May the Road Rise Up to Meet You
I have always loved the beauty of the Celtic spirituality and its emphasis upon the essential goodness of all creation. The ancient Celtics trusted that the presence of God was everywhere and in everything, that the very breath of God pervades all of life, and that the very heart of God beats in all of nature, from the greatest to the smallest of every living thing. The prayers and blessings of this tradition express a profound sense of the presence of heaven on earth. The blessing I offer at the end of each Sunday service is from this tradition, as is this familiar blessing, a prayer for “traveling mercies” for anyone embarking on a journey. :
May the road rise up to meet you;
may the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields,
and until we meet again
may God hold you in the palm of his hand.
So it is with Psalm 121, our scripture for this Sunday. Scholars believe it was a prayer for pilgrims on a journey, probably ascending to the temple mount in Jerusalem. It too affirms the presence of God everywhere, in “our going out and our coming in…and forevermore.” That’s what faith really is about. It’s not just believing that a God exists. It is believing that the heart of love that beats at the center of the universe is for us, with us, within us, no matter where life’s journey may take us. What then do we have to fear?
That’s the kind of faith we will affirm this Sunday, the same day that we will be saying goodbye to the Shaw Family and wishing them Godspeed as they move to Japan. How we will miss them at AUMC! Plan to be present as we surround them with our love and with prayers for traveling mercies. Until then,”may the road rise up to meet you”!
Grace and Peace,
Callie
