[From one of this morning's hymns:

For all that is our life we sing our thanks and praise;
For all life is a gift which we are called to use
To build the common good and make our own days glad.]

Just now sitting down to lunch, thanks to a long meeting and a slew of errands. I fear it's going to be a pell-mell week, and being repeatedly afflicted with both brain- and gut-cramps hasn't helped matters.

On the bright side, several corners of my house are now considerably less gross, and there's still enough weekend left to make headway on the big stuff. And, blessings...

* So many good things in this morning's service, from the musical affirmation ("Summon Our Voices," by Kendyl Gibbons and Jason Shelton) to the Langston Hughes songs and stories and readings. The congregation really liked this one:

In an envelope marked:
Personal
God addressed me a letter.

In an enveloped marked:
Personal
I have given my answer.

And there was also a strong murmur of appreciation for this:

Folks, I'm telling you,
Birthing is hard
and dying is mean
So get yourself
Some loving in between.

Connye Florance and Kevin Madill performed Jason's setting of "Georgia Dusk." Oh, my, my.

* The congregational meeting went long because our congregation doesn't rubber-stamp anything. I love that the members of the church take its covenant seriously. I love how concerned they are about setting the right precedents, using the right words, considering budget implications, and all the rest of it. I loathe long meetings with a vengeance, but at the moment I also can't help thinking how lucky I am to be surrounded by so many smart, active, engaged people.

* Quite a few college students home from summer in the pews today. A happy sight.