Gathered Alone Together

“Autumn Orange” by Jerzy Durczak

The leaves have turned and the cool brisk autumn winds are stirring them to the ground. In this time between the Season of Creation and Advent, as Canadians prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving, we set aside time from the challenging aspects of life in a pandemic, to make space for calming our hearts and minds and recovering our sense of gratitude. From Saturday October 10th to Monday October 12th, LC† Gathered Alone Together will offer a daily devotion for reflection.

Our focus is on the ‘Thanksgiving’ scroll, one of the first discovered of the Dead Sea Scrolls, a collection of hymns that were written by the sectarian community at Qumran over two centuries of political and religious turmoil and strife, ending in the Jesus era. A combination of lament and praise for God, the scroll offers prayer that both cries out to God from a place of fear and grief, and also expresses joy in the promise of God’s eternal love and restoration. How can this scroll and some of the traditions of the Qumran communities inspire us to find courage and gratitude in these times? As many of us are unable to come together in the ways that are familiar, how can we gather alone together, inviting God to be with us in our anxiety and uncertainty, and in our gratitude and belonging, so that we may experience a harvest of spirit?

Join us on October 10th for three days.
And may God’s abundant peace find you and your loved ones!

~ from the Lutherans Connect blog

Each devotional includes images, scripture readings, music, a reflection that could be prose or poetry, and a commentary that often concludes with a question to consider.  This devotional can be accessed from the Lutherans Connect Facebook page or from their blog.