Therefore, having so vast a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, and throwing off everything that hinders us and especially the sin that so easily entangles us, let us keep running with endurance the race set before us.
Hebrews 12:1
Last night, at the communion service (where we ran FOURTEEN mics, which is RIDICULOUS), the focus was on the idea of the cloud of witnesses, of the saints, and everyone being connected in a family of faith. The sermon was basically, "if you follow Jesus, you have to do it with others," and really worked with the brother/sister imagery in the Bible, comparing that with brothers in the Bible (you know, like... Cain and Abel, Jacob and Esau) and brother/sister relationships in real life often being rocky, and the reality of, "You don't get to choose these people, but you belong to each other."
The sermon eventually morphed to a kind of naming of saints - some well known, some local - as an illustration of, "these are the kinds of people you are now in a family with." At the end, Tom lit a candle for someone he knew at one of his churches that he told a story about, and he said that he was also lighting it for the person we each were thinking of, the person who had reached out to us, who had shared a spiritual thought, who had encouraged us in some way, who had, basically, shown God's love to us in a way that was written forever on our hearts.
When I tried to think of "that person", my mind started flying, thinking of all these different people, too many to count. People who I talked to yesterday and people who I haven't seen in years. People who have been my best friends and people I've encountered once. People who have been huge active parts of my religious life and those who I've never talked about God with. The person who kept my faith alive when I thought it was dead. The person who has insisted on using me in service whenever I'm back in Virginia. The person who returned my call the day I couldn't stop crying and prays for me whenever he gets my panicked e-mails from New York. The person who'll send me letter after letter after letter. The people who always open their doors to me when I need a place to stay. The people I cried myself silly with over a show, despite the rest of the world thinking us crazy. The person who believes in me so much I almost wouldn't be able to tell because he pushes me so hard, and chooses to actively care about me. The person who asked me, "How can I help you right now?" The person who reaches out to me and offers light from the midst of her own despair. The people I've tremored with. The people who believe in my obscure interests and fight for them. The person who prophesied over me. The person who offered love and understanding when I expected judgment. All of the people who have loved me for no reason. The person who first saw the stirrings of the spirit within me, and bade me dance with the Holy Spirit as both an offering and a transformation. The people who I know I could call at any hour, about anything, and they would be there.
Some of these people want nothing to do with religion, but that does not matter. God's love is in everything, in everyone, and it is for everything, for everyone. And sitting up in the booth, while standing by to unmute wired mics 1, 2, 3, 7 and wireless 3, I swelled with gratitude. How could I think of one person to light a candle for, when I have thousands?
I am so blessed to know you. You are such a vital part of my life, and I am glad.
I LOVE YOU!
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