JANUARY
A captive to granite gray stare,
I shiver and hunker there.
Clouds shudder also and
shake loose frozen crystals
flashing slivers of light.
Now silver gleam the gazing eyes.
I rise unblinking, captivated.
~Catherine Lawton
As I awoke from sleep one morning, these words came distinctly to my mind: “The long, cold stare of January.”
I don’t know where those words came from. But they came clear and definite; and they stayed with me. I wrote that phrase in my journal. And I thought about it. Later I wrote the (above) poem.
I live in northern Colorado. January is our coldest month. And it is a long month, 31 days. The cold, short days and long nights can make one feel captive. It is a season when people, those who can afford it, like to travel to places like Mexico, Florida, or Spain. Other people may dream of warm beaches during January. But the weather often keeps us indoors and isolated. We can feel captive.
Where did my unconscious mind get the idea of January being a long “stare”? I don’t know. But there is a sense in which one can feel captive in an uncomfortable way when someone keeps staring at you. Cold stares are especially disconcerting.
Feeling trapped, fearful, impatient with your situation can make your outlook seem hard and gray. But, truly, there is beauty in every season. Opening our hearts to “see” that beauty can turn those cold, gray eyes to a silver gaze.
Contemplatives speak of the “gaze” of the face of Christ that holds, sees deeply, and can draw out the inner radiance of one’s true self.
Recently I was reading a story that described the “silver” eyes of some Scottish Highland folks. I had never heard eye color described as silver before. Polished silver is not a cold-looking metal. It has a warmth that seems to gleam from deep inside.
Hidden in every hard place is hope. If we look for it with eyes to see, it will eventually gleam forth, and then, rather than be captives we may become captivated by the presence of love and even joy.
Photo by Kacper Szczechla on Unsplash
Tomorrow! Join Christine Sine and special guest Tom Sine as they discuss commitment to a whole life faith and a rhythm of life that flows out of it; live in the Godspace Light Community Facebook Group. Happening every other Wednesday–join us for the next one on January 19th, 2022 at 9am! Can’t make it live? We post them after on our youtube channel, so you never miss the fun!
guest post by Elaine Enns and Ched Myers
Almost 60 years ago, America’s greatest prophet Martin Luther King, Jr. likened racism in our body politic to a lethal cancer. “The surgery necessary to extract it is complex and detailed. As a beginning we must X-ray our history and reveal the full extent of the disease.”
The murder of George Floyd reminded us yet again of how our society is haunted by endemic police violence past and present against black and brown bodies. So did the white supremacist riot at the U.S. Capitol on the Feast of Epiphany (indeed!). Nor would Dr. King have been surprised how our Canadian neighbors have just endured an excruciating summer of revelations, as ground-penetrating radar uncovered unmarked children’s graves at several former Indian Residential School sites across their nation, part of the legacy of Indigenous genocide that the U.S. fully shares.
When we peer beneath the surface of our white-settler lands, history, and culture, we indeed encounter ghosts. And the trivializing of this phenomenon by our Halloween-industrial complex cannot erase the fact that we live in a haunted house, which white denial and “agnosia” (willful or unknowing) have built.
Over the past quarter-century, “hauntology” has become a new social-psychological field of study about how the trauma of past oppression lingers in both people and places. Sociologist Avery Gordon, in her important book Ghostly Matters, contends that “haunting is a constituent element of modern social life through which repressed or unresolved social violence makes itself known in everyday life, especially when they are supposedly over and done with (slavery, for instance) or when their oppressive nature is continuously denied.” Gordon also emphasizes, however, that reckoning with these ghosts can mobilize “individual, social, or political movement and change.” But only if they are faced.
The Gospels portray the healer Jesus of Nazareth unmasking “unclean spirits” that lock people down. Sometimes they represent political “occupying powers” (as in the case of the “Legion” in Mark 5:1–20), sometimes personal forces of “possession” (as with a demon of silencing in Mark 9:17–29). One of Jesus’ strangest parables about the work of healing from such hauntings provides poignant illumination of King’s diagnosis.
