"God of the Sparrow." A Note From Jan.

Feels like summer, air heavy with moisture, hazy. Disappointed surfers come and go. Ocean placid as a southern lake. A beach sweeper brushes sand and debris to a far off section of the beach parking lot, cornering the last reminders of winter. Good Harbor. and it is for me.

So are family and friends. Good harbors. Church, too.

Yesterday we sang a new hymn at church, “God of the Sparrow…” Written by Jaroslav Vajda,  preeminent Lutheran hymn writer in the 20th century. John Russell, our wonderful organist and choirmaster, is a teacher at heart. He taught about this hymn through another professor, C. Michael Hawn. “No punctuation and rhyme in this hymn…to create a sense of openness…the last two lines of each stanza ask rhetorical questions…The lack of question marks gives one the sense that these questions are not so much expecting an answer as making a statement of profound wonder about the relationship between the Creator and Creator’s creatures.”

“God of the sparrow   God of the whale   God of the swirling stars How does the creature say Awe     How does the creature say Praise

God of the earthquake  God of the storm  God of the trumpet blast How does the creature cry woe    How does the creature cry Save

God of the rainbow   God of the cross   God of the empty grave How does the creature say Grace     How does the creature say Thanks

God of the hungry  God of the sick   God of the prodigal How does the creature say Care   How does the creature say Life

God of the neighbor   God of the foe   God of the pruning hook How does the creature say Love   How does the creature say Peace

God of the ages   God near at hand   God of the loving heart How do your children say Joy   How do your children say Home”

Good Harbor. You pick a place to live and over time know how much it picked you.

God of the widow   God of this day  God who provides with love How does this creature say Wow   How does this creature say Thanks