Midweek meditation

The eclipse, which made an appearance in last week’s midweek meditation and Sunday service, made me think of one other thing that’s particularly relevant to this week’s service. It had to do with giving.

I came prepared with a pinhole viewer, which is to say that I didn’t come all that prepared. I’ve made them before, but this one didn’t give a very clear view of the sun. Fortunately, other people had eclipse viewing glasses and one of the women who’d brought them and who stood grinning up at the sky’s display offered them to me. To put it more accurately, she urged them on me. She insisted I try them, and when I did, she said, “Isn’t that great?” Of course, as long as I was looking, she couldn’t, but she wasn’t in a rush to get them back. When I returned them to her, she accepted them happily, looked at the progress of the moon and sun awhile, then soon offered them to the next person to come up to our little gathering.

She was so excited to share something that she was experiencing that even though she was in possession of a scarce resource, she didn’t even think of hoarding it. She wanted us to borrow the glasses. She wanted us to have the same experience she was having. And thanks to her, we did. It made me realize just how joyful it can be to give, and what might make it possible for giving to add to our sense of abundance.

On Sunday, I’ll be talking about different reasons we give, and how we feel as we do. I will look forward to hearing about your experiences of giving and what they have meant to you.

Blessings,

Amy