When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it wanders through waterless regions looking for a resting place, but not finding any, it says, “I will return to my house from which I came.” When it comes, it finds it swept and put in order. Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and live there; and the last state of that person is worse than the first. (Luke 11:24–26)
This may sound strange to modern ears, but it speaks to the complex stratigraphy of inward and outward hauntings that must be exhumed in the work of facing “the full extent of the disease”—its gravity, power, and permeation.
This parable strikes us as a trenchant diagnosis of the psycho-social geography of “possession-occupation” baked into a half-millennium of settler colonialism and racism, plaguing (in different ways) both inheritor-beneficiaries and victim-survivors of this system and its legacy. Indeed, this work is like peeling the proverbial onion seven layers down; the haunting of our psyches and spirits, our communities and culture, our public life and institutions, goes that deep. This is why the process outlined in our new book Healing Haunted Histories: A Settler Discipleship of Decolonization seems so daunting to us settlers of privilege, and why we avoid it at every turn.
But the gospels insist that Jesus wasn’t a socializing physician, patching people up to carry on with the status quo. Rather, he was a radical doctor who sought out the roots of our dis-ease. He offered strong medicine to treat the external oppression and internal psychosis of empire, which is why his healings were always disruptive of the status quo, earning him the ire of the authorities.
Responding to people in power who insisted there were no fatal flaws in their social-political-religious system, Jesus famously offered this koan: “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have come to call not the righteous, but sinners to repentance (metanoia, meaning to change fundamental direction; Luke 5:31–32). For the inheritors of white privilege, the greatest barrier to our liberation is our delusion of innocence. Only when we recognize the lethality of our dis-ease (to borrow from Twelve Step language) and turn to a Power greater than our own, will we be willing and able to turn our individual and communal histories around in the service of wholeness and justice, and to join with marginalized communities to heal our haunted bodies and body politic.
We long for our churches to become spaces that nurture the courage and competence to embrace a discipleship of decolonization, fueled by the prophetic hope that a day is coming when Creator will wither injustice to its roots, “until the sun of justice rises, with healing in its wings” (Mal 4:2).
Elaine Enns and Ched Myers codirect Bartimaeus Cooperative Ministries on unceded and untreatied Chumash land in the Ventura River Watershed of southern California. Healing Haunted Histories was published in February 2021 (see here for reviews, programs and discounts).
As an Amazon Associate I receive a small amount for purchases made through appropriate links. Thank you for supporting Godspace in this way.
Celtic Prayer Cards include 10 prayers inspired by ancient Celtic saints like Patrick or contemporary Celtic writers like John O’Donohue. A short reflection on the back of each card will introduce you to the Celtic Christian tradition, along with prayers by Christine Sine and beautiful imagery crafted by Hilary Horn. Celtic Prayer Cards can be used year-round or incorporated into various holidays. Available in a single set of 10 cards, three sets, or to download.
Imagine what our lives would look like if they really flowed to the rhythm God intends for us. Imagine what a sustainable pace would look like that allows time for work and rest, solitude and community, fasting feasting and fun. These are some of the thoughts that revolve in my mind as I re-evaluate my life in the midst of this COVID reality, and seek to live into a sustainable rhythm. They seem to be foremost in the minds of many others too. COVID has forced all of us to rethink our priorities. Many of us are reorienting around rhythms of Sabbath rather than church, relationships rather than tasks, balance rather than work. Nature and the refreshment creation provides has gained priority and the allure of consumption has dwindled.
Sustainability is not about cutting back on consumption and work, though that can be an outcome. Sustainability is primarily about living into life as God intends it to be.
This is one of my ruling passions. I first grappled with it when I contracted chronic fatigue syndrome 30 years ago. I was sure that stress, overwork and burnout were the chief causes, and in my recovery began to explore a more sustainable rhythm of life. My first book on this theme – Godspace, which gave birth to this blog – explored the rhythms of Jesus’ life and the balance he seemed to find between work and rest, community and solitude, feasting and fasting. Unfortunately, knowing this was the kind of rhythm Jesus lived by wasn’t enough. It was too intangible and it was still easy for me in our work-oriented society to rationalize away the patterns that I felt God was leading me towards. Not surprisingly more overwork, stress and burnout followed.
