Words from Rev. Joseph Boyd on the theme for the Month of November: Nurturing Gratitude
| From Rev. Joseph |
November’s Theme: Nurturing Gratitude “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.” – Cicero – It’s taken me a while to appreciate the wonders of gratitude. I have never been interested in engaging with gratitude as something obligatory or mandatory. Even gratitude as a good idea, “the greatest of virtues,” was not compelling enough for me. Gratitude, like most good things in my life, have come in through the side door, through an unexpected encounter. I was applying to seminary, and it felt like a mini-crisis that I had positively no idea how to pray. I had experiences in my youth of prayer that felt obligatory, felt mandatory, and I definitely was told numerous times it was a good idea. But that didn’t help me. How could anyone consider ministry, and have no idea how to pray? Looking back, it was one of the most delicious mini-crisis of my life. I can still taste the fear and longing back then, that now gives me a sense of nostalgia. I was on the cusp of something. Like most times, I was given unexpected and undeserved help in my time of need. I came across a quote from Meister Eckhart that if you utter only one prayer in your lifetime: “thank you” would be enough. So I started simply experimenting with “thank you,” and the bud of my prayer life began to open. You may notice each Sunday during our time for prayer, I still start with simply saying “thank you.” And I find innumerable things come to mind, that have been living inside me, and are watered by articulation. Being able to receive the innumerable things through gratitude has been a rich prayer for me. It has helped me discover an authentic way toward generosity.We are about to start our drive to raise funds for the upcoming church year. I’d like to thank our team who will be guiding us in this journey: Ryan Stryffeler, Rachel Coughran, Andy Crabb, Jack Auman, and Lisbet White. It will begin November 2nd, with the goal of raising our budget for next year by November 23rd, in time for our church’s Thanksgiving feast following service. Before we begin, I’d like to say thank you. Thank you for giving yourself to yourself, first and foremost. I feel investing in our church community is an investment that says our inner lives matter in the scheme of things, and that investing in our spiritual journey impacts the journey of the world. Thank you for making this a robust community, where people of various experiences and backgrounds can find safe harbor and friendship. Thank you for creating a container where we can reimagine the world of tomorrow, with creativity and optimism. In Faith, Rev. Joseph |