Reflections
You Are a Gift
What a wonderful gift each guest is. As we hear your stories, we are blessed to share your pain as well as the joys.
A recent guest from Texas sent a text to tell me she arrived home safely. She added this note, “Thank you to all of you for blessing me with yourselves, your ministries and the environment there. Next time I’m in a conversation where someone wants to know if I’m red or blue, I’ll probably reply, ‘Atchison Blue.’
This reminded me again of what a wonderful gift each guest is, even for the short time you are with us. You bring such a rich diversity of backgrounds and experiences. As we hear your stories, we are blessed to share your pain as well as the joys. In welcoming guests, I am often struck by how many come who are simply exhausted from the noise and harshness of the world around them and are longing for a gentler place where the heart can rest. However, there are joys, too. Recently one guest came to celebrate her 70th birthday with us; another, to enter into silence before her wedding day. Both were looking for a place where they could put things in right order for the next stage of life. That’s the space we’re privileged to offer.
It is our honor to walk with each of you, even for a short time, as together we seek God who is our peace.
People who come to Sophia often thank us for welcoming them into our peace and allowing them to encounter God’s spirit in this sacred space. But I am most aware that it is our honor to walk with each of you, even for a short time, as together we seek God who is our peace and who is calling us to be compassionate and loving listeners and doers. We are grateful for all the ways you support our ministry.
