wood arrived at the house, Paul would throw it out on the ground, and Zoe and I started stacking so Paul could store it later.

In the midst of stacking, Zoe said this reminded her of the show "Doomsday Preppers" and show I am not familiar with, but apparently they store all kinds of items and get a score on how prepared they are.  We are not even close to Doomsday Prepper status.

As we were unloading load #2, we got a call from our youngest daughter Cosette saying her car had been stolen from the parking lot of her apartment complex sometime between 6 p.m. Friday and 1:30 p.m. Saturday.  She had lost her only set of car keys about two weeks ago, and had been unable to use it since then.  She just told us this on Friday.  And then, all of a sudden, the car is stolen.  She notified the police.  We are hoping and praying it is recovered.  Join us in prayers for the recovery of her car.

Paul and Cosette on the day we delivered her car to Moscow.

I have various bones in the freezer that I have kept in anticipation of making bone broth.  Today I took out two bags of Prime Rib bones from the freezer and roasted them for about 45 minutes in the oven.  Then I put them in the Crockpot, and added onions, celery, carrots, herbs, spices, apple cider vinegar and some filtered water, and set it on low, and it will simmer for about five days.  The smell is wonderful.

Today some of my high school friends who are all apart of a group text were checking in with one another to see how everyone was doing.  Two of my friends live in Western Washing, one in the heart of Seattle and one in Lake Stevens.  They are both doing okay.  The rest of us live in North Idaho/Eastern Washington area.  The subject of toilet paper came up in our discussion, and how we can't understand the hoarding of the toilet paper.  The subject of using leaves came up, and I shared a post one of my friends had put on Facebook regarding the toilet paper shortage, and some natural alternatives.

We supported a local restaurant today by ordering Chinese food from Wah Hing this evening.  We enjoyed our meal of Pot Stickers, Hong Kong Lo Mein, General Tong Chicken and Kung Pao Shrimp, with Hot and Sour soup.  When I was looking online to see what options we had, it looks like one of the delivery trucks that provide restaurant with food will not be delivering this next week.  I hope these businesses won't totally be cut off from food, because, if they are still able to provide take out options, it can really help keep their business afloat for a while.

I did a tour of the gardens today, and I love seeing what is starting to bud out.  The forsythia, the willow bushes, the roses, all have buds.

I took Saturday and Sunday morning off from teaching my online classes because I thought Molly, Travis and Cosette were going to be here, as well as Paul's mom Pat and his sister Laurie.  All these plans were cancelled this past week.  They were all coming to see the final performance of the show I had been performing in at the Sixth Street Theater, "Church Basement Ladies".  I missed having them all here this weekend.  And I missed not performing our final three performances.

But spring has arrived, and is making itself known more each and every day.  Giving us the promise of hope, rebirth and blossom.

Gathering Graces 3/20/2020 Be Kind and Compassionate to One Another

I may be a little crazy, but the sunshine and warm weather made me dig up my tires and plant some seeds.

But I only planted half of the tire, in case it really is too early and nothing grows. I put a string down the middle and planted the upper half.

Then I watered my little seeds.  And covered all the tires with wire to keep Clark and Leo from using them as a litter box.

Hopefully I will get lucky, and soon I will have a variety of vegetables growing in my garden.  I only planted things that are considered "cold crops".  The soil was workable and I was able to till it a bit, so if the sun keeps shining, and I water it daily, hopefully by next week I will have some sprouts.

This is a way for me to cope with this unusual time.  I need to be outside, in my backyard...my happy place....my sanctuary.  And it is working.  I feel parts of me that have been dormant for a while are now waking up and starting to grow again.  Just like the tulip bulbs that spring forth in my flower bed I made just for them.  Just like those hearty crocus flowers that are wonderful promise of more spring to come.  Things are coming back to life all around me.

Our cat Clark continues to be vigilant outdoors supervising all the goings on in the backyard, and enjoying having his humans back doing some activities outside.

