Tomorrow is All Saint's Day. Many people celebrate, commemorate, acknowledge this day in many different ways. So, I thought it might be a good idea to celebrate some of the saints in my life.
My grandfather, Papa, actually passed away on All Saint's Day. He was a strong, stubborn German that had a heart for God and took crap from no one. He was a man who taught me that you will never meet a stranger. He lived his life visiting with others, telling stories, finding odd connections to people that he would just start talking to. (I get that from him).
My grandmother, Nanny, was obsessive. She was a control freak. She was extremely overbearing and bossy. BUT, she had a strong will and even when cancer started ripping her to pieces, she did not let life stop her. She kept going and kept fighting and kept her social engagements. (yeah, I get some of the control freak from her.)
Which leads me to Dorothy Poff. Dorothy Poff was our church secretary in Illinois, my first ministry as youth director. She was 83 when I started. The woman had been serving as secretary by the time she passed at the age of 88 for almost 52 years I think. It was an insane amount of time. She had a heart of gold and ran a tight ship. Pastor Craig called her "glue" because she did in a lot of ways hold that church together. She was passionate even at that age. She had a faith that I can only hope to have one day and was totally devoted to her job, her livelihood as church secretary.
So who are saints? We are all saints. We are all called to be children of God which takes us into the communion of saints. Yes, different traditions look at it in different ways but this is how I see it. We have saints around us everyday. We have people who show us God's love as only they can. They teach us about life, about what it means to be a disciple. They help me to understand the person I need to be.
How can I be a better saint? Wow, if only I knew. What I do know is that I am on this earth to show and share God's love with all I am in contact with. I know that I have peace and understanding of just being and not getting so caught up in the noise of life. If I can help other's see that, then I am being a saint.
There are so many more saints in my life -- my youth, my family, my friends who help bring out those "saintly" qualities in me, and so so many more.
AMEN
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1 comment:
You are right. Dad was a great saint. When you were with him, you were always happy, felt loved and were content with life. You M are my saint. Through you and your career I am kept on the straight and narrow no matter how deep my depression. Keep the love spreading. Mpm
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