by Donna Chacko
The last few years have left me feeling deeply distressed about the many divisions in our country and confused about my role. I’ve wondered if this is how folks felt during other times of social and political upheaval—like before the civil war or leading up to World War II. I was deeply moved several years ago when I read The Cost of Discipleship. Author Dietrich Bonhoeffer vividly describes the unbearable angst of many Germans as they faced the moral dilemma of choosing sides.
Rather than taking a strong public stance on the various issues over which we are divided in the US, I’ve tried to listen, understand, and encourage others to do the same. Every day I encounter conflicting views regarding Covid-19, government policies, politics, justice, and morality. My unease arises from feeling uncertain if I am following God’s will. I ask myself if I lack courage to do more. I ponder how and why good people and followers of Jesus stand firmly on both sides of the issues? Is this paradox the result of disinformation that leads to false conclusions? Are we unable to accept the truth or even know what it is? Is mass psychosis the problem, when a large group of people becomes convinced of a truth and reinforces it within the group until it is irrefutable? Or, maybe too much information is suffocating us, and we simply cannot think clearly.
Regarding Covid-19, each side of the vaccination debate has proponents who feel the other side is deluded, selfish, or even evil. I am vaccinated and support vaccinations, but I must share that I deeply love and respect two people who have chosen to remain unvaccinated. These relationships have altered my reactions to others who are unvaccinated and helped me to be less judgmental.
In this era of division, fear, and even hatred, what does Jesus want us to do? In scripture we are called to love our neighbor as ourselves and forgive seven times seventy. But how do we do this when we are so confused that we feel disoriented or so hurting that we are immobilized? I was stirred by these powerful words of Desmond Tutu:
“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.”
But I see good people on both sides—people trying to do what they are convinced is the right thing. It seems that choosing the right side isn’t always easy.
Based on my absolute trust in my loving God, here is what I will do in order to be sure I’m always on the right side, the side of Jesus.
- First, I will accept, and remind myself every day, that I am only in charge of my own thoughts, words, and behavior.
- Second, I will listen more attentively to God’s voice and recommit to trust him unconditionally. I realize that only then can I surrender to him all my confusion and doubts.
- Third, I will obey his call to a period of prayer and fasting by observing a more serious Lent than I usually do. My observance will consist of a reenergized version of my usual spiritual practices along with a first-time commitment to fasting.
Fasting has never been my thing. It usually gives me a headache, so I long ago concluded God didn’t want me to fast. But two months ago I made a new friend, Ginny, at church. She mentioned that her husband, Jay W. Richards, had written a book on fasting called Eat, Fast, Feast: Heal Your Body While Feeding Your Soul-A Christian Guide to Fasting. I just finished reading this unique and information-packed book. It reminded me of the benefits of fasting, gave me different ideas on how to fast, and convinced me I should begin a fasting practice for Lent. God probably had this all planned when he arranged for me to meet Ginny at church.
In the bible, Jesus healed people and performed miracles. In 2022 he needs us to be his healing instruments so together we can heal our nation. Every morning when I say the Prayer of St. Francis, “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace..,” I remind myself that I must make myself available to be used by God as his instrument.” I believe a faithful Lenten observance will help each of us be a better instrument of God’s healing power.
Imagine this Easter if every Christian in the US was able to embrace every other Christian as members of the same Body of Christ and as brothers and sisters in Christ? Imagine how this would narrow the divide in the US— there would be less space between us for hate and bigotry to grow.
I invite you to join me this Lent. Let us open ourselves fully to Jesus and his healing touch. I plan to add periodic comments to this blog during Lent to describe my experiences, especially with fasting.
Do you feel the confusion and angst that I have described? Do you observe Lent or practice fasts? I would love to hear from you, and I think the other readers will as well.
God bless each of you.
Photo by CongerDesign on Pixabay
Donna is a retired medical doctor and author of Amazon bestseller Pilgrimage: A Doctor’s Healing Journey. She lives in Maryland where she promotes health and faith through her ministry serenityandhealth.com
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guest post by Gary Heard
Every now and then God throws curveballs in my direction which shake my theological presuppositions. I’ve been known to say that God has terribly bad theology because God does things which I think that God shouldn’t do. I was caught short (in one of the more pleasant ways) during the past week during a critical moment in a palliative care unit this past week. A patient had returned from a scan to discover that an heirloom which had been attached to her necklace had gone missing. This resulted in a frantic and exhausting search involving almost all members of the hospital. While the family was at peace that the small heirloom would be located, staff were deeply concerned. Tradespersons were brought in to dismantle parts of the rooms to see whether it had fallen into unreachable places.