We enjoyed our first barbequed hamburgers of the season.  Paul had got the gas grill out of storage in the garage and cleaned it up, went and got some propane, and before you knew it, we had some grilled burgers.  Boy did they taste good!!  (Hey Pat and Joanne, if you look closely, Paul is now clean shaven!!)

And I need life around me, because the things I keep reading about this virus are rather grim.  The one that I read today that shows how fast this virus is spreading was on the WHO website.  It said something like this:  There are about 200,000 reported cases in the world right now.  100,000 of them were reported in the first two months.  The next 100,000 were reported in the last 12 days.

This is why my friend April, who lives in Italy, cannot stress to people enough....STAY HOME!!!

We talked to daughter Cosette on the phone, and got caught up on how her work at the Best Western University Inn is going.  She continues to work, but events are being cancelled and not many people staying at the hotel.  Their restaurant in the hotel is now offering takeout. But all the events that normally take place in the spring in Moscow that have to do with the college have been cancelled, and many students are remaining in their homes and not returned to Moscow after spring break.  But Moscow is not unique.  This is happened across the country.

As I read through the states who have done a lock down, and what that means, the common denominators were mostly hospitals, pharmacies, grocery stores and gas stations could all remain open.  Restaurants can be open, but only provide take out service.  We have decided to help support our local businesses by ordering take out at least once a week from a local restaurant to help them through this time.

Today my thoughts are with those grocery store employees.  If you do go shopping, please smile and be kind to each and every person working in that store.  I can't imagine the stress they must be feeling each day as they go to work. They encounter people from all over, and they have not idea if they have been exposed or not.

When you do go shopping, buy only what you need.  If possible, buy at least enough food and supplies for two weeks so you don't have to keep returning to the store.

I was perplexed at first by the panic buying of toilet paper and other goods as this whole thing started spreading into the United States.  But I was saddened and grieved by the story one of my friends shared about people filling their grocery carts with items, then getting impatient because the lines where too long, and just abandoning them in the store, complete with frozen and perishable food items.  Her suggestion was to at least return them to customer service so someone there could put the items away.

Ephesians 4:32 says this: "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in
Christ God forgave you."

This is good advice for everyone, all across the world.  Whether you believe in any kind of god or not.  This is the way people get through something like this.  By being kind.  By being compassionate.  By forgiving one another.

So next time you go to the store to buy something, give that clerk or person stocking the shelves or person working in the deli a big smile and say, "Thank you for working today.  I appreciate you."

A smile and kind word goes a long way!!

Gathering Graces 3/19/2020 God Bless Our Healthcare Workers!!

We are trying to stay home as much as possible, but when my sister-in-law arrived home and looked at her dog Charly's toe nails, she knew something must be done.  We were contacted, and Paul, Zoe and I went over to Bill and Debbie's backyard and performed an emergency mobile toe nail trim.  Plus Paul was able to put up Christy and Everett's backyard swing while we were there, too.  (My brother and sister live next door to each other.)

Our little outing let us say hello to Debbie and Bill and Christy and their neighbor Jane, who was in her backyard having her apple trees trimmed.

Our backyard continues to come to life, not only with plants, but as Paul starts adding things that have been stored away for the winter.

Our little dancing garden lady my cousin Lura made us got a new paint job, as did some other items around the yard.

The patio table came out as well as the chairs, so we can sit out on the patio when the weather is nice enough to do so.  

We also added the chairs under the arbor.  I am so glad for this lovely mild weather.







Some things, like my roses, continue to be covered up for a few more days.

My friend Nikki and I continue to walk in the morning, but keep our distance.

Paul had to go to the store for a few items, but it was a short trip.

A puzzle has been set up in the living room.

Zoe continues with her homework for her Master's school work.  Fortunately, her classes were already online classes.

I go some writing and some reading done today.

And I continue to read about the seriousness of this virus. Many states are locking down.  We seem to be about a week or two behind, so it wouldn't surprise me if they lock us down in the next week or so. In most of those states, it mean non essential businesses are closed.  You can basically go to the store and pharmacy and can get gas.  You can be outside, but keep distance from others.

