In These Difficult Times - March 18

March 18, 2020

Beloved,

Charita Goshay, a long-time Canton Repository columnist, writes this morning of the death of a childhood friend who spent many years ministering in soup kitchens and prisons. She understands the challenge of these days:

“The irony of our being asked to keep our distance from one another these days is that it underscores how much we need one another. Some people have spent much of their lives in ‘socialized distance.’ You see them every day, wandering the streets, pushing all their worldly goods in a shopping care. . . The tragedy of what’s happening now is that it deepens our fear of those in most need of help . . .” 

She concluded: “[my friend] laid out a lighted path for others to find their way back to life.”

Near our front door, we have four small solar lights that are supposed to soak in the sun as it shines and subsequently provide light in the darkness. Due to my notorious lack of tech and/or mechanical ability, the lights have been quite the failure. I wonder if they simply have a pull-tab that needs to be removed? Charita’s words challenge me to do what I can today to lay out that lighted path, but also to remove whatever is keeping the light of Christ from shining. Praying the words of Richard Slater this morning: “Holy Spirit, come O come . . . all that hinders shall be thrown aside . . .”

Resources

Here is a link to child care information in Ohio.

https://www.ashlandsource.com/news/covid19/odjfs-implements-emergency-child-care-measures-during-covid--pandemic/article_3a850cae-e945-587f-a61c-df00c0d6b622.html?fbclid=IwAR0AddAUVoTBLFAT5U11tAg1XJrPf0gG7vvd6BwktmQ6_3zX727vzaP1es4

Many of our friends depend on AA meetings. Here is an option if those are cancelled.

Onlinegroupaa.org

The Ashland Kroc Center provides us with this reminder for today: 

We have an extraordinary opportunity to be a small community of love and care for our neighbors (including our families and one another) during this time.

And in benediction, an ancient Celtic blessing

Deep peace of the running waves to you
Deep peace of the flowing air to you
Deep peace of the smiling stars to you
Deep peace of the quiet earth to you
Deep peace of the watching shepherds to you
Deep peace of the Son of peace to you.