Day 3 (Sunday recap)
4 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried you into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6 Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. 7 Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” Jeremiah 29:1-7
Shalom is a beautiful but misunderstood word. In talking with Laura Eason last night, she was telling me how she uses “Shalom” as her closing at her signature for letters and correspondence. Our English translation of “peace” does not capture the heart of the word. Shalom is peace with justice, a total and complete restoration where all things are in harmony and in tune. In community we flourish, nurture, and restore one another. A truly powerful word.
It is this type of relationship and restoration we hope to achieve with our families and day camp children. It reminds me of Ms. Betty who we worked with the past two days through the efforts of Prattville UMC. She was initially robbed by a non-licensed contractor whose negligence and thievery contributed to her house leaking. Not daunted, Ms. Betty, who is also an Army veteran, has been working on her home. She has hung her own drywall, finished it, and done her own painting. She even did some of her own electrical and plumbing work! Really amazing. Her tenacity and positive attitude is inspiring and she embodies the type of partnerships we hope to achieve with all of our families. (Not that they could necessarily do the level of work but that they would have her heart). Ms. Betty attends events with us periodically and speaks on our behalf.
Shalom means for me this type of giving and receiving. It is balanced and not one-sided. We can all give and we can all receive. I pray that even when times are tough we can come together to plant, build, enjoy our families, and seek a holistic peace for each other- shalom.
Enjoyed all the visitors yesterday! The students and families are now back from fall break and I look forward to seeing God do great things. It will mean so much to 40 more families this year!
Shalom from the Shack!
lisa
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