Pastor’s Column – Nov 2025

I will bless the Lord at all times; God’s praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the humble hear and be glad. O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt God’s name together. -Psalm 34:-13

This year, Jamie began Kindergarten. Among the changes in routine is waiting at the bus stop. We always plan enough time to kick the soccer ball for 10 minutes before the bus takes him to school. I didn’t expect it, but waiting with Jamie has become an important part of my morning. Not only do we play soccer, but we notice the change in the season, like the colors of the leaves, the sight of our breath, or the falling of the leaves. And when the bus comes, I wave and offer a goofy face; he happily returns it. It takes writing a newsletter article for me to appreciate this fully.

Recently, I had coffee with someone who has developed a mindfulness practice by getting up 3 times a week to watch the sunrise. The morning we had coffee, he said he saw the sunrise 5 times. The look I gave him told him to explain himself. He said, “I drove over many hills, and whenever I went to the top, there was another sunrise waiting for me.” He said all of this with a smile and a joy that runs deep at the soul level.

This month, some of us are reading Anger: Wisdom for Cooling the Flames by Thich Nhat Hanh. He invites us to be intentional, aware of our breath, our thoughts, our actions. He writes, “When I eat, I enjoy every morsel of my food. We chew our food very carefully and with a lot of joy.” Each of us has that food or a recipe that serves a beautiful memory or experience of joy. What do we call it when we taste something and appreciate it? We use the word “savor.”

Savor is to enjoy or appreciate something completely, immersing yourself in that experience.  In this season of giving thanks, appreciation, and gratitude, it all begins with our ability to be present and savor a moment. This is precisely what the psalmist is getting at.

They are simply paying attention to the Lord who is with them at all times, and in all seasons. If you keep reading Psalm 34, you will learn that there are evildoers in their lives, that they cry out from affliction, but that does not keep them from blessing the Lord at all times. For God heard their cries, and was with them in the pit, delivering them from a season of trial.

What is the only response to God’s self-giving grace? Praise and Thanks. The psalmist savors it on their lips, noticing the joy of sunsets, pecan pie, or a 5-year-old sticking his tongue at you from the bus. Our praise and our thank you to God becomes a prayer when we savor God’s presence, when we pause long enough to realize from God’s gifts, from whom all blessings have their origin.
o   Breathe slowly, feeling your chest rise and fall.
o   Breathe slowly, knowing it is a gift of love from the One who has been with you always.
o   Breathe slowly, savor this moment, and give thanks. 

Blessings for the journey,
Rev. Keith McDevitt