A Day to Remember

Sunday Night Check-In

Hello Friends, it’s time to check in with you on this Sunday. Yesterday tornadoes tore through cities near Nashville and in other places, and our prayers are with those who are crawling out of the rubble. We are also mindful of those who perished in the storms. Though we had some stormy weather here, several places with large hail, it was mild compared to some of the images we are seeing from Tennessee.

Today at Forsythe Church we continued our Season of Promise series as we head into Christmas. I have some special projects to work on this week, as I will not have a Wednesday class nor a Sunday sermon to prepare. This coming Sunday is our Children’s Christmas Program, something we’ve come to look forward to enjoying. In addition to ultra-cute kids singing and acting with a Christmas theme, our Associate Minister, Daniel Kirkendall, will present the morning message.

I mentioned it last week, but tonight at Grace Episcopal, The Compassionate Friends offer a worldwide candle lighting. It begins in New Zealand, and as each time zone reaches 7 pm, there are gatherings of parents who have said goodbye to their children, grandparents who no longer see their grandchildren, and siblings who miss their brothers and sisters. It’s a somber but hopeful gathering. French and Marilyn Smith and James and LuAnn Butler do a marvelous job of putting this together each year. The poem I will read tonight is by Doug Craven and is called The Moment That You Left Me. After the readings and music, we line up with candles and light them one by one, naming our loved ones who have died, and in the end, we have a recital of We Remember Them, and blow out our candles.

I remember the first candle lighting at Grace that we attended. I can only guess it was in 2008, but maybe it was 2009 before we could brave that gathering. Unlike a Compassionate Friends meeting, anyone can attend this service. I remember looking around and seeing a group of people from our church sitting there in support of Maggy and me. Honestly, I still get tears when I think about how uncomfortable and hard that was for them - as it was for us. My mom was sitting by us, our friends showing up in support of us, and for one brave moment, we were able to stand and light a candle and say his name. John Robert Dobbs. I never knew it would be so hard to say that name. So now when I attend a Compassionate Friends meeting at St. Paul United Methodist Church on the first Thursday of eleven months of the year, I look for people I’ve never seen before. Someone was there for me, and fifteen years later, I will be there for them. The candle-lighting event is always a day to remember. Of course, we remember John Robert every day.

The path to the photo blind, Black Bayou.

I did get to visit Black Bayou for a few hours last Thursday, but I only took a few pictures. I just wanted to enjoy the serenity and quiet for a bit. I didn’t even go out on the pier, just visited the Photo Blind and the Observation Tower.

Close to Sunset in the Photo Blind at Black Bayou NWR.

Great Egret at Black Bayou NWR

Another Great Egret at Black Bayou NWR

Also last week I participated in a Flash Fiction Friday event that had three prompts to use in a story. I wrote a story called Finding Sketch. If you missed it, check it out. I had a pretty good response to it. I might try that again if the Flash Fiction prompts catch my imagination.

I’m working on a couple of new projects I can’t wait to tell you about, but I have to wait. As I mentioned last week, the new Holy Lens Substack is coming in January. It’s going to be a brief daily read consisting of a Photograph, a Passage of Scripture, and a Prayer. I’d love for you to subscribe now so that you can receive the first post on January 1st. They will come each day at 8 am. It’s a bit ambitious, but I have a running head start and I’m looking forward to it!

READING

This past week I finished S. E. Reid’s amazingly beautiful Pilgrim God: A Poet’s Journey Through Advent. I enjoyed this so much. If you have Kindle Unlimited, you can download it for free. Starting in the new year I’ll be preaching through Mark’s Gospel, so I’ve been collecting commentaries and books. I’m watching for N. T. Wright’s Mark For Everyone: 20th Anniversary Edition to arrive in the mail. Also, I’m looking forward to reading through Travis Bookout’s Cruciform Christ. Travis is both brilliant and energetic, and I’m looking forward to his reflections on the text. There are several others but that will be enough to mention now. For my Wednesday class on the Holy Spirit, I am reading several different books that are very helpful. I think I mentioned some of those recently. Notes for that class are going out through the Sermons From Forsythe substack. I’ve started several books I’d like to finish before the end of the year, which is 21 days away.

LISTENING

I’ve been listening to Christmas music a lot. Even at the gym on the treadmill! Some fast-paced but happy Christmas tunes are good to walk to! One I’ve enjoyed is Gwen Stefani’s You Make It Feel Like Christmas. I also found A Very Special Christmas from 1987. I remember that I bought that cassette tape (or was it an 8-track?). I found it on YouTube. I still like most of it, but especially Stevie Nicks singing Silent Night. Who can pass that up? But I listen to a wider variety of Christmas music when not on the treadmill. It’s hard to have a favorite when literally every artist has a Christmas CD. Just to name a few favorites, though.

• The Beach Boys’ Christmas Album

• Andrea Boccelli My Christmas

• Elvis’ Christmas Album

• Michael Buble It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

• Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers Once Upon a Christmas

• Dolly Parton A Holly Dolly Christmas

• Sandi Patty Christmas Blessings and The Voice of Christmas Volumes 1 and 2

Oh why did I even start…there’s no end. In the comments, what are your favorite Christmas albums?

The Christmas song I can’t watch without crying.

WATCHING

I’m still watching A Murder at the End of the World. Spicy language at times, but an interesting story. And other than The Voice, I haven’t watched much television lately. Reba McEntire is an enjoyable presence this season. Last week she sang the song she wrote about her mother who has passed, Seven Minutes in Heaven. I don’t know if I was emotionally ready to hear that!

HUMOR

A little something that made me laugh this week. It’s funny because it’s true.

THANKS

Thanks for reading this far! As we make our approach to Christmas, I hope you are doing well. It’s a hard time of year for a lot of people, so try to offer extra smiles along the way. Those smiles are so needed in our troubled world. I’d love to hear what’s going on with you in the comments. Please hit the heart, it is an encouragement! Work hard, rest well, and stay connected. The world needs you.