Yearning

PSALM 23  (NRSV)
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

Psalm 23 is familiar scripture.  It is as much about life and living as it is used for death and dying.  Psalm 23 is filled with the familiar:  shepherds, pastures, waters, dark valleys, tables, overflowing cups, protection and comfort.   When we hear it read, we bring to it our own life’s complex mix of fears and anxieties.  Hopefully, our anxieties are slightly quieted when we are reminded that God is shepherd, God is comforter and God is host. That God’s generosity and hospitality are infinite, radical and sustaining.
God walks with us, God waits with us, God is lonely with us. 
God is whatever you are, with you, right now.
God is not separate.

And yet, that first line…'The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want'.  I’ll be honest and please allow me be human…I don’t feel like I have everything I want right now.  I am grateful that I have everything I need…a home, my family, food in my cupboards, and meaningful  and purposeful work.  Yet, there is so much I yearn for right now.
Yearning is an action verb.  It is an intense felling of longing for something that we have lost or been separated from.   I am comforted by my understanding that if I yearn, God yearns with me.

So, what do we do about our yearnings?  
Have you ever noticed that time seems to move more quickly for adults than for children?  Like a car ride to a place you’ve never been takes so long the first time because you don’t know where you’re going?   This time of uncertainty we are all living in, feels like that car ride.  Long.  Not knowing where we are going or where we will end up or when.  The valley is dark and we are driving with our high beams on trying to see, just enough to stay centered on the road.  
We need activities to help us pass the time.  

This week’s activity for all ages is to start a Yearnings Jar.  All you need is a container, some paper or craft sticks, and a marker.   Ask yourself, what are your yearnings, wants, needs, wishes, prayers, and hopes?  Do you yearn for face to face connections,  gatherings,  play dates, coffee shops, happy hour?
Sports teams, school, concerts, vacations, youth group, hikes, hugs? 
 
Every time you have a yearning, that you could do something, go somewhere, treat yourself, see someone you love, visit a new place, invite people to visit you, take care of someone else… 
Write it down on a Post-it note or craft stick and put it in a jar.   Start collecting and filling your jar with yearnings. 

When the time comes, that jar will be become your bucket list and you will get to work your way through the jar and be more grateful than ever for the little and lovely things in our lives. 
Until then, enjoy watching the jar fill up with hopeful, helpful and wonderful things to look forward to. 
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And remember, that God is with you in your yearning and that it’s OK to want.

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