Rev. Virginia Jarocha-Ernst

Dear friends,

Appreciation is a small thing. It doesn’t cost much and it takes very little energy. It names what is right, what is good and what is beautiful in the complex and messy world before us. Appreciation is the antidote for so much that is hurtful to human community. When we get stuck in thinking what we do and who we are is not good enough, insufficient, poorly executed, just barely getting by, a word of appreciation can turn us around.

And there is always something to appreciate if we take the time to look for it. Often there is more than allot to appreciate about a person or a situation. And the miracle is that the more we practice appreciating the more good things we find there.

So when criticism, judgment, and hurtful words and actions come your way, one response might be to look for something to appreciate. The holy is working there too. A few years ago, I told you about finding this sign in a park on the Alabama coast. When I think about critics and those who want to cut us down, I think of them as alligators and remember it is wise not to feed them! Before you are alligators and a world of good and beauty… which one are you feeding?

With love and appreciation,

Rev. Virginia