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Blogs by Stephanie S. Sawyer
Completely Won Over 8/10/2008 8:26:24 PM
Now THAT is what a parish is to be about! Love lifted me.
What a cliche.... didn't I know that from a song somewhere.... No, No! - It's a hymn! - OK - So I'm an Anglican! Shame on me, I don't know that old Baptist song.
Nevertheless, that's exactly how I feel today, and how I'm experiencing the new parish I've chosen to return to here in Tomball (new for me anyway).
This particular parish had once been a place of great pain for me when I first moved here and was under a different leadership. Then the leadership changed, and I sought it out again. Not only did I find a difference in the direction of the church, but I found a difference in the Heart of the people. Now, let me put that in present tense. I am finding and do find that to be true.
Today, I hit upon a catastrophic situation in a meeting I attended. I could not bear the situation at hand, but found myself collapsing afterward for the pressure I medically received under it. The leader was ignorant to my situation and only doing what she had been called to do.
In my need, the women around me were immensely loving and nurturing to me, understanding and reaching out. They were listeners, not advisers, they gave their hearts, and I was completely won over.
Now THAT is what a parish is to be about! THAT is what I originally went to the parish for in the first place, but I am only now finding it. Community is what I call it, and community is what Saint Paul would have called it. It's about sharing each other's burdens and being unpretentious in doing so. This parish, Good Shepherd Episcopal of Tomball, TX, has found the answer. I'm glad I've found them and can now call them home.
