How lovely is thy dwelling place, O Lord of hosts! My soul longs, yea, faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God. Psalms 84:1-2
I stretch out my
hands to thee; my soul thirsts for thee like a parched land. Let me hear in the
morning of thy steadfast love, for in thee I put my trust. Teach me the way I
should go, for to thee I lift up my soul. Psalms 143: 6, 8
Just before dusk one day, I glanced over to my neighbor’s
house. There was someone with a black helmet and a black jacket sitting quietly
on a motorcycle in their back yard. He was facing their driveway and seemed to
be looking at the street beyond. A few days later, I noticed the neighbor’s
teenager wearing the helmet and jacket. He was riding up and down the small
hill of their back yard on the motorcycle. Finally, one day I saw the teenager
wearing the helmet and jacket sitting on his back patio with his mother filling
out forms. I thought how much this young man yearned for the day he could be
riding the motorcycle on the streets, racing up hills, and looking cool in his
black helmet and jacket.
Many of us yearned for the day that we could re-enter our
church and worship together while the Covid pandemic was raging. Certainly, being able to worship together on the internet was a good substitute, but it
could not replace shaking hands, giving hugs, and communicating face to face.
It could not replace sitting in the midst of friends, singing praises to the
Lord together, hearing each other pray, and communing together as a community
of believers.
As our church continues to make changes in the new normal of
protecting ourselves and each other from infectious disease, let us thank God
for our being able to meet again in Christian fellowship—our souls longing to
be with God and the fellowship of believers.
Prayer: God, you are our maker, our redeemer, and our
friend. Help us during this time of renewal to satisfy our yearning for being
together in worship and the fellowship of believers. Amen
Nancy Hall
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