novembering

every november at church we have "novembering." it's to remember the ones we've lost this past year. its always a very somber yet touching time...i'll always remember when they had novembering the year my grandmother passed away. it's a time where you can grieve and find hope in Jesus for the future.

this past weekend was the first weekend of novembering. pastor jen lindwall spoke on loss in our lives. that loss could take the shape of a job, a loved one, a goal or a dream. during the service she asked different questions from the audience and asked us to be courageous to stand up and take a look at the other people who were suffering from the same loss. johan stood up when pastor jen asked if we or anyone we know has recently lost a job. when people stood up, i felt as though they were quietly saying: "i stand with you." it was a moment where we all realized we are not that different from one another...

later in the service, pastor jen asked us to write down our loss on a slip of paper and exchange it with someone who was sitting near us. if you felt uncomfortable doing this, you could hold onto your slip and give it to someone later in the week who you trusted. this was to signify Galatians 6:2-

"carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ."

tears started streaming down my face as i thought about the significance of this moment. it was so practical. it was so personal. and yet i really could take the stranger's burden who was sitting beside me!!! someone i didn't know! i could really be their prayer warrior for their loss!

i exchanged it with a guy sitting next to me, and johan exchanged it with someone sitting behind him. the guy sitting beside me wrote 5 words. very simple but sooo deep.

2 grandmas
1 child

grieve

this was his loss. he was grieving for grandmothers and a child who passed away. i tried to catch a glimpse of his wife who was sitting beside him. i wept and i cried for them. i prayed for them. i grieved for them.

there are so many things we can do each day to help carry other people's burdens. that could look like so many different things! carrying groceries, buying coffee for the person behind us in the drive thru, praying for someone who u see crying on the street....i absolutely loved how practical this practice was of carrying one another's burdens. our church is so big that sometimes its hard to feel personal. but this was one of the many ways that we could reach out to someone and have them carry our burden with us. it was truly amazing. God is so wonderful!

i guess this is all to say, lets all try to carry each other's burdens better. and reach out to strangers and people we don't know. last week i saw a girl crying in the hallway. i recognized her from one of my classes, but didn't stop to say anything because she was talking to someone...later on, i emailed her to see if she was okay and to wish her well. i didn't need to know the details, but i just wanted to make sure she was okay. she emailed me back and said thanks, someone in her family just passed away....i would have never known that and been able to say a prayer for her if i didn't send that email.

there's so much that God is still teaching me, but i love that no matter where i am or who i am with, God is the same...He feels our loss and knows our pain....our God is an awesome God.

be blessed,
p