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Daily Devotional June 24

Then God said, “Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.” And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good.
      – Genesis 1:11-12, NRSV
 
For you shall go out in joy,
and be led back in peace;
the mountains and the hills before you
shall burst into song,
and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
      – Isaiah 55:12, NRSV

On Monday evening, for its first performance since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, nearly every seat in Barcelona’s Liceu opera house was full. 

Barcelona’s Liceu opera house

But the seats weren’t filled with humans. They were filled with plants. The musicians of the UceLi string quartet, decked in their finest performance attire, treated the leafy concert-goers to a little Puccini, while human listeners eavesdropped via livestream. (In coming days, the plants will be offered as gifts to health care workers in Barcelona. To read the full news story, visit www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/06/22/881943143/barcelona-opera-reopens-with-an-audience-of-plants)

As I looked at the photos from this concert, I found them to be one part  whimsical and another part eerie — like a scene out of Life After People. And as I continued to muse, and my mind continued to wander, I found myself wondering… 

It’s said that singing to plants can help them grow. 
I wonder what happens when string quartets play for them. 
I wonder what happens when preachers preach to them.
Maybe I’ll fill the pews with plants!

I’m joking, of course. Besides… the plants already know the One who created them, the One who gives them life, the One who called them into being and called them “good.” And in the really joyful moments — moments like the one described in the Isaiah passage above, when God’s people can finally return from exile, can finally return to the land and temple — even the plants can (in their own vegetal way) sing and clap and rejoice. 

So sing to your plants, friends… and in time, in God’s time, in whatever time we’re finally able to return to God’s house together, may they “sing” back and rejoice with you. 

While you sing and wait, may you remember:

Our God is bigger than coronavirus. 
Our vision is bigger than coronavirus, too. 
We are people blessing people. 
We are Wesley Church.   

Blessings,

Pastor Candy


Want to know more?

  • Learn about our church and its ministries: https://wesleychurch.com/
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  • View previous devotionals: https://wesleychurch.com/pastor-candys-devotionals-2/
  • Read Hillary Watson’s Palm Sunday blog post:

Sunday June 26, 2022

Masking will remain optional at Wesley Church

In order to help you make an informed decision about your own mitigation practices, Wesley Church will share our county’s updated risk category and the CDC’s corresponding guidelines in each edition of our weekly enews.
We are currently in the “high risk” category. The CDC guidelines for the “high” category are:

   Wear a mask indoors in public

   Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines   

   Get tested if you have symptoms

   Additional precautions may be needed for people at high risk for severe illness

For more information, visit cdc.gov 

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Today’s Community Connections

  • If you are interested in providing fresh flowers for worship, please sign up at the Connections Corner table.
  • Feel like you missed something? The Connections Corner table can help. Head across the atrium and get the information you need just under the tv monitor.
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  • Do you enjoy being creative with pictures and video?  Do you like telling a story through images?  We are looking for people who enjoy making videos, who can use technology to help represent some of the music we use in worship, and possibly other parts of the worship service such as announcements, testimonies, and more.  If this interests or excites you, please see Becky Graybeal for more details and to get plugged in!

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