Church is not for everyone and I don't know that it's something I particularly *need* for spiritual growth but it occurred to me today why I keep going back. It gives me food for thought. I suppose it is one of the ways God talks to me. I often find myself daydreaming and not focused on the sermon but I think most everyone does that. And I don't think that's a bad thing necessarily. As long as I pick something up somewhere, then I feel I haven't wasted my time. I sometimes get something from Sunday School and more often than not, really take from the children's sermon - which is where my thoughts are going today. Maybe I'm still a kid at heart or maybe it's that childlike faith thing I've been trying to grasp and maybe I just love the little kids so much that they get my attention and then I'm more apt to listen.
Sorry to digress.
Today's children's sermon was about pearls. Pearls come from oysters and are formed by oyster 'spit' and sand (or some other irritant inside the pearl). It takes 3 years or more for a pearl to form. The formation is a result of an irritation inside the oyster. They come in all different shapes and sizes but they all have a beautiful irridescent appearance. Perfectly round pearls are the rarest and most valuable shape.
I have decided that right now I am the oyster. There is some sand in my soul and I've decided to spit on it. I can tell it will be an irritation for quite some time to come. But I think as time goes on, I will become less and less irritated and inside me I'll be forming a beautiful rare gem. I am really hoping the gem I form will be of the rarest and most valuable - a perfectly round pearl. Why am I hoping for a circular pearl? Because of this description I nabbed from Wikipedia:
"The circle is a symbol of God because it has no beginning and no end. The circle or pearl was considered to represent Love, Knowledge (the combination of equal amounts of Love and Knowledge is a symbol of Wisdom, the 2 circles intertwined (owl eyes) is symbolic of Wisdom"
I never really thought of wisdom being the result of love and knowledge but the more I ponder that, the more it makes sense. Knowledge without love is fairly useless. Love without knowledge is pure folly. The 2 combined make the perfect combination!
So even if I have to be an oyster for awhile, I think the pearl that is forming may very well be worth it. The irritation is not pleasant, but without it I can't form any pearls.
For what it is worth...you are ALREADY a pearl. Though I think we make/collect pearls as we go through the cycles/changes in life. May this journey, through it's unpleasantness, make you a larger, more round pearl than you are now.
ReplyDeleteAs for "church"....I think "church" is the people...not the building. We need to fellowship with other Christians 1)to be fed and 2)to feed. The fellowship gives us strength to face the everyday battles, irritations, journeys. It equips us to lift up and support others in theirs.
Never, ever forget...you are not alone and you ARE loved.
Thank you Kathy Aunt :) Yes - maybe we are all oysters and maybe the church is the secretion that causes us to not only tolerate the irritations but turn them into pearls. Pearls of all shapes, sizes and colors. I know without it, I might not have found any pearls in myself and because of it, I am challenged to help find and form pearls in others.
ReplyDeleteYou are a pearl too :)