Chief Cornerstone

'The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone'? Luke 20:17

Today is a bright, sunny day and the first full day of spring. Exactly a week ago, we were still in the midst of a terrible storm. Four plus inches of rain came down and the winds gusted above 70 miles an hour. Trees came down every where, some ripped from the roots. Branches and limbs fell and some trees snapped in half. Many homes sustained damage when trees fell across the roof. Property owners and contractors scramble to put things back together. The scramble to find help and equipment to get the job done. Many are grateful for their firm foundations and trees with deep roots. Others are just glad to be through the storm with their lives. Everyone has a greater reverence and respect for the weather. And everyone learned to pray a little more last week.

It is easy when the sun is shining to forget the storm. It is easy, when you are a tenant, to forget to care for the gardens. It is easy, when the burden is not yours, to forget how important caring for others and the world around you is. And yet we all share an incredible responsibility, this caring for the world, this being the hands of God's love in our community, this living as caring, faithful people. The parable of the selfish tenants reminds us today how we are to care for the people and the world around us. "The one who was rejected became the chief cornerstone" not only refers to Christ Jesus but to the role of the poor, suffering and rejected among us. We are invited to care for others as we care for the beloved of God. We tenderness, honor and respect.

Today, as the world begins to shed winter, and the light grows longer every day, I want to honor all those in my life who challenges me, and who deserve my utmost respect and care. I want to live remembering, by example of all the damages trees and buildings around us, how precious and precarious life is. And I want to give thanks to God for a solid ground, a chief cornerstone, a firm foundation who is willing and ready to carry us through every storm.