My Preacher

I haven't yet closed my mouth from when my jaw dropped today as my preacher uttered "resignation" from the pulpit this morning. Next Sunday will be his last, and I am just plain sad. I suppose I am in good company, I think many in the congregation are sad; and I can't imagine how long the disciples stood staring at the sky with their jaws dropped as the resurrected Christ floated up to the Father. Not that my preacher is an equivalent of course, but he is my teacher, and he has taught me a lot. I think what bothers me the most is that I don't believe I ever said "thank you." I wonder sometimes how powerful those words are. It seems I get caught up a lot in having a voice about what I don't like, or expressing the way I would have done it, or the way it should have been handled. However, contentment rarely breeds many words. Wonderment, Awe, I have plenty to say about that too; Timothy's love for me does not go a day unnoticed. But contentment ...

I wonder the impact on the world if we all took the time to say "thank you," sincerely , to all the persons we are content with. From garbage service personnel to the pharmacist (seriously either one of them could do some real damage just by not doing their job) what would happen if we just said thanks? I truly hope that he knows, at least for me, he has been a breath of fresh air every Sunday. But I don't know that he knows, and today suddenly, that bothers me. Yesterday I might have made a mental note to tell him, when I "ran into" him next time. Today, I wonder what might be different about the next few months, if all that felt the way I feel had told him, many times, in the last few months. I don't know what God is leading in my preachers life, or that of our congregation, but I do know that I would feel differently about today if I felt I had ever said thank you for the contentment that my preacher is responsible for in my life.

The way I feel today will probably change what I say to the people I "run into" in the next couple of days, maybe a week, and most ambitiously two weeks; but then I will, no doubt, revert to taking contentment for granted and making mental notes again. However, I can make an effort if only for a day or two. I would love to be able to say on another day that I knew I had made contentment known to those important to me. I know now it will at least make a difference in how I feel about the things that I don't have control over.

I hope by my sharing, you too will change what you say to those that you "run into" this week. It might help to think of what it would be like if they weren't around. We may not make an impact on the world, our community, or even our church, but it will feel better knowing nobody had to wonder if we were content. And for my preacher though it may be a day late:


Thank You and God Bless, You have been a breath of fresh air.