That first kiss, that “First place” at the Music Festival, that first baby…so many “firsts” in your life. This adventure of life if full of “firsts”…some wonderful and some woeful.
I still recall the first time I tripped over a wire, fell flat on my face and found I couldn’t breathe. It scared the living daylights out of me. I had never had the air knocked out of my lungs before and never since. Firsts are not always pleasant.
I love that first moment every morning when I lift the venetian blinds on the front windows and gaze at the picture God has painted in my view. It is different every morning; a vision that I wonder if it is only for me, or have others looked out to witness the Creator at work.
But last Sunday was a real first for me. I had been asked to again sit in the choir for a special presentation. (I gave up choir a year or so ago and still miss it.) But, I didn’t need to attend a night time practice and the “run-over” before church had been kind of fun. So, I took my usual place, third over from the left, in the front row.
However, my usual companion was absent and I was sitting beside a young lady who (believe it or not) was somewhat shorter than I was. It isn’t often that I see eye to eye with someone. (You can take that any way you wish.) Anyway, there she was and we proceeded to sing along with the hymns and finally present the anthem.
The Announcements always mention birthdays and she had just celebrated her 18th. She was grinning as her name was announced and I touched her sleeve and mouthed “Congratulations.”
It was Communion Sunday and as always, an Elder stepped to the choir loft and passed around the wine and the bread. She bypassed the juice, reached for the wine and this fantastic smile lit her face as she lifted the wine glass and said “First time.”
I wonder if we have lost that joy of remembering the Lord. Communion can become so blasé if we forget what it is about…that joy of recognizing that the Lord is present with us, has paid the ultimate sacrifice for us and will be with us forever.
It’s a good idea to re-think our communion experiences at times. Perhaps we will again have that joy of “first time.”
Photo:”Sonnenaufgang” by André Karwath aka Aka – Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons.
