Friday – November 20, 2020

Scripture

1 John 4:17, 19, 21

God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them…. We love because he first loved us… The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters.

Word of Hope

When chaos surrounds us. We need not be overwhelmed, confused, or helpless. We just have to keep finding more ways to love others, especially the “others” among us. Whether someone voted differently than us, or someone is a different race or someone worships in another church, our challenge is the same. We must find more ways to love, and we do this by finding ways to bless them with the same generosity that God has blessed us.

Today is Trans Day Of Remembrance. This day has been set aside to recognize our Transgender sisters and brothers who have lost their lives because they were misunderstood and hated. Even as we recall their names, I wish to honor their courage in sharing their truth even though it was met with hostility and hatred.

It is important to remember that while their deaths were caused by one or more persons who “othered” them, they were also loved and are now mourned. I wish to offer comfort to their loved ones. I also ask you to join me in loving and blessing our transgender siblings. They are not “others”. They are God’s beloved children.

The following poem was written by Jeanne Medina to honor a member of Cathedral of Hope. With permission from the author and recipient, I offer it to honor our entire transgender community.

Revealed

Looking Eastward
I see your gentle
Blue-grey feathers
laying low across the sky.

Then,
the Earth moved!

The still-hidden sun
revealed
your full glory!

Blue-grey feathers
turn Powerful Pink
before my eyes,
and dance
upon the horizon
of this

New day!

Prayer

Dear God, please help us love one another in Jesus’s name. Amen.

Devotion Author

Carole Anne Sarah