Over the last few years two key questions helped me to move towards a more sustainable way of life: What kind of God do I believe in? What kind of rhythms does creation model for me? Most importantly, my studies in shalom and the rule of life it established for me, gave me the confidence to move forward without guilt or stress.
Photo by Karl Fredrickson on Unsplash
What Kind of God Do I Believe in?
Can you imagine a God who dances with shouts of joy, laughs, plays, enjoys life and invites us to join the fun? I couldn’t until recently. I grew up with a very serious, workaholic God who chastised me for not keeping busy 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Even though I knew this was not what God intended for me, I felt guilty when I slowed down, took a break or just went out and had some fun.
Unless you become like children you cannot enter the kingdom of God. These words riveted my attention a few years ago and I asked myself What are the childlike characteristics that make me fit for the kingdom? This question began a journey of discovery in which I started to explore the childlike characteristics that God sees as prerequisites to kingdom living. I posted on Facebook asking friends what qualities they believed are essential and slowly formulated a list. Playfulness, awe and wonder, imagination, creativity, curiosity, love of nature, compassion, gratitude, and unconditional trust all emerged as essential qualities of childlikeness. Yet we live in a world of play deprivation, nature deficit disorder, awe and wonder depletion and compassion fatigue. As a result I think we suffer from God deprivation too.
As I have said numerous times, I am increasingly convinced that rediscovering our inner child is essential for our spiritual health. Awe and wonder, imagination and curiosity connect us to the God who is present in every moment and everything in a way that nothing else can. They enrich our contemplative core and expand our horizons to explore new aspects of our world and of our God.
Believing in a God who loves to get his hands dirty planting gardens, who makes mud pies to put on the eyes of the blind, and who does happy dances and sings with joy over all of humanity and in fact all of creation has revolutionized my faith. This is the theme of my book The Gift of Wonder, as many of you will recognize, but there are a couple of steps you can take now to follow this path.
- Read some children’s books – maybe get back to the favorites from your childhood, or ask your kids, grandkids or friend’s kids which ones they enjoy most. Read them together, or if you don’t have kids and grandkids volunteer at the local library or with friends to read stories.
- Spend time with kids – we all need kids in our lives. They ask us difficult questions and help us let go of our pretentious and often unrealistic expectations of ourselves and of others.
- Reconnect to your senses – kids view the world through all their senses, but we adults often limit ourselves to sight and sound and even these senses have very confining borders. Rediscovering the joy of smells, the wonder of textures, the delight of sunlight through trees opens us to a God of delight and rejoicing, a God who invites us to relax, to just sit in contentment and wonder or allow ourselves to be distracted by the beauty of a butterfly.
What Can Gardening Teach Us About God’s Rhythm?
Garden day
As I often say, I read about the story of God in the Bible but in the garden I experience it. That is definitely true for the rhythms of God too. Working in the garden has given me permission to relax into a different pace of life.
We think of spring as the season of planting, but in God’s world seed is scattered in the autumn as seed heads mature and burst. Then the seed rests. Covered by a wintery coat it waits until the warmth of spring brings it to life.
The garden year has two seasons of rest and two of frantic activity. Winter is a time of preparation, when roots go down deep and pruning is done. Then comes spring, probably the busiest time in the garden. We plant, weed, fertilize, and mulch. We spend as much time as possible getting our garden ready for the coming season of growth, blossom and fruit. Then comes summer, vigorous growth, a riot of colorful flowers and rich fruit develop. Surprisingly this too is a season of rest – this time a rest of enjoyment and satisfaction. We watch the maturing of what we have planted, taking credit for it but really having little to do to bring it into being. I love to go out in the morning to see how the beans and zucchini have grown and tomatoes ripened. I do a little weeding and maybe some watering but this is a time to enjoy the beauty, the fragrance and the delight of a hopefully well-planned garden. Autumn is the next busy season when the full harvest overwhelms us with its abundance. We work furiously to eat, preserve and store all that appears. We recruit friends and share harvest celebrations and then we collapse exhausted and grateful for the resting of winter months.