My thoughts today are with the healthcare workers.  They do not have the luxury of closing down.  They do not have the luxury of working from home.  Their job is to help the sick, and be available at all times.  I read in just Italy along that, as of today, ten physicians have died from this virus.  And that is only those we know of, not taking into account other healthcare workers that probably have also been affected.

I think we should stay home, if for no other reason than to lighten the load for these healthcare workers.   If we stay home, we lessen the risk of infection.  The less people are infected, the less strain on the healthcare system.  The less strain on the healthcare system, the safer our healthcare workers can be.  I pray for them each day.

I found this list of ways to pray for health care workers.  It is a way to pray with them using scriptures, and a way to keep me focused on their needs.  Feel free to use this as well.

How to pray for health care workers:

1.     Pray for them to have discernment for correct diagnosis and to look to God for His wisdom.

Jeremiah 33:2-3

^2-3 “This is God’s Message, the God who made earth, made it livable and lasting, known everywhere as God: ‘Call to me and I will answer you. I’ll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own.’

James 1:5

⁵ If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You’ll get his help, and won’t be condescended to when you ask for it.

·         2. Pray for compassionate hearts toward the hurting and for patience in dealing with the never ending needs of people.

Luke 7:13

¹³ When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, “Do not weep.” 

Luke 10:33

³³ But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity.

3. Pray for a strong work ethic to do their best as unto the Lord.

·         ²³ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, ²⁴ since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

·          

·         4. Pray for rest and relaxation from their work so they can stay fresh and alert when on duty.

Mark 6:30-31

³⁰ The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. ³¹ Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”

Gathering Graces 3/18/2020 Life is Springing Forth!!

I was surprised to find my last entry of a Gathering Graces post was 4/12/2019.

Nothing like a worldwide pandemic to motivate me to get back to my daily practice of writing.

My time in the garden today didn't hurt either.

Moving the leaves back and finding life bursting forth is good for the soul.

Plus, this is unique time and I want to remember what this time was like for me.  So it is time to write.

Today the Kellogg School District shut down all the schools and Paul will be doing online help with his students through email.

Zoe arrived today because the Meridian School District where she works also shut down.  She was planning on coming home for her spring break, which was scheduled for next week.  She just came a little early.

Molly's school district also shut down, and her husband Travis continues to work at a local restaurant in Moscow that is now only offering take out.

Cosette continues at this time working at the University Inn in Moscow, and keeps us updated on current news of reported cases in the state.

Last night Paul and I hosted our last family dinner for a while, as Christy, Everett and Bill gathered to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.  We had a wonderful time together, but all decided to remain in our homes and not have much contact with other people, other than the people in our houses.

The afternoon was beautiful and it felt good to get outside and uncover dirt and discover tulips coming up in a new bed we created last year.  What a great reminder that after a cold winter, life has laid dormant and is ready to burst forth with the promise of spring.  Paul, Zoe and I uncovered flower beds, raked leaves and bagged them up.  Later we took at walk around town while the weather was still nice

We walked along the river to see if it had started rising yet, and it seemed pretty shallow still.  As I walked along and viewed this peaceful sight, I started humming an old hymn...."I've got peace like a river, I've got peace like a river, I've got peace like a river, in my soul."  And I do have peace.

I hope during this time to be wise and loving and see how my actions can best help others.  Right now, a lot of that is staying home and limiting my contact with others.  I am learning from the families of my students in China, who have been in lockdown since the end of January.  I am learning from my best friend April who lives in Italy and has been in lockdown for nine days as of today.

I listen to people who are smarter than me, and who say that limiting contact with others will slow the spread of the virus.  To me, that make sense.  I can live with these restrictions.

So as our lives change today as we go forward, I am going try to make the best of this time, spending time to help others as I can, do some self-improvement, and celebrate the coming of spring by celebrating the life bursting forth around me.

I have recently returned to the writings of my favorite author, Madeleine L'Engle.  Her writings have brought me through many hard times in my life.  I decided to start reading her words again.  I checked out a few of her books from the library.  One of them was a book of her poems titled "The Ordering of Love".  It is a collection of her poems written at different times in her life.

