Gift

All is Grace…

There is so much that goes on in the world and in each of our lives that sometimes it can be hard to sift through it all. Situations, people and things can become lumped together, making it difficult to see clearly or to have a good sense of what is authentic, and what is not. Without that, finding a grain(s) of value in the midst of it all, is nearly impossible.

More often than not though, and yes, even in a dense fog or in the darkness of night, there is something to be gained. Like a lost gem waiting to be discovered, there is often wisdom to be found in all things, even in what might seem like drama or nonsense.

Oftentimes, it can be very appealing, and perhaps all too easy to walk away or quickly discount that which one does not understand. However, what seems more important is doing so for reasons that are true and pure.

How does one know when to walk away?

Seek Wisdom (Sophia) first, and she will lead the way. Wisdom tells me that wherever I am at any particular moment, that is the place and time that God has anointed for me to be there. It is a place for me to encounter, as well as to be, the face of Grace. Each moment and each situation in my life, in each of our lives, has something sacred in store for us. It is as if we are constantly on the brink of greatness; a greatness that extends beyond this world.

Desire therefore my words;
long for them and you will be instructed.

Resplendent and unfading is Wisdom,
and she is readily perceived by those who love her,
and found by those who seek her.

She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her;
one who watches for her at dawn will not be disappointed,
for she will be found sitting at the gate.

For setting your heart on her is the perfection of prudence,
and whoever keeps vigil for her is quickly free from care;
Because she makes her rounds, seeking those worthy of her,
and graciously appears to them on the way,
and goes to meet them with full attention.

For the first step toward Wisdom is an earnest desire for discipline;
then, care for discipline is love of her;
love means the keeping of her laws;
To observe her laws is the basis for incorruptibility;
and incorruptibility makes one close to God;
thus the desire for Wisdom leads to a kingdom.  (Wisdom 6:11-20)

By the grace of God, we are where we are meant to be, at this particular point in time. Through Wisdom, we can see, everything is Grace.

EverythingIsGraceB

In word: “Everything is a grace because everything is God’s gift. Whatever be the character of life or its unexpected events—to the heart that loves, all is well.” – St. Therese of Lisieux.

In song: “Everything Is Grace” by Matt Maher.

To Love and Be Loved…

As Valentine’s Day approaches, flowers, chocolates, cards and other gifts that have come to be seen as expressions of affection and love abound. There are so many ways to express one’s love for another, especially materially. However, ultimately, love is much deeper than that which can be smelled, eaten or touched. It is about what we do and in how we respond to one another.

Genuine love is priceless and often reaches farther than one might realize. It comes with meaning and depth that includes freedom to be one self, trust, truth and acceptance toward another or at the hands of another. Genuine love is not a one-way street. It flows to and from, and then over and beyond.

“To be loved, to be loved (to be loved)/ Oh what a feeling/ To be loved,” Jackie Wilson sings in the song written by Roquel Davis, Gwendolyn Gordy Fuqua, and Berry Gordy Jr. The song continues, “Some wish to be a king or a queen/ Some wish for fortune and fame/ But to be truly, truly, truly loved/ Is more than all of these things.”

There is no power greater than love. In fact, all creation springs forth from Love. In God’s love we enter this world with the capacity to both love and be loved. This genuine love is the bond that holds humanity together.

What is it then, that gets in the way? What is it that prevents love, the kind that shines bright and true, from being realized or lived out? In what ways do I contribute to, or detract from, the flow of God’s love within, around and beyond me?

While at a quick glance, money and power seem most likely culprits, at the heart of the matter, love is most often trampled upon by self-interest that exceeds or excludes care and concern for others; a primary focus on gathering, preserving, receiving or taking for oneself. When vision becomes narrow and self-centered, the ability to love and to be loved also narrows; becoming inhibited or incapacitated.

