The world full of beautiful and terrible things – but we never face them alone

Dear Friends
Presbyterian minister, Frederick Buechner wrote, ‘Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Do not be afraid.’
All of us have known beautiful things – from the wonder of creation to the gleeful laughter of children. All of us have known terrible things – they continue to unfold from war and famine to grief and pain. Between the beautiful and the terrible things, life is often mundane – doing the things that need to be done in our lives.
But when the tough things happen, Buechner reminds us, ‘Do not be afraid’. How can he write this so confidently? In the face of those ‘terrible things’, we often despair.
We may also be afraid. We wonder how we will cope or continue our lives? Buechner affirms that we need not be afraid because God is with us and God loves us. He writes,
‘Don’t be afraid. I am with you. Nothing can ever separate us.’
Perhaps knowing God is with us is reassuring. At Christmas, we joyfully proclaim God is with us in the birth of Jesus. As we journey through Lent, maybe we also need to remember God is with us. Perhaps when we face the cross with Jesus, we need to remember that Jesus himself was not alone in the terrible experience of the crucifixion.
If Jesus was not alone, even in his death, neither are we.
We know he did proclaim, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ But feeling alone is not the same as being alone. God was with Jesus even in the suffering of the cross. We also remember Jesus was not alone because the women stood by while he was killed. They witnessed his death.
They did not turn away from the terrible sight. They also returned to care for his body and discovered the resurrection. So even in the midst of the terrible things God is with us. We are not alone – despite how alone we might feel. There are people around us offering care and support, like the women around Jesus at his death.
Beautiful and terrible things happen to all of us. Perhaps part of our spiritual practice in the midst of all this is to name the gifts, even the tiny gifts, in our life experiences. This is the practice of gratitude. Gratitude is easy when we experience beauty. The practice of gratitude is a commitment to find something to give thanks for at all times.
It is pausing in the midst of the mundane to notice the extraordinary. Gratitude is intentional. It is creating a moment to note some wonder in the cracks of life. It means seeing beyond our regular view to the joy that sits around the edges of life. What spark
of goodness or beauty or care have we seen – even when pain has shaped us? This is the practice of gratitude, and reminds us that God is present with us in all our life experiences.
This month our lives may be full of mundane tasks. Terrible news may burst upon us. Beautiful events might shape us. Through all of our lives God is present.
Through all that we do, the thread of gratitude can weave these events together to remind us that we do not need to be afraid for God is with us and will be with us.

We are not alone.
Paul writes in Philippians 4: 6, ‘Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything. With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God.’ We probably will worry, but we can also give thanks in all things. In other words, offer a prayer of gratitude, even if it seems only for the smallest of things that we have noticed.
So, take a moment today to notice some hint of joy that creeps into your life. Take a moment tomorrow to remember God is with you. And let gratitude shape your Lenten experience.
Thank you for being present on our journey.
Peace, Martha and David