This poem I want to share was written in 1969, another tumultuous time in our country's history.  I can relate to her thoughts in this poem as she reflects on loving people. My prayer is I take this time to learn to love....especially the most unlovable.

Lines Scribbled on an Envelope While Riding the 104 Broadway Bus:

There is too much pain.
I cannot understand.
I cannot pray.

I cannot pray for all the little ones with bellies bloated by starvation in India;
for all the angry Africans striving to be separate in a world struggling for wholeness;
for all the young Chinese men and women taught that hatred and killing are good and compassion is evil;
or even all the frightened people in my own city looking for truth in pot and acid.

Here I am
and the ugly  man with beery breath beside me reminds me that it is not my prayers that waken you concern, my Lord;
my prayers, my intercessions are not to ask for your love
for all your lost and lonely ones,
your sick and sinning souls,
but mine, my love, my acceptance of your love,.
Your love for the woman sticking her umbrella and her expensive parcels into my ribs and snarling, "Why don't you watch where you're going?"

Your love for the long-hared, gum-chewing boy who shoves the old lady aside to grab a seat,
Your love for me, too, too tired to look with love,
too tired to look at Love, at you, in every person on the bus.
Expand my love, Lord, so I can help to bear the pain,
help you love move my love into the tired prostitute with false eyelashes and bunioned feet,
the corrupt policeman with his hand open for graft,
the addict, the derelict, the woman in the mink coat and discontented mouth,
the high school girl with heavy books and frightened eyes.

Help me understand these scandalous particulars
to understand
your love.

Help me to pray.

********************************************

As I go from day to day Lord, help me understand the scandalous particulars to understand your love, and help me pray.

When In Disgrace With Fortune and Men's Eyes...Happy Anniversary Paul!!

If you were in the living room of the Delta Delta Delta sorority on the evening of December 10. 1984, you were witness to my romantic proposal when Paul surprised me at a "fireside" by coming into the living room, getting down on one knee, reciting to me Shakespeare's Sonnet 29, and asking me to marry him.

I relived a bit of this memory last month at my Tri Delta reunion in Moscow when some of my sorority sisters who were there share their memories of that night.

Paul and I were married less than two years later, on July 19, 1986, thirty-three years ago today.

Yesterday, I thought it was a it providential that we were listening to a podcast called "Broken Record" on our drive down to Meridian and one of the episodes was an interview with Rufus Wainwright.  A couple of years ago, Wainwright made an album of Shakespearian sonnets.  I, of course, had to see if "our sonnet" made the cut.  It not only made the cut once, but twice on the album.  The first cut was Carrie Fisher, (you know, Princess Leia), was recorded reciting the sonnet.  You can listen to that below.

The next cut is a vocalist by the name of singing the sonnet that Wainwright put to melody.  A very fitting discovery to share with Paul on our anniversary today.

The day was spent having lunch with Paul's mom Pat, his sister Laurie, and his brother Kevin and sister-in-law Linda.  Then Paul and I went thrift store shopping and found some treasures to help decorate our gardens.

This evening we dined at Alivita, a lovely restaurant in downtown Boise.

Here are a few things we enjoyed.

Paul had the signature cocktail "The Alavita" and I had a Negroni.

For starters we had the "Chef's Choice Battilardo".

So many delicious flavors.

Paul had rack of lamb and I had the Risoto.

Paul enjoyed a red wine from Italy and I enjoyed a white wine from France.

Some sparkling soda water as a palette cleanser then a couple of espressos.

A lovely cake with vanilla gelato and a salted caramel sauce for dessert.

We topped off the meal with some limoncello.

We strolled around downtown Boise, and sat by the fountain at The Grove. Paul wanted to see Freak Alley, so we walked through and saw all the artistry.

A wonderful way to celebrate 33 years of marriage.

Toby Montana....the bravest cat I have ever known

Toby Montana Roberts went over the Rainbow Bridge today.

Today we said goodbye to one of the bravest cats I know....Toby Montana Roberts.

I met Toby while I was working at Kellogg Pet Medical Center in 2006.  If my memory serves me correctly, he was brought into the clinic after his front right paw was caught in a bear trap.  A neighbor of the owners had found him and brought him in for Dr. Broaddus to take care of him.

