Created to be Creative

Christ Church Charlotte

Created to be Creative

May 8, 2024 • The Reverend Chip Edens

This week’s staff meeting devotional was offered by Elizabeth Ignasher, our Communications Director. I asked her to share it with you.

Recently I ran across this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BiD8CDTD0jk) from Dr. Bertice Berry and it really spoke to me. I’ve never thought of myself as particularly creative. Thankfully Jane, Hunter, and Lexie have that base covered for the communications team. I am more inclined toward grammar and spelling, brand standards, html code and systems, because they’re either right or they’re not. When I start a new project, my left-brain just takes charge. Some of that is just how I’m wired – analytical, logical, organized – but also, honestly, it feels safer to me.

There’s a vulnerability to being creative. There is no getting it “right.” It is totally subjective and it reveals something about the creator (with a little c). Sharing something we’ve made requires a level of confidence that it is beautiful, or useful, or it makes the world better somehow. For someone who “isn’t creative” that’s a bit intimidating, and when things aren’t going perfectly (are they ever?), it’s hard to open myself up to that extra vulnerability.

But one of the great things about the work we do at Christ Church is that we are not doing it alone, and hopefully we are more likely than, say, someone working in a plastic widget factory to remember that “spark of the divine” that we all possess. What we’re making is sometimes harder to see than a plastic widget, but it’s inspired by our role as co-creators with each other and more importantly, with the capital-C Creator.

Creativity is not just about making art or music or poetry (though these are beautiful and useful creations that make the world better). It’s also about ideas and imagination, or even taking someone else’s idea and building a plan to make it happen.

We are all created to create. I am grateful for the affirmation we give each other and the wonderful creative work we inspire in each other that helps us remember why we’re here.

So when someone asks us what we are so happy about, we can say “We’re happy because we made something!”

Is There Enough for a Sabbath?

May 29, 2024 • The Reverend Allen Pruitt

When I was growing up, there was always something to do at my grandparent’s house. Grass to cut, weeds to trim, vegetables to tend, and always some project to make the place a little easier for two aging grandparents. But no matter how much there was to do, we never did any of it on Sunday. I couldn’t understand why: after all, the whole family was already there, we all had the day off, and so why shouldn’t we get a little done? Because my grandma said so. Sunday was the Lord’s Day, a day for church, and dinner, and naps. Us boys could play as much football as we wanted; the adults could play as much Rook as the day would allow; but we were not allowed to do any work of any kind. Period. The older I got, the more frustrating this became. There were things I wanted to help my grandmother with. There were things that needed doing, and I didn’t always have time to come back during the week to help out: I had classes to attend, or tennis matches on Saturday morning. It didn’t matter – none of it. If helping her was important to me, then I would find time for it one of the other six days, but we had to take a Sabbath and we had to keep it holy. That part wasn’t up for discussion. For so many of us, taking some time for rest seems holy because it’s such a luxury, not because we have made it a priority. For most of us, the idea that rest is holy because we organize everything else around it, well that’s a foreign concept. But even the most casual reader of the Bible, the one who picks it up and reads for ten minutes during a boring sermon, will see that rest was not an afterthought. Rest is right there in Chapter 1. Sabbath is non-negotiable – whatever else is important to us, we’re supposed to make time for rest. It’s just after Memorial Day, and you likely have a vacation planned. I certainly do. Enjoy your vacation! Taking a little time away seems like it should be the most natural thing in the world, but there’s always something grabbing at you, something that just has to get done yesterday. As your priest, I’m here to tell you, “That is the voice of temptation; don’t listen!” Instead, take a deep breath sometime while you’re gone. Take a deep breath and wonder for a minute at all you have seen happen in your life, the petty and the redemptive, the ridiculous and the sublime, the emptiness and the holiness. Take just a minute and thank God for where you’ve been and ask God where you might be headed. Take a deep breath and ask yourself how you can make time for rest every week, every day, not just on vacation. What keeps us from resting? What keeps us from taking our Sabbath? Probably the same thing that made me argue with my grandmother all those years ago: “If you don’t let us fix it on Sunday, there won’t be any time to fix it later!” In other words, “I’m afraid there’s not enough!” Maybe the hardest part of resting is believing that there is enough – that God has provided enough, and that we don’t have to be productive every minute of our lives. Grandma never would let us work on Sunday. And yet somehow, we always found time for what really needed doing. We cut the grass and weeded the garden and I got to have a glass of sweet tea with her on a random Thursday after class. Looking back, I’m proud of the faucets we replaced and the ceiling fans we hung in her house. But what I remember more than anything was that time I scored the winning touchdown, just as it was getting too dark to see. I remember the first time my grandma and I beat my cousin and my brother playing Rook. I’m proud of the work we did, but more, I’m glad she commanded us to rest.