By the next morning, everyone was aware and increasingly concerned that nothing had turned up. Every step having been retraced on more than one occasion and options were running out. As the situation was being discussed in handover, the thought went through my mind that St Anthony was the patron saint of lost things…
Being a Baptist, I’ve often been skeptical of the notion of praying to saints. After all, doesn’t the Bible point us to One who intercedes on our behalf? Isn’t it through Jesus that we gain access to the throne of grace? However, there have been many times in ministry when I’ve just had to stop and praise God for what has happened. I know all the theological reasons that car park prayers are not something to waste God’s time on, and yet often enough in frustration I have reached the point where I’ve simply asked God only to turn the next corner to find a space! Hmmmm.
On this occasion, I muttered under my breath that St Anthony needs to do his work for us this day. A few moments later, the (Irish) nurse running us all through the handover turned to look at me and asked, “Do you think we need to talk to St Anthony?” When I told her that the same thought had just gone through my mind, she responded with a nod and a smile. About thirty seconds later – I kid you not – there was a knock at the door to bring news that a man had just found the lost item! All eyes in the room turned to me, and I just shook my head in wonder (or was that disbelief?). All this in less than a minute!
How often do I need to be reminded that God’s ways are not my ways? That there are thoughts, ideas, and actions which God undertakes regardless of my own predispositions? Wasn’t a blind man healed by Jesus with some ordinary mud? Didn’t Naaman need to dip seven times in the Jordan to be healed? (Why seven? Why the Jordan – questions Naaman himself asked!). Wasn’t Paul released from his chains by songs of praise?
Theology is a helpful servant but can be a terrible master if we let it keep us from trusting God and hoping in the wonders of God’s ways. I can think of good theological reasons against praying to saints, and yet what wonders were worked that day! Sometimes I just need to take the brakes off and open up to what God might do… in God’s own way!
Gary Heard is a Baptist Minister and senior lecturer in Pastoral and Ministry Studies in the University of Divinity. He is married to Evelyn and has three adult children.
Photo by Nick Castelli on Unsplash
Remember, Facebook Live will be next week – Christine and Lilly will talk about Celtic Christianity, as Lilly has the opportunity to attend a retreat with John Philip Newell! Join Christine Sine and Lilly Lewin on Wednesday, February 23rd 2022 at 9 am PT (check my timezone) for our next FB Live happening on our Godspace Light Community Facebook Group! Can’t make it? No worries–we upload the sessions on our youtube channel so you can still enjoy the lively discussions and interesting topics. And catch us live for the next session–happening here!
At the beginning of the year, you may remember, I chose Digging Deeper as my words for the year and used that as the foundation for my dreaming and planning for the year. I am still digging deeper and as a proclamation of that, this week, I created a “Dig Deeper” contemplative garden. It was such fun to pull out a bowl I have not used for a while and re-arrange a couple of the plants from my Advent garden. Recycling plants and bowls from past gardens is a great reminder for me that when God digs deeper into our lives it is not about wiping out what is past and starting again. Digging deeper is about refreshment and renewal of the old.
From that point on my garden developed its own very unique flavour, however. I particularly enjoyed painting some of the rocks I collected on our recent retreat to emphasize my theme. This creative exercise doesn’t just add color and decoration to the garden, it is also a great stimulus for meditation and a reminder of the imperfections in my life. One fun addition to this garden were a couple of the small implements I use to keep my indoor plants in order.
The scripture at the forefront of my mind as I embark on this part of my journey is Psalm 84:5,6
How enriched are they who find their strength in the Lord;within their hearts are the highways of holiness!Even when their paths wind through the dark valley of tears,they dig deep to find a pleasant pool where others find only pain.He gives to them a brook of blessingfilled from the rain of an outpouring.
Now available for registration! Join Christine Sine and Lilly Lewin as they explore what it means to find beauty in the ashes and prepare for a meaningful Lenten journey. Live via Zoom on Saturday, February 26th from 9:30 am PT to 12:30 pm PT (check my timezone). This retreat will include opportunities for creativity and contemplation, interaction and informative refreshment – but is also designed to be recorded as a course. If you aren’t able to make it live, you will still enjoy all the fun, and have the recording as yours forever to enjoy at your own pace. Click here to register as a live-or-later participant!
Another beautiful contemplative service with music in the spirit of Taize. And this one includes one of my favorites – The Prayer of St Patrick.
Carrie Grace Littauer, prayer leader, with music by Kester Limner and Andy Myers.
Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained from One License with license #A-710-756 with additional notes below:
“See I Am Near”
Words, Music by Taizé copyright © 2008 GIA/Les Presses de Taize. All rights reserved.
