Random thoughts for the morning. Last week the kids were asking us why the sun was still up at 9pm... my husband began to explain Summer Solstice to them and googled the historical significance. In doing this we learned that the church of the 4th century tried to piggyback on the pagan tradition of mid-summer by declaring the feast of John the Baptist, in celebration of his birth. This made me laugh hysterically. Not because I am opposed in any way to the church aligning celebrations with naturally occurring events, but because of ALL the people in the bible I'm fairly certain John the Baptist would hate a day that was dedicated to him. A man who's faith was so strong he often inflicted discomfort on himself intentionally to further focus his prayer and repentance. A man who ate locusts, and slept on the dirt. A man who lived with absolute humility and understood better than most that his purpose was to point people to Christ.
totally guilty, I have done that. Being vulnerable enough to let people truly know you is hard. In turn, listening and truly trying to understand someone is equally hard. If you are in the midst of a communication fumble, just know there is nothing new under the sun. Even the church gets it wrong sometimes. John the Baptist is likely holding his head in his hand this week and saying "guys, not again, it is not about me, it is about HIM". I'm so thankful that when we get it wrong God truly knows our hearts, and He see's the intention behind it, even when others don't. Grateful today, for a Solstice reminder of the gift of grace!
