For It Is In Giving That We Receive

Lord make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon.
Where there is doubt, faith.
Where there is despair, hope.
Where there is darkness, light.
And where there is sadness, joy.
O divine master grant that I may
not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love
For it is in giving that we receive-
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned.
And it’s in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

The Prayer of St. Francis. It is a prayer I know by heart and that I sometimes listen to in its musical version sung by Sarah McLachlan. The words are a reminder of the person I strive to be; they serve as a road map for how I can be a living example of Jesus’ teachings. The poem itself breaks down into easy pieces. While it is beautiful in its entirety, I also find myself focusing on one stanza at a time. How can I take those words, that phrase, and let it guide my daily life? And that is exactly what I would like to do with all of you in the coming months. Take one stanza of the poem and focus on it for one month.

For the month of October, we will focus on “For it is in giving that we receive”. Throughout the month, I encourage each of you to receive through giving. Perhaps it is donating money to a charitable cause that is important to you. Maybe you know of someone who is in need and you have the items or resources they are seeking. It can even be in the giving of your time and talents.

The children of our congregation will be taking part each month as well! In October, we will be baking cookies to deliver to our college students; Zack Olson and Kayla Crook. We will mail them off to give them each a little token of our love from far away. My hope is that you will feel moved to share with me and the congregation. You can email me your thoughts and even photos of how you have incorporated the words into your life this month. Some months, I hope to have activities or events that we can work on together. To bring us closer to God and closer as a congregation.

With love,

Grete Hansen
Student and Family Ministries Coordinator