When this happens though, hope need not be lost. With real love, there is no such thing as a “point of no return.” Perhaps one of the greatest characteristics of authentic love is that its source is ever-present. Genuine love is always within reach, waiting for that moment of turning around to show us the way…softening the heart…embracing and lifting us up in communion once more.

To be loved is a blessing…to love…a gift.

goldenheart

 

Gifts from God are Everlasting…

About a week ago, it was the month and date of the last time I was together with all of my siblings. A number of us had traveled a good distance south to be there. The six of us were present and engaged, laughing and talking with each other.

I don’t recall what the weather was like that day, but the sun was shining. At least I remember feeling that way…surrounded by warmth and love. We were gathered in a room, eating lunch and spending time together prior to the youngest of us starting preparations for another bone marrow transplant. Despite the impending procedure, I recall feeling joy in the moments of our togetherness.

Our time together that day ended and some of us returned north. Afterward, I spoke with my younger brother by phone. We were talking about our lunch together with all of our older siblings. We spoke about how much we enjoyed being together. Then he said, “I wish we could be together all the time.” I remember saying, “Yeah, but we would probably get on each other’s nerves if we were together all the time.” Then we joked about how it would be fine as long as we had space to retreat to, we could live on a cul-de-sac with a house for each of us, numbered 1 through 6 of course…we laughed. Growing up many a thing was labeled with our birth order number so as for us to easily identify our belongings.

While seven years have passed now since that day in May, sometimes it seems as if it were just yesterday. None of us knew that day, that the next time we would be together would come so soon…and with one less voice. My brother passed away a little more than a month later.

Every year around the anniversary of that day, I feel such sadness and heartache at first. Then, as I recall the day and the spirit in which we were together I feel so grateful for that one last time all together, and all the days we had together leading up to it. Each time I recall that experience, or any other time with my younger brother, I can picture his handsome face and mischievous smile. It is as if, in that moment, our spirits bow to each other and I know he lives on…encouraging me to remember there is beauty in each moment…to embrace and cherish it. Reminding me that what really matters cannot be taken away, not even by death.

One Voice by The Wailin’ Jennys – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bc6HloRYZGc

This is the sound of one voice
One spirit, one voice
The sound of one who makes a choice
This is the sound of one voice

This is the sound of voices two
The sound of me singing with you
Helping each other to make it through
This is the sound of voices two

This is the sound of voices three
Singing together in harmony
Surrendering to the mystery
This is the sound of voices three

This is the sound of all of us
Singing with love and the will to trust
Leave the rest behind it will turn to dust
This is the sound of all of us

This is the sound of one voice
One people, one voice
A song for every one of us
This is the sound of one voice

This is the sound of one voice

DJM2Drum

Ask and You Shall Receive…

There I stood…my heart deeply moved, tears forming, feeling so grateful for what I was experiencing once more. This feeling had seemed absent for quite some time…missing for so long. Wow! To think I did not wake with the intention to be in the location that I was standing. There was too much to do and not enough time to do it, but still I felt a nudge, pushing me…rather pulling me toward this very spot. So here I was, thinking, “How good it feels to be present here, at this very moment!” Remembering what a Spirit-filled celebration it used to be. Remembering what it was like to be filled up and sent forth with this Spirit…the presence that drew me in and brought me back daily to this communal practice.

As I stood, I could feel the river flowing once again, drought no more, at least temporarily. Then, I recalled how I expressed a desire for the same Spirit of life, light and truth that was present at a friend’s home the prior week to also be present once more in the place in which I was now standing…a place in which it had been feeling next to intolerable to experience such a void. Aaah! Answered prayer…my heart once more filled with gratitude, and in awe of the Lord. All that was left, to pray. May the Spirit be upon and flow through all who enter this sacred space, and all who lead…replacing any darkness, with God’s grace.