After a while, the infection in his leg was so bad that Dr. Andy had to operate and remove his leg.

Then he was a "clinic cat" for a while.  I would watch him around the clinic, and I was smitten!

At the time we owned two dogs and three cats.  We were not even thinking about getting another pet.  But I came home one day from work, and had a conversation with Paul, convincing him that we needed to be Toby's caretakers....because they were not going to give these three legged cat to just anyone.

So we brought Toby home to our house, and he has lived almost 13 years with us.  But today it was time for us to say goodbye to this brave boy.  Over the past few years, Toby developed diabetes, and he was not getting around as well as he used to, so we made that hard decision to say goodbye.

My favorite memory of Toby was one day in our backyard.  I was glad I observed him doing this, or I don't think I would have believed it.  The fact that Toby was missing one of his front legs never slowed him down!!  I was sitting out in our backyard, and Toby was out there observing some birds circling around our backyard.  I think Toby was feeling the rhythm of the birds, and was figuring out when they were coming close to the top of the fence.  Because, before I knew it, he had jumped from the ground to the top of our six foot fence, took his remaining front paw, grabbed a bird, put it in his mouth, and then jumped back down into the backyard, and proceeded to finish off his prey.  I remember thinking afterward that I had just observed an episode of "Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom" right in my own backyard.

Toby would stand down to nothing...no dogs or no other cats.  I remember another time a neighborhood cat pinned him under a bush in the front yard.  Paul rescued him and the other cat had punctured him somewhere on his head, so he started bleeding profusely.  Paul scooped him up and drove him right down to Dr. Andy.  Fortunately, it was just a superficial wound on his head that bled a lot.

Once Toby was diagnosed with diabetes he really started slowing down.  I think it took a lot out of him.  We would administer insulin twice a day.  We would take a blood glucose reading every couple of months or so.  But he was just never the same.  This spring and summer, he really started losing his strength and we knew it was time to tell our brave boy goodbye.

Goodbye Toby Montana.....Mr. Tobes.  You had a special place here in our home and the place in our hearts will always be filled by the memory of you.

Sibling Assignment 2019.3 Write That Book Already!!

I gave this assignment to my siblings and myself.  You can read Bill's here and Christy's here.

What is something you have never done but hope to do or hope to have accomplished  in the next five years?

I have never written a book and would like to accomplish writing a book.  Actually I want to write three books.  It is a three-part historical fiction series about the Silver Valley.

Each book would span ten years.  The first ten years would be 1888-1897.  The second book would be 1898 to 1907.  The third book would be from 1908 to 1917.

There would be three main characters who all meet when they are all around 14 years old at the Cataldo Mission.  One of the main characters is a girl who has traveled from back east with her father, who ends up being a lawyer for the mining companies.  The second main character is an Italian immigrant whose family came out west to work on the railroad.  The third main characters is a young member of the Coeur d’Alene Indian Tribe.

The first book would be told by the girl.  The second book would be told by the Italian boy.  The third book would be told by the Coeur d’Alene tribal members. These three characters lives intertwine throughout all three books as the stories of their lives and the beginnings of the Coeur d’Alene Mining District unfold.

I started writing and researching this book back in the early 2000’s.  It is time to bring these characters back to life to tell about the early days of the Silver Valley, and the Coeur d’Alene Mining District.

Sibling Assignment 2019.2 A Spiritual Nomad

Brother Bill gave us this sibling assignment at the beginning of the year, and I am finally getting around to writing it and posting it.  Here was the assignment:

I want to write a piece about why I am an Episcopalian. It would be an essay explaining how I came to find a home in this denomination. Write an essay explaining where you find your spiritual home and why. 

As I ponder on this sibling assignment and being asked to explain where I find my spiritual home and why, I realized I have never felt like I had a spiritual home.

I feel like my Christian walk has been a bit nomadic.  It has taken me to many different church “homes”, but I don’t think I have ever felt I found a place that truly reflected my faith in Jesus Christ.