Recognizing that these patterns woven through all creation are God-designed and God-intended has been liberating for me. I find that my body too responds to these rhythms and if I ignore it I do fall into the trap of unsustainability again.
Pear blossom
How Sustainably is Your Rhythm?
I meet so many overworked, burnt out disillusioned Christians who have lost touch with the God of balance and sustainability. As a result they lose touch with the beauty of the message of the gospel and its implications for a life of joy and balance. Are you one of them? Set aside time today to prayerfully reflect on your priorities and the rhythms that govern your life. Ask yourself:
Is this the rhythm God intends for me?
How could I develop a more sustainable way of life?
What would my life look like if I gave myself totally to God?
The God of rhythm and balance fill you
with the stability of rest and work and enjoyment today.
The God of fun and festivity surround you
with laughter and play and delight.
The God of life and love enrich you
with a future that brings satisfaction and joy and sustainability.
May you dance with the angels,
And shout with the children,
May you sing with all creation
Of the wonder of God’s presence.
(c) Christine Sine 2022
NOTE: As an Amazon Associate I make a small amount for purchases made from the above links. Thank you for supporting Godspace in this way.
“You can infuse your life with joy, even right in the middle of winter when you need it most…”
Join Christine Aroney-Sine TONIGHT for a series of five inspiring conversations, based on her book, The Gift of Wonder: Creative Practices for Delighting in God.*
Wednesday nights from 7:00 – 8:00 p.m on Zoom
- January 19 – The Awe of Wonder (Introduction)
- January 26 – Wonder & Trauma
- February 2 – Play!
- February 9 – Reminiscing
- February 16 – The Joy of Gratitude
* We will mail you the book with your $10 registration. If you already have the book, the series is free.
This week’s contemplative service from St Andrews Episcopal Church in Seattle features one of my favourite Celtic hymns. Enjoy!
A contemplative service with music in the spirit of Taize. 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:
“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
“The Lord is my Song (O Lord Hear my Prayer) – Taizé song”
Words and music by Taizé
Copyright and all rights reserved by GIA/Les Presses de Taizé
“Atme In Uns — Taizé song”
Copyright and all rights reserved by GIA/Les Presses de Taizé
“Lord Be With Us (Kyrie)”
Text and music by Kester Limner, shared under the Creative Commons License, Attribution (CC-BY)
“See I Am Near – Taizé song”
Words, Music by Taizé copyright © 2008 GIA/Les Presses de Taize. All rights reserved.
Thank you for praying with us! www.saintandrewsseattle.org
by John van de Laar, originally published on EvoFaith as seen here
Apart from the pandemic, what has been most disturbing, traumatising, or depressing moment for you this year? My most troubled moments have been when I’ve come up against ugliness. Ugliness is destructive, dehumanising, and divisive, and I find myself increasingly driven to resist it in all its forms.
When I speak about ugliness, I’m not referring to what is socially defined as ugly—clashing paint colours on a house, art that depicts uncomfortable themes, or music that doesn’t fit my own personal aesthetic. Ugliness is a spiritual thing. It is a rejection of all that is good, true, and beautiful. It is a determination to define people, situations, and things in the shallowest and least nuanced way possible. And it is the complete lack of insight into the complexity, connectedness, and mystery of the cosmos.
I am reminded of the history of my home country of South Africa and the ugliness of forced removals of black people into crowded hostels and overpopulated townships. I imagine how soul-destroying it must be to live with inadequate housing, poor sanitation, water, power, and waste systems, and few resources for growing food, making a living, or beautifying the environment. The ongoing legacy of this ugliness—poverty, unemployment, fragmented families, racism, violence, and addiction—is a witness to its lethal power.