“Yet I will rejoice in the LORD and exult in my saving God.” – Habakkuk 3:18

OpenDoors

To the Earth…

The glory of God is constantly in our midst. It is there in so many ways. Sometimes we are aware of it and sometimes we are not. As Earth Day (April 22) approaches, look around in the days to come. Bathe in the splendor of the earth. No matter where you are or how busy you might be, take time, even if just a moment or two, to seek and embrace the beauty of creation. Let joy spring from within and wash over you as you receive the glory of God; a gift to each of us, God’s beloved.

In celebration and honor of Earth Day, thanks be to God.

1SwanLake

2SnowCoveredTreesAtSunset

3Sunrise

4RockWashing

5DaffodilClose

6CrookedBranchTree

7Clouds

8MoonRising

9SnowOnHollyBush

10NiagaraBridge

11NiagaraRainbow

12Fall

13BAliveTrees

13MountainCross

14WhiteMountains

15OceanShimmer

16Sunset

 

For the beauty of the earth,
for the glory of the skies,
for the love which from our birth
over and around us lies.

Christ, our Lord, to you we raise
this, our hymn of grateful praise.

For the wonder of each hour
of the day and of the night,
hill and vale and tree and flower,
sun and moon and stars of light,

Christ, our Lord, to you we raise
this, our hymn of grateful praise.

For the joy of human love,
brother, sister, parent, child,
friends on earth, and friends above,
for all gentle thoughts and mild,

Christ, our Lord, to you we raise
this, our hymn of grateful praise.

For yourself, best gift divine,
to the world so freely given,
agent of God’s grand design:
peace on earth and joy in heaven.

Written by Folliott Sandford Pierpoint

Stay…

As a child of around 5 or 6 years old, one day my younger brother and I were playing in our garage. We took a wooden baseball bat, put it on the floor and took turns trying to balance on it as it rolled. At one point, we got into an argument as it was my turn and my brother would not step off and aside. Each time he lost his balance and stepped off, he would step right back on and not allow me to have a turn. Nothing I said mattered and things were only settled by the activity abruptly ending with my brother being pushed off the bat and me running away, afraid that I would get into trouble.

I remember running out of the garage and into the front yard to this big maple tree. I was frightened and didn’t know what to do. My brother had fallen forward and was bleeding from where he banged his forehead. I was standing under that maple tree, my heart pounding.

Then, I looked up at the branches and leaves above me. It felt as if the tree was surrounding me. It was sheltering me in the shade, while the sun was shining all around. I felt a sense of calm as I looked out from under the shade of the tree and I knew, despite the fear, I had to make sure my brother was okay and I had to tell the truth.

As I came to that realization and was setting to walk back to the garage, one of my older sisters met me. Just seeing her helped me to feel that it would be okay. I was doing the right thing, even if I felt afraid about what would happen by going back to the garage. I needed to do it because it was the right thing to do.

Thank God, my brother was okay and lived to tell about it, with a small scar as proof. When it was all said, and done, both my brother and I told our parents the truth about what had happened that day. They were upset at my brother for his role and they were upset with me, but not so much because I had pushed my brother as the fact that I had run away instead of staying.

Thinking back to that day and forward to today, I feel very blessed as I remember and realize many of the ways that God has helped me throughout my life to know that I am doing the “right” thing at a particular moment in time and has helped me to do it. In the same way, God has helped me to know when I am not doing the “right” thing.

I find it interesting how the past can be so helpful in facing the future. Just as on that day so many years ago God helped me, God has helped me today, by reminding me of that incident and all those whom God has placed in my sister’s role…keep telling the truth; it will be okay.

“He will direct you to what is best for you to be heaven bound.”

– thank you my friend for sending this quote.

Connecting the pieces…

puzzlepieces2

A year or so ago, and over the course of a number of weeks, I was in the waiting area of a medical center for a portion of each weekday morning. On the way to the waiting area there was coffee, hot water for tea, and small packages of graham crackers and salted crackers. The waiting area itself had chairs, a TV and magazines like most waiting areas, but it also had a table with a partially completed puzzle on it and all the remaining small pieces, also waiting.

