Opening Worship
Post Author: Amber Inscore Essick
Opening Worship
7-29-19
There were arches
and a peak
made of wood
and polished,
carved with a
clover symbol
for the Holy
Trinity.
And feathers were laid
on the altar,
beyond the rail
where the minister presides,
which was draped
with green and white
for ordinary time.
And the organ pipes
spread their arms
in welcome
and pursed their lips,
poised to sing,
but yielded
to the lighter notes
of the piano’s
joyous song.
And infants nursed,
And toddlers gave
their voices to
the large spaces
between our prayers.
And the pews
creaked amicably
beneath us
adding their amens
to the gospel
according to Mary
and to “Martha, Martha,”
too,
and “our presence was
gift enough.”
Rev. Amber Inscore Essick is a plant vulture, bird watcher, and seed collector. She co-pastors Port Royal Baptist Church, a rural Baptist congregation along the Kentucky River. She is the Adjunct Professor of Christian Worship at Baptist Seminary of Kentucky. Her three kids are awesome, her husband is infinitely patient, and she has piles of papers from 2016 still waiting for her attention.
Image by: Amber Inscore Essick
Used with permission
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