THE BEAUTIFUL ANTIDOTE TO UGLINESS
And that is why I am so deeply devoted to beauty. Beauty has kept me sane through this pandemic. And beauty has given me the strength to resist this year’s onslaught of ugliness. One of the reasons that I am a complete talent-show junky is that the incredible display of creativity and beauty never ceases to move me to tears and inspire an invincible hope within me.
A few seasons ago on the dance competition show World Of Dance, a young girl named Eva Igo danced her way to second place. She was not the only dancer to stir deep emotions within me, but the intensity of her performances combined with her childlike laughter as the crowd erupted at her finishes, touched something deep in my soul. It wasn’t just beautiful dancing. It was the beauty of the person, the intention, and the joy that multiplied around her.
THE TRANSFORMING POWER OF BEAUTY
Where ugliness destroys, beauty creates. What ugliness divides, beauty unites. And while ugliness dehumanises, beauty dignifies, uplifts, and humanises. A beautiful environment increases mental health. Beauty inspires hope and joy. And beauty can be revolutionary in challenging ugliness in the status quo, as the artists and musicians of Sophiatown did in Apartheid South Africa. Even scientists refer to mathematical work like Einstein’s theories of relativity as beautiful.
There is a transcendent, spiritual quality to beauty that nourishes the human soul. And there is nothing so effective at transforming ugliness as true beauty. But beauty is more than just what is aesthetically pleasing to the senses. When something speaks truth and leads us into a deeper experience of goodness, it is beautiful even if it seems aesthetically ‘ugly.’ People who have lived well and loved deeply can be beautiful even when their physical appearance is unremarkable or scarred in some way.
OVERCOMING THE UGLY
So how can we draw on the power of beauty to confront and transform the ugly in our lives and in our world? Here are a few simple suggestions:
- Work on expanding your definition of beauty. Seek it out in unexpected places and people, and learn to listen to your heart when it responds to surprising beauty.
- Create beauty in your own way and ignore the opinions of others. If it is beautiful for you, embrace it and celebrate it.
- Resist the temptation to reduce beauty to the skin-deep facsimile that is often sold to us by society. Seek out the deeper beauty of the interesting, mysterious, uncomfortable, challenging, inspiring, complex, and confusing.
- When confronted with ugliness, seek out beauty as soon as possible. Allow it to fill and heal you.
- Make connecting with beauty a regular spiritual practice. Read poetry, listen to music, walk in nature, share laughter with loved ones, watch movies, play with your pets, make funny faces at babies, tell silly jokes, listen to the stories of the elderly, hold the hand of the dying, celebrate the courage of protesters against injustice or join them.
Let’s transform the ugliness in our world together through a deep commitment to true beauty!
Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash
Looking toward Lent and Easter? There are resources available in the Godspace Shop–from free exercises, daily ideas, poetry and more to prayer cards and devotionals! Additionally, we have compiled many posts and other resources together for your convenience on our Lent & Easter Resource Page!
Just so you have something to ponder… last Thursday on Epiphany we considered the fact that the Magi had to go back home by another way. READ MORE in MATTHEW 2
After an arduous journey to get to see Jesus, they didn’t get to go back the way they had just experienced.
They didn’t get to take the way they knew, or the way that might have felt safer.
Thanks to God’s warning, the Magi escaped Herod’s anger by going home by ANOTHER WAY.
And Mary and Joseph didn’t get to take an easy way home either. They were also warned by God in a dream to leave town and they escaped to Egypt. Going to a new place, with new people and all new things to learn and experience.
Escape to Egypt Giotto di Bondone
This New Year is definitely another “new way” in the land of Covid. Thankfully we have some good tools for the journey, we know about masks, and vaccinations, but we are almost in year three and we are all exhausted and overwhelmed and it often feels futile. Maybe like me, you aren’t excited about having to find another NEW WAY in 2022.
Maybe you’d like some more LIGHT in the darkness or an Angel in a dream to tell you what to do next.
ISAIAH 60: 1-6 NIV
“Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.2 See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,but the Lord rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.3 Nations will come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.4 “Lift up your eyes and look about you: All assemble and come to you;
your sons come from afar,
and your daughters are carried on the hip.5 Then you will look and be radiant,
your heart will throb and swell with joy;the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come.