“Christ Be With Me (Prayer of St. Patrick)”
Text from the Lorica, or the Prayer of St. Patrick
Song by Ruth Cunningham, used with permission. All rights reserved.
www.ruthcunningham.com | www.youtube.com/ruthreid/ | Instagram: @ruthreid11
“Aber Du Wiesst”
Adapted from a prayer by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, music by Taizé
Copyright and all rights reserved by GIA/Les Presses de Taizé
“His Eye Is On The Sparrow”
Public domain hymn written in 1905 by Civilla D. Martin and Charles H. Gabriel
Thank you for praying with us! www.saintandrewsseattle.org
Also I am excited to announce that the live Taize services at St Andrews will recommence March 6th
I always hated Valentine’s day as a teenager. There would be so much hype going round school as to who was going to get the most cards. Yet for me I got none. For me, it was another day in my school life that I dreaded and wondered what was wrong with me with my flat chest, thick glasses, dental braces on my teeth, home-knitted jumper and second-hand clothes. All the pretty, popular girls would be showing off their pile of cards, loudly saying how many they had, and looking with contempt at those of us who had not received any. When I was part of Family Ministries in YWAM Scotland one of the mums would get all three of her children Valentine’s gifts. I think her mother used to do that for her. That did not happen in our house. I wonder if it made her kids feel better or not.
There are various legends around who Valentine was, though the one which might have brought him to fame was that he allegedly performed illegal marriages for Christians who, for whatever reason, were forbidden to marry. It looks like the Catholic Church made his saint’s day special for commercial reasons. But as I have researched more things about St Valentine, many sites say it could have been Christians reclaiming – or coming on the back of, depending on your stance – a pagan fertility celebration. As with all things, even our own Welsh Valentine, St Dwynwen, there are many legends, stories and different ideas that surround the origins of these things, as well as our own viewpoint, hurts and expectations. So, as with so much, we need to start where we are today not yesterday.
There was a lot of talk last year about things becoming the “new normal,” a phrase I’ve noticed isn’t used quite so much, but we are still in a new normal as we deal with life living with Covid-19 and all its variants. So it is with Valentine. Some will have family traditions they are comfortable with, others not so. Some will ignore it either due to their theology or to do with issues of their past. But if I have been really healed of my past, really am a new creation, really am living in my own new normal, then I need to have a look at this festival, this day which, whether I like it or not, will be acknowledged in shops, on TV, even on Google’s banner.
I’ve been working with a group of young people recently and one of the things we’ve been looking at is presumption – presuming we know what other people want and need because we have judged them from the outside. So for me this year, as I put aside my own hurts and expectation, and walk out in my new normal instead of selfishly trying to avoid this day or of presuming what my husband will want to do, I will ask. And as one looks at the ideas of love languages, one of the greatest gifts is to find out what those around you really want and not just walk out in your own love language thinking that you know best.
New normal, new Valentine’s Day, new expression of love – asking what others would prefer.
photo by pixabay
Join Christine Sine and Lilly Lewin as they explore what it means to find beauty in the ashes and prepare for a meaningful Lenten journey. Live via Zoom on Saturday, February 26th from 9:30 am PT to 12:30 pm PT (check my timezone). This retreat will include opportunities for creativity and contemplation, interaction and informative refreshment – but is also designed to be recorded as a course. If you aren’t able to make it live, you will still enjoy all the fun, and have the recording as yours forever to enjoy at your own pace. Click here to register as a live-or-later participant!
This week, I am at the Abbey of Gethsemani nestled in the rolling hills of Kentucky for my annual silent retreat. It’s actually been two years since I’ve been to the Abbey due to covid19. My husband and I were here in February of 2020 just before the world changed forever. I’ve spent some time looking back at the past two years…considering where I’ve been and what I’ve been feeling and learning.
One of my traditional practices for this time away is to look back through my phone at the photos I’ve taken over the last year…
What do I notice? What sparks my attention? What has God been up to in my life?
In taking the time to look back through my photos, I’ve noticed how much we didn’t know at the beginning of the pandemic…how long it would last, just how we’d all be affected and changed. I noticed the holiday pictures of tables for two and take away meals rather than family gatherings and cooking. Lots of walks outside in my neighborhood and in nature.
I noticed how my house became more messy as I spent more and more time there without in person hospitality to get me to do real cleaning.
I noticed the piles of books grew larger behind my desk.
Also I noticed how I learned to lead creative prayer and worship from my living room rather than on the road. Our house church went online and expanded to a second night and second group. I marvel at how God was able to use Zoom to build community and God’s kingdom even though we were all over the world and not able to meet together.
I also noticed that my frustration grew as the pandemic went on and on…and as conflict around masks and vaccinations grew. My anxiety grew too. I so longed for everyone to be safe and well. I longed for people to pay attention to the vulnerable and to the health care workers who were on the front lines day in and day out. I spent time praying around my neighborhood and praying for our country and its leaders.
Two words seemed to fill the last two years for me…Exhaustion and Grief.
Exhausted by all the emotions…the emotional roller coaster of uncertainty and the multiple variants…the changes of work, relationships, rhythms…and in Nashville, we had a tornado and a bombing to add to the land of covid.
