a liturgy for leavings
even in our goodbyes there is a
blessing, for the sorrow of parting is a measure of
the depth of the bond we have come to share in Christ.
thank you, O God,
blessing, for the sorrow of parting is a measure of
the depth of the bond we have come to share in Christ.
thank you, O God,
that we do not walk this road alone,
but that this journey toward eternity & toward your
heart has been, from the beginning, one that you
ordained we should undertake in the glad &
good company of our fellow pilgrims.
but that this journey toward eternity & toward your
heart has been, from the beginning, one that you
ordained we should undertake in the glad &
good company of our fellow pilgrims.
O Lord, make us ever mindful of one another
unto the end that we would labor in the
days to come as those who would tend &
encourage the stories of those around by
prayer & friendship & thoughtfulness &
conversation, affirming & sharpening & amplifying
one another's good works, unto the end that your body
would be built up, & that your kingdom would be more
fully realized in this world.
thank you, O God, for the mercy & the beauty
incarnated in the words & acts of those
your people, extended one toward another.
it is no accident that we were born in the same
epoch, & that our stories have twined in this time
& in this place.
let us therefore go forth & steward one another's stories.
let us journey from here together, as vessels of that mercy
& as stewards of that wild & wondrous beauty
that flows from the heart & mind of our Creator.
grant, O Lord, that we might take our leave of one
another now, feeling a right joy for the blessings
of the hours we have shared, even as a feel
a bright & hopeful sorrow at their close.
friends & saints & fellow pilgrims, we part now in the
confidence that is our diverging paths we walk the
same road, fanning the same flame, & that in time
we will meet again in a fellowship forever unbroken.
by your Spirit, O Christ, make us faithful in the meanwhile,
as we go out to labor in the diverse fields
to which you have assigned us,
laboring unto that better meeting,
& unto that new-made world
that is yet promised & that has already begun.
O Spirit of God, be as present in our parting
as you were in our gathering.
be present in our journeys.
be present in our days to come.
be present in our works & in our words & in our hearts.
be present in the bonds of our community, Lord Christ.
be ever at work among us & through us.
Amen.
for Emma:
Hi I’m Maddie and tonight I would like to nominate Emma Surber as the official comeback kid of Athens Young Life. Her freshman year, she spent the majority of her placement night sobbing because she was so unsure of whether or not this was the place for her or if she was supposed to be a leader at all. Full hysterics. at the tin roof. While her new teammates were all dressed Mario cart characters. Now 3 years later, and not only did Emma clearly stay, but she even became the best team leader Mociddle has ever seen. And maybe even more than that, she became exactly the friend that her teammates and kids in Morgan County needed. When I was a new leader, Emma and I got lunch & in my own uncertainty, I was asking her questions about Morgan County (before I knew anything about how her placement night went) & hearing her talk about how clearly she already saw the Lord’s faithfulness and His hand in placing her in Madison was the first time that I felt like I was exactly where I was supposed to be. Because Emma’s just that type of friend. She brings people in and makes them like they belong & like there is a seat she’s been saving just for them. Emma leads by example in quiet humility and kindness and optimism. She showed me what it looks like to bury your heart in the greatest small town in America. Last year during a post-club, Emma had to join late us after taking one of her friends home. She came and sat next to me with a kind of dazed, yet amused look in her eye and whispered in my ear, “I just held a chicken in Dakota’s living room.” And if that’s not enough to get your heart buried in Morgan County, I think I know a small army of a track team that would gladly see to it that it happens. Emma, we love you. You’re our best friend.