I grew up in the United Church of Kellogg, a church that my parents chose for us to attend while we were growing up.  I loved being a part of that church, and the youth group, and being a part of the church choir.

The summer after I graduated from high school, I attended a church camp on Cascade Lake that would change the course of my life forever.  God did a miraculous work in my life at that camp, changing my mind and spirit in a unique way.  I came back changed.

A week or so after returning from church camp I was heading off to participate in sorority rush at the University of Idaho.  I was not only navigating my way through starting college, but also navigating my way through this spiritual transformation that had recently happened in my life.

While in college, I never really found a home church.  I went to a different church every year I was in college I think.  But I did have a bit of a constant “spiritual home” with Campus Crusade for Christ”, a Christian ministry I was involved with all through my college years.

My first job out of college was in a town called Glendive, Montana.  I attended a few churches while in Glendive, and ended up at the Evangelical Church of North America.  One of the secretaries at the college I worked at attended this church, and so I chose to attend church there.  I soon became involved in helping with the youth at the church.  Paul, who joined me a year later, and myself did a lot of growing up in this church. Paul was asked to be the associate pastor at the church after we lived there a few years, and he became ordained and was the associate pastor for a few years before we left Glendive.  We learned some great teaching and some hard lessons about people and the church.  We learned it was possible to attend a church with fellow believers whose doctrine didn’t quite align with your own.  (This would be a continuing theme through our married life as we attended different churches.)

After leaving Glendive we moved to Meridian, the town Paul spent most of his growing up years.  His grandfather was the pastor of Meridian Gospel Tabernacle, a church his grandfather founded and pastored.  Paul was hired on as a youth pastor, and we spent many years ministering to the youth in this church.  When we moved there, Paul’s brother Kent was the associate pastor, and his dad pastored a church in Kellogg, Christian Life Center.  In 1995, his brother and his dad switched places.  Paul’s parents moved back to Meridian, and his brother’s family moved to Kellogg, and they switched roles.

In 2000, God made it very clear that we were to move to Kellogg by providing Paul a job as the Director of the Silver Valley Alternative High School.  When we arrived in Kellogg, we became a part of Christian Life Center where Paul’s brother Kent was the pastor.  A couple years later, Kent and his wife Robin moved from Kellogg and relocated in Oregon.  We stayed at Christian Life Center a few more years, until, again, God made it clear it was time to leave and attend another church.

This happened in 2011.  We then returned to the church where I grew up in, but now it has a different name.  It is called Mountain View Congregational Church.  After attending for about a year, Paul and I became involved in the worship team and later took on some leadership roles in the church.  This is where we continue to attend today.

But do I feel like any of these churches were or are my spiritual home?  Not really.

Even though we were a big part of each congregation or ministry we were a part of, I, personally don’t feel like I have quite found my spiritual home as a Christian. 

My sister Christy finds her spiritual home in nature, as you can read about here. 

Bill also mentions nature as being spiritual as he tells of his Episcopalian spiritual home here.

In Christy’s essay, she wrote a definition of a spiritual home as a place where one feels a strong sense of belonging.

For me, I love being out in nature, but I do not experience it as a spiritual experience like my sister or brother.

Have I ever had any type of spiritual home where I have felt a strong sense of belonging?  The closest thing I have experienced in my life is performing a play on stage.  There have been times where I felt like what myself and my cast members where involved in a spiritual experience.  Two times I felt this way were in the performance of “Godspell”, and the other was “Shadowlands”.

As I read and have listened over the years to Bill talk about his experience in the Episcopal Church, a part of me is drawn to that liturgical type of worship.  I love the ritual of a Catholic Mass.  But I can find God in most churches and church services I have attended, and know He is present within the people who attend there.

Maybe Paul and I will never find a church body that will be our spiritual home. I have a close and personal relationship with God and his son Jesus, and I know I trust them and have fellowship with them and have practically my whole life.  But a part of me does yearn for that “tribe” of believers who could provide for me that spiritual home as a place where I feel a strong sense of belonging.  But either way, it does not diminish my relationship with my Heavenly Father.