Enough for All

May 22, 2024

In 2013, Robin Wall Kimmerer published a book called Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants. This book is part science, part sharing of her life story, and is mostly captivating, poetic prose. It is a book that I’m savoring – not rushing through – but trying to absorb each word and each image. In the chapter called “The Three Sisters,” she writes, “Plants tell their stories not by what they say, but by what they do.” She tells the story of the Three Sisters which are three seeds: corn, beans, and squash. For millennia in Indigenous agriculture, these three seeds would be planted together in the same square foot or patch of soil. Once established, corn comes out of the ground first, searching for light to grow up tall. Then, beans emerge to join the corn. She calls squash “the slow sister,” as she is the last to join and complete the trio. Kimmerer writes, “…each plant has its own pace and the sequence of their germination, their birth order, is important to their relationship and to the success of the crop.” Once together above ground, each of the sisters does her own thing for her own propagation, and that thing also beautifully serves the others. The Three Sisters abide together. Corn grows tall with a strong stalk being top priority. Beans start out growing low to the ground and when the corn stalk is ready, the bean vine redirects its growth upwards, supported by the stalk. Meanwhile, slow sister squash grows out over the ground away from the other two sisters. Sister squash’s wide leaves shelter the soil at the base of the corn and beans, keeping moisture in and other plants out. Kimmerer writes, “The organic symmetry of forms belongs together; the placement of every leaf, the harmony of shapes speak their message. Respect one another, support one another, bring your gifts to the world and receive the gifts of others, and there will be enough for all.” This sentiment about The Three Sisters rings true of Christ Church, Galilee Ministries of East Charlotte, and many other communities around the city that build bridges for the common good: respecting one another, supporting one another, bringing their gifts to the world, receiving the gifts of others, so there will be enough for all. Almighty God, we thank you for making the earth fruitful, so that it might produce what is needed for life: Bless those who work in the fields; give us seasonable weather; and grant that we may all share the fruits of the earth, rejoicing in your goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. – Prayer for Agriculture, Book of Common Prayer, page 824 In service, Emily+

You are the Gift!

May 15, 2024 • The Reverend Elizabeth Walker

We’re planning a birthday party this weekend at Christ Church. It’s at 10 am in All Saints’ Hall and everyone is invited. Come on time, or a little early! wear red! No need to bring a wrapped gift – you are the gift. This Sunday is Pentecost, which can be called the birthday of the Church. Pentecost marks the pivotal moment when the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples, as recorded in the book of Acts. It was a divine outpouring, igniting flames of passion and purpose within each believer, transcending language barriers and cultural divides. This event symbolizes the birthing of a community united by faith and mission, a community united in love. Red is the color for the day. I know an Episcopal priest who marks liturgical time by the color of his Chuck Taylor sneakers. Through the seasons of the year, he changes to reflect the color of the season, matching the altar frontal, the clergy stoles, and sometimes the flowers. He uses his attire to stay grounded in the season. Colors, and a focus on the rhythm of the seasons, are markers of our Anglican tradition. Red is one of those colors used on exactly one, special day. I have a favorite skirt I save for Pentecost every year, and I am excited to see your red birthday party attire. The book of Acts describes the action of Pentecost like this: “Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them.” (Acts 2:3) This is such a powerful image because we can’t get away from it. Each of us is created as a wick for the light of Christ. Lit by the Holy Spirit, we carry God in us and from us, shining light into the world. Pentecost is a day to remember that each of us is a member of the body of Christ, which is truly something to celebrate. See you Sunday, on Pentecost, on Parish Day! Wear red! There is no need to bring a wrapped gift; you are the gift!