new life

-
Yesterday I had the good pleasure of visiting a hospital not because someone was ill, but because someone was just beginning! Michael Andrew Rembisz was born yesterday morning to Mark and Anne, and Alex is a proud older brother.

This comes just after the birth of Fr. Bill and Judith Calhoun's granddaughter, Olivia. Bill snapped an amazing picture of Olivia grasping her mother's finger. It was only after he took the picture, that he noticed the positioning of mom's ring, providing the perfect caption: "FAITH."

Faith, Belief, and Trust all come from the same Greek word "pistis."  The Faith-Belief-Trust of an infant in her mother must be one of the purest. For a newborn, what else is there?

Last week, I also got to see a picture of another grandchild, the Schlechten's 4 month old, Annibelle (in the knit cap and pink jammies.) All these babies. All this life. In a season of thanksgiving, it's an easy time to give thanks for these new little lives, the hope they bring, and the Faith-Belief-Trust they incarnate. Opportunities to love abound!

Laura, my wife, commented to Anne, "You know this isn't just your baby, right? This is Trinity's baby." So, we can't wait to welcome home Michael Andrew, and eventually baptize him, and celebrate a new life of Faith-Belief-Trust. And we hope that our new grandchildren can come visit soon, too!

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

plastic: a spiritual perspective

-
Image
Plastic bag in front of Trinity by the Sea On a recent trip to Austin, I was surprised and delighted not to be handed a plastic bag when I checked out of a grocery store. I wasn't buying much, so I was able to carry out my things without remembering to bring in my reusable bags. For some time now, I've gotten in the habit of turning down plastic bags in convenience stores when they try to put my humble bag of sunflower seeds, lonely, in another bag. The plastic grocery bag has become like a handshake at the end of the deal: it seems to make the shopping experience complete. It is such an ingrained habit, that the person behind the cash register sometimes gets a suspicious look when I ask for no bag, as if thinking, "This yahoo is threatening our way of life!" I think about habits a lot, as a Christian of the Episcopal persuasion. Our practices and our experiences in everyday life shape the way we understand our relationship with God, with others, and with ours...
Read more

Stay Salty Y'all

-
Image
  Sunday, September 29: Be Salty for Jesus! Reflection for church while my back heals.  Welcome everyone to another church on the beach. Fr. James is dealing with his back injury, and sent this reflection to read, so here it goes.  I spent Thursday morning planning for the next two weeks, anticipating that I might need a medical procedure. As I did so, I marveled at how many amazing leaders we have within our church. I was focusing on the worship service, and leading worship on Sundays is a only portion of what we do as a church community, but it is an important part of what we do. It is where we gather together to reorient to God, to open our hearts to the Holy Spirit’s guidance, and to listen for inspiration from Jesus. How fitting that we gather on the beach today to hear Jesus remind us to be salty. Do we have it easier, here beside the sea? We can hardly help but be salty around here. I want to start with that, which is where Jesus lands his somewhat meandering messa...
Read more

Remembering our saints and Saints

-
Image
I am grateful to have had a therapist to be my guide through some difficult times of life, as well as through discernment in early adulthood. One piece of wisdom my therapist shared with me early on was the blessing and curse of longevity. As we age more and more of our loved ones will die along the way. That realist perspective echos the refrain of Ecclesiastes, "all is vanity." It doesn't make losing a loved one easier, but it does provide some orientation for the journey. In addition, it has helped me to value this life as a precious gift.  I also value memories of those who have crossed over to join the "great cloud of witnesses", those loved ones I call saints who are gathered close to God. Intentionally remembering and honoring the saints, both those with a capital "S" whom we share with the wider church community, or those more personal lower case "s" saints has become more important to me longer I live, and the more loved ones I bury....
Read more