7/10/2024
Blessing and Benediction from Rev. Ivan Herman
by Rev. Ivan Herman
We sometimes confine God to an untouchable spiritual realm, but the realm Jesus lived in was made of blood and flesh, water and wine, dust and rain. He knew that loving one another does not always bring warm fuzzies; it sometimes it brings nails. He knew that speaking prophetic truth is not always gentle; it sometimes it brings calls for your head. To love people on the margins, to feed those who are hungry, to cry for justice might mean someone has to give up power so that others can be free, and that someone might be you or me. Faithful spirituality has physical consequences.
Yet there is good news in this tangible spirituality.
Hope is not quiet.
Love is not distant.
God is transforming you right now.
Today you are blessed in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. Places like the ground beneath you, the sky above you, the relationships around you, and the life within you.
Rev. Ivan Herman
Rev. Ivan Herman has served as the associate pastor at Carmichael Presbyterian Church since 2009 and is active in the Presbytery of North Central California. He grew up in Ecuador and Colombia, and has previously served as pastor or ruling elder in Presbyterian congregations in Memphis, TN, Washington, DC, and San Antonio, TX. He holds an annual pass to U.S. National Parks as well as degrees from American University, Wesley Theological Seminary, and Wake Forest University. Ivan lives in Sacramento with his spouse, Susan. They keep a well-stocked fridge for their two teenagers, but the ice cream never even makes it to the freezer.
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