I remember arriving each morning and after a short period of time, looking to see how much more of the puzzle was left to be done and how many pieces I might locate and place in the time that I was waiting. At first, this was how I spent at least a portion of my half hour wait each day. Then, as the weeks progressed there were more people in the waiting area and I found my time less and less filled with finding and placing pieces of the puzzle and more filled with conversation between and amongst fellow wait-ers. Those who were once strangers became familiar over a short period of time.

It is interesting how our lives intersect with the lives of others. And how, even over a brief period of time or through a short exchange, we can affect each other’s lives.

Each lifetime is the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.
For some there are more pieces.
For others the puzzle is more difficult to assemble.
Some seem to be born with a nearly completed puzzle….

But know this. You do not have within yourself
All the pieces to your puzzle…

Everyone carries with them at least one and probably
Many pieces to someone else’s puzzle.
Sometimes they know it.
Sometimes they don’t.

                      – from “Eyes Remade for Wonder” by Rabbi Lawrence Kushner

As I continue to sit with the memory of that waiting area, I recall how it felt as if time was suspended or even ceased to exist. There was a reverence in the air as we listened to one another and shared conversation and laughter as we waited. It was as if we were on holy ground. A pleasant surprise…

Recently, I attended an 80th birthday party, and while it was much noisier than the waiting area of that medical center over a year ago, there was also a reverence in the room. At one side of the room there was a slideshow of pictures from throughout the years. As I sat and watched the pictures from old to new, seeing both family and friends…those who had passed and those who were present, sadness was replaced with gratitude as I was reminded…How precious life is! There was a feeling of holy ground in the pictures and in the room in the hugs and kisses, and in the smiles, greetings and conversations that were exchanged during the celebration of a “piece,” a special and beloved piece, that belongs to the puzzle of each of us present at the party, whether in spirit or in person.

So, I praise God as I say thank you Auntie D. for your beautiful spirit, your love, and your example throughout a lifetime. And, thank you to the nurses, technologists and patients in the waiting area of that medical center for your hospitality, sharing and caring during a short and uncertain period of time.

Each and every piece of the puzzle no matter the shape, size, or length is a gift, or has a lesson that is a gift. Sometimes that is easier to see than at other times. Either way, whether we see it now, or later, one spirit bowing to another is always a beautiful thing.

The Eye of the Beholder…

UpsideDownIMG_1486      RightSideUpIMG_1486

Sometimes right side up or upside down does not matter. Sometimes either way can make sense or be beautiful…either way can be a good thing.

I wonder how often people are discouraged, turned away or dismissed as not having the “right stuff” simply because of another’s inability to look beyond a piece(s) of the entire picture.

There is a saying about not judging a person by their appearance, but in this Year of Mercy, what about not judging a person, period? The thing is that no matter what I see in someone, or know of someone, I am not them. I do not know every step they have walked and what those steps have been like, and most importantly, I do not know what is in their hearts.

In addition, no matter how much I think I might know, the fact of the matter is, that I (we) very rarely have the whole picture. Without that, without taking the time to inquire and to look more closely, all we really have are assumptions and judgments, and all they do is limit the openness we have to another and the gifts he or she brings to this world. For all we know, we are holding each other back from being all we can be, and certainly, that must have a collective effect.

“Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

Imagine a world where everyone replaced time spent judging, assessing and competing with one another with time spent encouraging, helping one another and sharing our gifts, talents, time, and treasure…our faith, hope, and love. The times in which we live would be drastically different. The world would be on fire!

While one may think, “Fantasy!” They may be right. It may seem, and probably is, too idealistic and highly unlikely for such a change to occur throughout the world, by what seems like the hands of a few. However, it is not impossible.

