Thanks to pre-recording my messages, I was able to speak at two churches today! (Thanks technology!)
The first was at Harcourt Memorial United Church in Guelph, Ontario, for their Affirming Sunday Service! With everything going on, it felt most appropriate to share about the challenge of balancing both grief & joy. My message is about 12 mins long, starting at 14:37 on the below video. Feel free to enjoy their entire beautiful service, though!
They also asked me to write a blessing for them, as part of being the guest speaker. I thought I would share the text of that here too. (It’s at the end of my message.)
May you feel warmly supported
When you relax into grief
May you wrap your arms around yourself
In loving kindness
Knowing you have been doing your best
And you have been trying so very hard
May you envision our Mother or Father God,
Wrapping their all encompassing arms around you
In your pain, in your sorrow, and in your joy
May you have the courage to feel the pain
To really feel it
But in doing so, also be filled from a deep well of hope
In life’s endless possibilities, in the triumph of love
In the beauty of the small moments
In each deep healing breath
And may you feel God’s love gently pursuing you
Shining warmly upon youLike the fresh morning sun
May you place your hand on your heart, and feel the soft, strong beats
And know you are not alone
And you are loved.
The second was sharing my message at my home church Open Door Church here in Maple Ridge, BC. I was so excited and honoured that they invited me to share on the first Sunday in Pride month! I originally recorded this message in Nov 2020 for a conference where I got un-invited, and it was wonderful to finally share it with my own beloved community. We gathered on our Facebook page to be together live, and here is the archived service in its’ entirety. (They read Rainbow Boy near the beginning too, which was so fun to watch! Thanks ODC friends!)
STACEY CHOMIAK 