Good Morning…
As I walked the beach last summer, I saw tons of broken seashells. Picking up various shells, I noticed their unique beauty, their one-of-a-kind shape, texture, color. I wondered with each, “What story do you have to tell?”
Weathering. The word weathering filled my mind. To weather is to bear up against and come safely through trouble or tragedy. To be reshaped by strong winds and harsh storms collectively. To undergo change, especially disintegration as a result of extreme conditions. To withstand or overcome. To brave or survive. To grow strong or make it through.
All of these imperfect shells calling out for my attention had been wounded by relentless weathering. Shaped and re-shaped. Worn and re-worn. Picking them up one by one, I marveled at their beauty. Tried and true. Emptied and enduring.
In our lifetime, we experience our own stories of weathering. Life lessons and languishing losses. Dashed dreams and difficult decisions. Huge hardship and heroic hope. Harnessing Holy Spirit power amid life’s high winds and hard waves, as we weather life with God we are broken into beautiful.
Today may we see our own imperfection through the eyes of God: I am weathered but still elegant…weather-darkened, time-softened… (Song of Solomon 1:5, MSG).
…Sue…
P.S. I am facilitating a Fall Women’s Retreat on November 11th and 12th at the Ignatius House Retreat Center on Riverside Drive. The title of our two day retreat is With God Weather Life. I would love for you experience this overnight retreat, held at one of the most sacred places on earth. To learn more of the details and to register for the weekend, please touch on this link: https://northsideyouth.wufoo.com/forms/w1fynxlf00htggb/
