Lenten Devotional by Dawn Sorensen
March 31, 2017
The church I grew up in was located in a rural farm town in Michigan. It was not fancy. There was no stained glass, the pews were hand made by George Poe and Bill Smith. It was exactly in the center of the village of Crystal Valley, population 602. The sanctuary is where I first heard a call to ministry, at age 10.
It was downstairs, however, in the church basement that everything happened. Well, everything except worship. The sanctuary was off-limits to lots of things, like running, yelling, eating food, drinking coffee, etc. The basement was one big room full of rectangular tables and chairs. The exception, a children’s table, also built by Mr. Smith, was where we children played during sermons. In the basement was also a large kitchen with an industrial three-tub sink where we washed those tiny communion glasses, by hand, every month. On the walls hung felt banners with sayings and pictures. One banner, ugly and green with loud colored layers of felt said, “God made you and God don’t make junk.” So there you are! Now you know. You have all the theology you need in that one grammatically incorrect statement. It would be safe to say that banner got me through some of the toughest times in my life. It helped me remember whose I was. That silly banner reminds me, even now, of the communion of saints from which I come.
The basement of the church I grew up in was such a sanctuary. It was where my friends from church and I got to line up first for all the pot-lucks. It was where Elaine would put pepperoni in her ‘famous’ lasagna just because that’s how we liked it. It was where I memorized the names of the disciples through song. In that basement, I went to Sunday School every Sunday for a whole year just so I could get a sticker in my sticker book. Sometimes I imagine it so I can feel like I’m there, even though it’s not the same without Elaine, or Bill, or my friends from back then.
When I was in high school, the church youth group was the only judgement-free zone in my entire week. My tomboy ways were accepted, loved, and sometimes even encouraged. I think of my own kids and I know they are getting the same kind of sanctuary here at Edwards Church. We are truly blessed by God for this gift.
Today’s Prayer: Thank you God, for providing us sanctuary. Thank you for good theology hidden in bad grammar. Thank you most for love that surrounds us and allows us to feel safe and be brave. Amen.
PHOTO: That’s me, front and center!