It all starts with faith…faith in God, in oneself and in each other. We are created in God’s image. Surely, God’s grace rests upon us and is within us. It enables us to see clearly…to see the whole picture and makes us capable of having hearts that are wide like God’s mercy.

Lord, in this Year of Mercy, and beyond, help us to set the world on fire with hearts more deeply rooted in You.

There’s a wideness in God’s mercy
like the wideness of the sea;
there’s a kindness in his justice,
which is more than liberty.

There is welcome for the sinner,
and more graces for the good;
there is mercy with the Savior;
there is healing in his blood.

There is no place where earth’s sorrows
are more felt than in heaven;
there is no place where earth’s failings
have such kind judgment given.

There is plentiful redemption
in the blood that has been shed;
there is joy for all the members
in the sorrows of the Head.

For the love of God is broader
than the measure of man’s mind;
and the heart of the Eternal
is most wonderfully kind.

If our love were but more faithful,
we should take him at his word;
and our life would be thanksgiving
for the goodness of the Lord.

— Frederick William Faber

 

 

 

 

Hope and Light in Darkness…

This week I had the opportunity to share in an experience called an Advent spiral walk. The evening started with hot cider and light fare followed by song, beautifully led by acoustic guitar and, at first by the voice of one singing, and then several. As it progressed, and we bundled up and walked outside, into the evening, it only got better.

In the cold air and in darkness, guided only by candlelight, we proceeded to reflect on Advent, a time of waiting…waiting in darkness…but also in hope. As we sat around the spiral, singing, “In the Advent Garden, Dark the night below, Earth is waiting, waiting, waiting for the stars to glow…oh,” and as I listened to the guitar chords and the voices, I found myself so taken with the beauty of it all. One by one, each person…each pilgrim…stood up and prayerfully walked the spiral to the center. Once there, he or she, paused, lit their candle, and then placed it along the path on the walk back out from the center.

As I looked up at the stars above, and then back to the group and the spiral, looking at the area that was once dark now becoming lighter, I found myself filled with hope and joy. As I reflected on the words spoken earlier, “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (from John 1:5), I found myself feeling grateful to God for the light placed within each of us and for each person in my life, and along my journey, who has shared their light with me and others.

How wonderful! Even in the darkness, there is light. Advent…waiting with hope and in hope…it is not just this time of year, but also throughout the year. Sometimes I wonder, am I waiting for God or, is it God who is waiting for me? Sometimes, I think it is both.

Either way, whether I am waiting for God or God is waiting for me…the sun always returns, and the light returns, as we wait together.

“Thus says the Lord GOD,
the Holy One of Israel:
O people of Zion, who dwell in Jerusalem,
no more will you weep;
He will be gracious to you when you cry out,
as soon as he hears he will answer you.
The Lord will give you the bread you need
and the water for which you thirst.
No longer will your Teacher hide himself,
but with your own eyes you shall see your Teacher,
While from behind, a voice shall sound in your ears:
‘This is the way; walk in it,’
when you would turn to the right or to the left.”  – Is 30:19-21

Take Flight and Soar…

If today you hear God’s voice, harden not your hearts. – Psalm 98:5

While I was searching for a photo, I came across a few that one of my brothers-in-law had taken and sent to the family a couple of years ago…an eagle taking flight.

Looking at the images, “God is in charge.” These are the words that pop into my mind. Such a freeing thought. God is in charge. God who created the eagle and not only gave it wings to fly, but also to soar. As I ponder how magnificent it is to see the eagle take flight and soar, I believe that God has the same in mind for all creation. How inspiring, filled with hope, and so grateful to God it makes me feel.

There is excitement as I step in to all that this day holds, both the known and the unknown. I wonder, “Will I recognize the gifts and blessings around me in the midst of all that is on my plate today? How will I cooperate with God?” Then I stop myself. I call myself back to the eagle in flight, about to soar, and I think, “Let go and let God.” How freeing!

eagle1eagle3eagle4

Photos courtesy of DMB