Wednesday night I had the good fortune of attending a talk given by former Senator George Mitchell. If you don’t already know, he has been my write-in candidate for everything since I was in high school. I couldn’t tell you what it was about Senator Mitchell that stayed with me all these years before last night. Certainly I could have list off his achievements: Senate Majority Leader, judge, peace agreements, mediator, negotiator, calm presence, strong convictions… the list goes on. What became clear to me that evening was that Senator Mitchell has faith in people working together to correct wrongs and because of that he has great hope for the future. He does not dismiss what is happening today but looks at the complexities and places people and events in context – like a good Biblical scholar.
I wish I could share with you his insights into local, national and global events but I couldn’t do it justice in this short piece. Working together for peace, bringing about justice and offering hope are common themes in all cultures writing and religious texts. Thank you Senator Mitchell for coming to Vinalhaven and sharing your hopeful vision to us.
Here are two of my favorite writings on Hope.
Grace & Peace,
Pastor Chellie
Hope is the thing with feathers
by Emily Dickinson
“Hope” is the thing with feathers –
That perches in the soul –
And sings the tune without the words –
And never stops – at all –
And sweetest – in the Gale – is heard –
And sore must be the storm –
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm –
I’ve heard it in the chillest land –
And on the strangest Sea –
Yet – never – in Extremity,
It asked a crumb – of me.
Romans 5:1-5
Therefore, since we are justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand;
and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.
And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings,
knowing that suffering produces endurance,
and endurance produces character,
and character produces hope,
and hope does not disappoint us,
because God’s love has been poured into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
John Street United Methodist Church 