07-12-24

ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
July 12, 2024
I know what job I am thankful belongs to someone else. Yesterday, I watched a young man climb a tree to begin the removal of another tree that had fallen because accessing the fallen tree was best done by climbing another tree. I would estimate that he was 65 feet in the air, maybe more. He would walk out on a fairly narrow branch, carrying a chainsaw, to begin cutting on the tree that had fallen against the tree he was standing on. Not only do I lack the skill and balance, I would be so terrified that I would be unable to do anything except cry. We learned in the pandemic, and then we sort of forgot it—there are all kinds of people doing jobs that sadly don’t garner the respect they deserve. Some jobs get a lot of attention and glory, and though the amazing tree climber probably doesn’t get the respect deserved, today I want to honor and celebrate what he did. And I would include the others who carried load after load of extraordinarily heavy pieces of the tree trunk to the front corner of the property for pickup. The Apostle Paul wrote often about the gifts we have, and though he explicitly said that no gift is better than another, we sure don’t live our lives that way. Maybe it is time we did.

For every gift that does any amount of good in the world, I say thank you! May your dream, God, become more of a reality through those who share some part of themselves without seeking attention or glory. Amen.