Saint Philip’s
Episcopal Church
SPIRITUAL
MINUTE- APRIL 22, 2007
BONNIE
KATUSICH
The spirit of the Lord is upon me. How many times have I heard this, spoken these or similar words?
Not too long ago, maybe at one of my last warden’s
meetings, or vestry meetings last year, the discussion came up about how strongly
or not do we feel the spirit of the Lord in us? I didn’t hesitate, because I knew as I’ve
known for some time now, that the spirit of Lord is strong in
me.
These past five years have seen an unusual amount of
major life changes for me. I am a pretty private person, so bear with me. I turned 40 (and more recently, 45); I was
divorced; I changed jobs for the second
time in three years; I almost lost my home for financial reasons; I fell in
love with someone who’s spiritual side matches my own (and wow is that
powerful); and my firstborn became a teenager, in age as much as in
attitude(!). I had some pretty high high’s and some awfully low lows…..amazingly enough
however even in the most down and out emotional times I would have moments of
sheer, overwhelming joy that I could not explain, either in the moment’s
timing or it’s reason. Not that this was any different than anything I’ve felt
before….I can remember this happening way back in my childhood. I guess I never really thought about it, until the last five years - during that time somehow
I’ve become more aware of it.
My life has stabilized it seems now…but I am more
aware of those spurts of joy than ever.
They come at other times I’ve noticed now too-many right here experiencing St. Philips moments: When we went from brainstorming a youth program to actually hiring Molly as our youth
program coordinator over three years ago.
The first time I heard Paul Utgoff make our organ sing (and watching him physically ‘dance‘ with his feet on the organ he
so loves). Diane Slezek‘s voice in certain hymns and solos. The first all 4 kids sale that I worked at, in the cashier line when it was so busy and we had
so much fun. More recently I was overjoyed when the growth and vision group first
met, and I learned how many people were participating. The power of these moments matches those
moments when I am alone.
I know where this spirit comes from, but how did it
get here, to me??
Some may say that I’m simply a happy person and yes,
that’s true. But I can tell you now, that it’s much more than that. I cannot say that I’ve ever felt the Lord’s actual presence, nor have I ever felt Him
speaking to me. But when I hear the words “the spirit of the Lord is upon me” I
feel blessed to be witness to that spirit.
I wish this was something I could put my hands around and pass on to others - wouldn’t that be nice?
A couple of months ago my daughter Jessica brought
this home from Sunday school (it‘s a scroll, with an angel and halo - above the
angel it says “The spirit of the Lord is upon You“). I asked her if I could hang it in my room,
and she said yes. I
actually hang it in my bathroom (just off the bedroom), at eye’s level (coincidentally there‘s a nail at just the right
place!), so that every time I
leave that room I glance at it. Not so much to remind me, but to make me
look, and repeat it to myself. I love it.
Yes, the spirit of the Lord is upon me. I hope you feel his spirit too.
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