Lenten Meditations | Song: Every Grain of Sand

Friends,

I'm off to Los Angeles to share my book with congregations there. It should be 80s there, and snowing at home. It's hard to decide whether it is time to put away my skis.

But I'm certainly enjoying my weekends of warm weather!

-Liz

Feed People Metaphorically

I find the eucharist, communion, the Lord's Table, the bread and the juice, whatever we call call it, I find it the most moving part of our worship. The smell, the taste, the physical experience in my mouth, swallowing, it is all so individual. At the same time all around me are my siblings in Christ, and the history of the saints, and the future of the church. AND imagine also all the people across the globe, people so different from me, people just like me, altogether. It overwhelms me, brings me to tears.

That the food is so basic, so essential, so unadorned, and then is shared in community. A good meal opens up a good conversation. A brownie offers the opportunity to share something personal. A cup of tea is the beginning of a story.

Most congregations are good at feeding each other, and our neighbors, but are also places where we feed each other metaphorically. The literal food is a gateway to bigger sharing and caring.

Byron Rushing onetime Massachusetts State Representative, and adjunct professor at Episcopal Divinity School when I was there, told us that his church took as long with the prayers of the people as with the sermon. It was an experience were people answered "how are you" with honesty and vulnerability. Prayers offer an opportunity to reach for God, and in reaching we touch neighbors, church family, strangers.

If your church's prayers do not have this depth, you can get it started by seeding the congregation. Identify who holds the spiritual health of the congregation: deacons, council, vestry, pastoral visitors or others and strategize worshipful prayers. The prayer leader must be comfortable with silence as you wait for the "volunteers" to speak up. Work to become a place where anxieties, longings, passions, and fears are welcomed. Teach people to listen deeply, and to pray for each person as they share.

Consider how to add a similar culture to your meal program, pantry, or thrift shop. My cousin's church added a prayer room, prominently marked, off to the side of their programming. People were free to come in and share what was on their mind. It was surprisingly popular. Prayer provides a context for sharing the deepest of our fears, our frustrations, and our joys.

Consider open hours for your sanctuary so that people can come and sit in a beautiful space.

Imagine, as you engage the community around climate change, immigrant rights, or any other issue, how your church might take the role of chaplain of these movements. Look for opportunities to offer individual and group caretaking of those making systemic change happen. Show up with food and drink to share. Call up the leaders to just ask how they are doing.

Our community is hungry. I want to invite them to our table, but at first that will seem like telling them what to believe. So instead we must show up with food, with connections, with caring, where they are. Always imagine that what you have to offer is the bread and the juice that breathes new life into us all.

How are you feeding your local community?
Reply to this email to let me know. ​
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Check out my daily Lenten Meditations (2-4 minutes each) on Poverty and Wealth this season. (Also on other Podcast providers--search for When Did We See You?)

Every Grain of Sand, a song by Bob Dylan, covered by Sloan Wainright.

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