"I've had it." How many times have we reached the end of our rope? I can attest that the road noise this week was a lot stronger than past pandemic weeks. Cell phone tracking data shows that my anecdotal listening is correct - more people are traveling than they have in the past. We are not yet out of the woods, but people are venturing forth.
Endurance is something that we all need. The sermon this week talks about endurance and it might not be cheerful, but it is necessary. I can remember many times I got frustrated with a project and had to set it aside only to take it up again to completion. We need to follow through and stay with our projects. The same is true with people. Not all people behave in a way that we would want them to; they don't treat us exactly as we want, and worse, they fail to read our minds. With friends and family sometimes we need to take a step back, take a deep breath, try to see any conflict through their eyes, and be compassionate and full of grace and forgiveness.
Stay strong. Stay safe, Stay in love with God and each other.