you knit me together in my mother's womb.
14I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
that I know very well. (Psalm 139:13-14)
I have my mom's kitten for a couple of weeks. She's off with her sister on
an adventure to visit my cousin near Las Vegas and so I get the cat.
I don't mind really. In fact, I'm the one who gave it to her so it's
fitting that I tend her needs when my mom's away. And it's true, Shadow
is a constant source of entertainment.
She's into everything, for one thing. She does that funny arched back
jumping from side to side as sje runs when I enter the room unexpectedly.
She would do anything to get down into the basement … but so far I've
managed to keep the door closed on her curiosity. And the blinds are a
constant draw for her attention. She'll sit on my lap as long as I have a
soft fleece blanket there and as long as I pause long enough for her to
notice… but even then only when she wants to. And she stalks the green
light on the vaporizer I've had running at night as I'm fighting off a
cold.
You who have pets know that it is so. Every single one is different, not
only in how they look, but also in how they interact with the world. And
while one can point to the particular characteristics of their breed, one
might also look to the temperaments of parents or their early life
experiences to begin to understand what makes them who they are. And even
when you've done all that? Well, sometimes it's still hard to say…
Lately I've been doing some thinking again about the family where I grew
up. This has been prompted by some continuing education I'm doing in
family emotional process. And unlike with my mom's kitten, who was
adopted from TAILS, our local shelter, it's actually possible to dig
deeper and find some answers to what makes me who I am. And yet, in some
ways it's all still questions for me. I mean, what does it mean to be
born the first of four daughters? Does it make any difference at all that
my dad was also an oldest and my mother was a middle child? What must it
have meant that I was born so soon after the death of my maternal
grandmother? How has it shaped me that I shared a bedroom with a sister
all through my growing up? Or the fact that we also shared one bathroom
between us all? Did it make any difference that we lived so far from my
dad's family --- or that his dad died when my dad was very small? Does it
matter that we grew up 'on the wrong side of the tracks' and does it shape
us in any way to have heard laughter most nights at the dinner table?
Would I be different if one side of the family didn't claim deep Norwegian
roots and the other dates as far back as the American Revolution in
Massachusetts and yet another wound up here as a result of the Irish
Potato Famine? What kind of difference did it make that we always knew
the church to be a community for us --- that we were raised in the faith
that still carries us? What are those things that make us who we are?
All of us could make a list of questions like that as we look back and
still, I would guess that while some answers come easy others always
remain mystery. For we are all uniquely and wonderfully made. While we
are surely shaped by the forces around us and within us, still we are
known first and last by the heart and the mind of God. It is all gift,
finally. We know this as we look back at what made us who we are and it
also shapes us as we ponder those mysteries who live and work and play
alongside us. And yet, with all the mystery --- all those things we can't
fully understand, we are assured of one thing. Each one of us is the
creation of a marvelous God. When we come upon those unanswerable
question, one answer is always sure. You are God's own. God made you,
shapes you, enables and empowers you to be all that you were made to be.
You are here on purpose and your life has meaning which continues to
deepen as you seek to live it well.
Peace to you and many blessings as you ponder everything that has made you
who you are --- as you encounter the mysteries who join you on your life
journey --- and as you rely ever more deeply on God's love which has
shaped you most of all.
Pastor Janet
Coming up this week at Salem:
On Sunday, February 27th at the 10:30 a.m. service, 17 8 and 9 year old
will receive their First Communion. Be sure to be part of the
celebration!
Also on Sunday at 3 p.m. Salem's Grief Support Group will gather. Anyone
who struggles with grief is welcome to join the group.
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