Good morning…
A friend emailed me the Nouwen devotional below. It serves as a grounding reminder: joy and sadness are born together.
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DAILY MEDITATION | SEPTEMBER 9, 2023 – by Henri Nouwen – Every Bit of Life is Touched by a Bit of Death
Joy and sadness are as close to each other as the splendid colored leaves of a New England fall to the soberness of barren trees. When you touch the hand of a returning friend, you already know that he will have to leave again. When you are moved by the quiet vastness of a sun-colored ocean, you miss the friend who cannot see the same. Joy and sadness are born at the same time, both arising from such deep places in your heart that you can’t find words to capture your complex emotions.
But this intimate experience in which every bit of life is touched by a bit of death can point us beyond the limits of our existence. It can do so by making us look forward in expectation to the day when our hearts will be filled with perfect joy, a joy that no one shall take away from us.
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Emotions ebb and flow, rise and shrink, overwhelm and subside. Sources of joy and sources of sadness co-exist at all times, every day. Might we allow our feelings to be as they are? Not try to hide, stunt, or deny. Will we allow joy and sadness to flow mingled down, trickling through our souls like a babbling brook, both held securely in the gravity of the God?
They will walk this path, come waltzing … singing their way to that place of right relation to God. An aura of joy never-ending will attend them; they will clasp gladness and joy to their hearts, while sadness and despair evaporate into thin air (Isaiah 35:10b, VOICE).
…Sue…
P.S. If you feel drawn to our Wordless Prayer Cards, like the image above, consider joining us for our monthly card-making class, the second Wednesday of each month from 12:00 to 2:00 pm at Northside Church. Today is our first gathering as we create cards which capture our complex emotions, touching life’s joy and life’s sadness. All supplies are provided. Donate $10 to cover the cost. Please reach out to me if you are interested in joining us today or in the future.