I’ve grieved the loss of innocence and innocent lives. Still grieving the brokenness all around us in the systems of injustice that we now see so much more clearly than we did before. Grieving my inability to change things and my participation in the systems that have caused so much pain.
I’ve spent a lot of time confessing my sins this week…especially my judgment of others. How much I need Jesus to heal me!
Jesus led me to Isaiah 61…a chapter that has always inspired me since I was a young follower. And now, I need these words more than ever!
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,[a] 2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion –to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.
We all have Ashes
BEAUTY FOR ASHES! I sure have felt the ashes of the last two years!
And honestly, I was feeling the ashes of life even before the pandemic hit the fan!
Everyone’s experience of these last two years has been so different. I’ve had friends move, change jobs, lose friends and loved ones to the disease and to conflict caused by the pandemic. Everyone has some kind of ashes they are in or ashes they’ve been in recently.
I believe we all need BEAUTY for ASHES right now!
What does that look like for you? Maybe take time to look back at your last couple of years … or if that feels overwhelming, just the last couple of months.
Consider the things that have felt scorched in your life during the pandemic…
Consider what life was like for you in the “before times” … and how they are now … What do you notice?
What needs to die and pass away?
What needs to be resurrected?
READ Isaiah 61 in the Message…
The Spirit of God, the Master, is on me
because God anointed me.
He sent me to preach good news to the poor,
heal the heartbroken,
Announce freedom to all captives,
pardon all prisoners.
God sent me to announce the year of his grace—
a celebration of God’s destruction of our enemies—
and to comfort all who mourn,
To care for the needs of all who mourn in Zion,
give them bouquets of roses instead of ashes,
Messages of joy instead of news of doom,
a praising heart instead of a languid spirit.
Rename them “Oaks of Righteousness”
planted by God to display his glory.
We get bouquets of roses instead of ashes! That sounds like what we all need right now! A bouquet from Jesus!
This week, build a fire and consider the Ashes you’ve experienced. How do you need Jesus to turn them into a Crown of Beauty instead of Ashes? Are you willing to let Jesus turn the ashes into something beautiful in your life?
Buy yourself a rose or two, or even a whole bouquet! Let these roses be a reminder of the great love and hope of Jesus! That Jesus can turn even ashes into things of beauty for each of us!
ROSES instead of Ashes
And Join us on Saturday February 26th for our Lenten Retreat “Finding Beauty in the Ashes of Lent” where we will look deeper into Isaiah 61 and how we can participate in the shalom of God as we journey towards Easter. 
©lillylewin and freerangeworship.com
For our next FB Live, Christine and Lilly will talk about Celtic Christianity! Join Christine Sine and Lilly Lewin on Wednesday, February 23rd 2022 at 9 am PT (check my timezone) for our next FB Live happening on our Godspace Light Community Facebook Group! Can’t make it? No worries–we upload the sessions on our youtube channel so you can still enjoy the lively discussions and interesting topics. And catch us live for the next session–happening here!
It’s hard to fathom how fast the days fly by – it’s almost time for our next retreat! We are so pleased to announce that our next online retreat will be Finding Beauty in the Ashes of Lent. Prepare your hearts for a meaningful Lenten journey with Christine Sine and Lilly Lewin on Saturday, February 26th from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm PT (check my timezone). It’s just a few weeks away, so consider registering today! Click here to get started: https://tinyurl.com/GodspaceRetreat
What do you need this Lenten Season?
What are you longing for as you look towards Easter?
How can we create Beauty from the Ashes of the past two years?
Now entering the third year of pandemic, we are weary and in lament. Lent is the perfect time to grieve, reflect, and yet find hope and beauty. Lent is meant to prepare our hearts, not just for the celebration of Easter Sunday, But also for that celebrative attitude and the celebrative deeds of new life in Christ that should fill our hearts and our lives at all times. Consider downloading and reading our Lenten guide Hungering for Life: Creative Exercises for Lent as a preparation.
This retreat is designed to hold space for the lament while journeying through to the joy of Easter via activities, contemplation, reflection, and more. If you’ve been to any of Christine and Lilly’s past retreats, then you know there is lots of fun and nourishment in store! On that note, if you have attended a retreat before, do remember that we offer a discount. Email us for the code – or email us for a code if you plan on attending or watching later with a group, as we do also offer a group rate.
Those who register for the event will have the option to watch and participate live or watch the video at their convenience and participate via survey later (plus following along with the activities whenever it is watched). The best benefit of registering? Even if you cannot attend live, you get all the resources plus the video to keep forever and work through at one’s own pace, rather than a course that has a set amount of days to complete. However, the retreat WILL also be available as a course – so if you miss it initially, you’ll still have time this Lenten season to journey from ashes to joy with Christine and Lilly!
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