upomeno

So I'm crazy about my new church. Pretty much everything about it. But particularly the sermons given by the senior pastor, who is just incredibly intelligent, educated, and well spoken. My two biggest pet peeves in sermons are 1) when pastors choose a very tired theme and find every verse they can on that theme and 2) when they beat a point to death (I'm often left thinking "yes, I got your point about half an hour ago; let's move on). But this pastor's sermons are fascinating and delve into theory and history and all sorts of interesting concepts. Basically, he treats his congregation like intelligent human beings who want to learn more and grow rather than just be pacified. I'm a huge fan of that.

This last Sunday I almost didn't go to church. It was freezing out, I was tired, and I had a party to go to later on the opposite end of town. But I went anyway for some unknown reason. Anyway, for the reasons mentioned earlier, I'm very glad I did. Various things stuck with me, but I particularly remember the pastor emphasizing the word "upomeno," which essentially means endurance and steadfastness in difficult times. I've decided it needs to be my mantra for a while. Although I'm finding myself pretty overwhelmed these days - new and old jobs to juggle, a career to somehow create from scratch, a few disappointing and/or frustrating relationships and encounters, aggressive student loan folks - I also have so much to be grateful for and hopeful for. And I know I simply need to stick it out. There's much to aspire to and work toward and believe in.

My other favorite from Sunday: "Never forget in the dark what you saw in the light."