6 Herds of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah.
And all from Sheba will come,
bearing gold and incense
and proclaiming the praise of the Lord.
The Life-Light was the real thing: Every person entering Life
he brings into Light.He was in the world,
the world was there through him, and yet the world didn’t even notice.He came to his own people, but they didn’t want him. But whoever did want him,
who believed he was who he claimed
and would do what he said, He made to be their true selves,
their child-of-God selves. JOHN 1:9-13 The Message
What part of your life needs NEW LIGHT, NEW direction, NEW revelation shone on in the weeks ahead? Talk to JESUS about this.
We also wondered on Epiphany if the Magi had interpreters with them on their journey. Who helped them get from place to place or speak with Herod when they got there?
We need Interpreters too! We need God’s help and others to help us understand and help us find our way on our life journey, especially in these crazy times. Who are those INTERPRETERS FOR YOU?
Take time to consider who might help you navigate the NEW WORLD we are living in now, or help you on your faith journey…authors, friends, family etc…ASK JESUS TO SHOW YOU.
STAR WORDS
Consider your New Year Journey into 2022.
What are the tools or maps you need for your journey? What spiritual practices can help you navigate better in the new year? TALK TO JESUS about where you are and what you need. REST, PLAY, COMMUNITY, TIME IN NATURE, or ________________________? Do you need to lighten your suitcase or add something in?
ONE TOOL that helps shine light on our New Year Journey is the STAR WORD. We have a tradition in our house church, thinplaceNASHVILLE of drawing STAR WORDS each Epiphany season. I am not sure where I heard of this first, but you’ve probably read about having a WORD of the year. With our process, we cut out stars and write words on them and then draw three stars and allow the Holy Spirit to choose them. You may like to take time on your own with Jesus to ask Him what your word or words are for the New Year.
How are these a Gift?
How does God want to weave these into your life?
Allow the Holy Spirit to Surprise You!
After you’ve chosen your STARS…
What is the GIFT of this word or these words? How is this word a positive in your life? How has it been a negative?
How does Jesus want you to experience this word or words in the coming year?
Allow the Holy Spirit to surprise you and Inspire you with your Word or Words!
You can learn more about STAR WORDS from the Rev Gals HERE.
You can print out STARS and allow the Holy Spirit to choose for you :
HERE IS A PDF of STAR WORDS on STARS to PRINT OUT
Here is a LIST OF STAR WORDS you can pray with and consider with Jesus.
Take time this weekend to consider your journey…where you have been, where you are going. Ask Jesus to help you and be your LIGHT, Your STAR to guide you. And CHOOSE A STAR WORD OR TWO or THREE …
AND Watch for how God weaves your word or words into your life this year!
©lillylewin and freerangeworship.com
Did you know? We offer many wonderful free resources on our resource page and in our shop! From Advent retreats to coloring pages to poetry and more. Click here to explore our free downloadable offerings and more!
all photos and writings by June Friesen
Wonder…..wondering…..wonderful…..
The challenge is to discern wonder as we step into 2022. As one thinks back over the past 22 months – well that is interesting…22 months since our lives were totally changed worldwide by Covid and now we step into the year 2022. Wow, as I just wrote these two sentences I am even more in awe and wonder than when I researched material for this writing and started putting thoughts together. Paul’s words in Philippians 4 are so on target for me as I prepare to challenge myself to walk into this year with a new awareness of seeing God present in my daily activities as well as in the events and opportunities presented as we embark on this new journey. Paul writes:
Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
When I think of the word ‘wonder’ all kinds of images pop into my mind. Today I share two images that indeed hold wonder for me. Consider first the oyster lying in the ocean finding itself dealing with an annoyance of a minute piece of something in its being. It begins to secrete a substance to cover this irritant and eventually the substance forms into what we identify as a pearl. For many of us owning a pearl or at least a genuine pearl that is not manmade is more of a dream than a reality. I have no idea whether a sea person gathering oysters has any idea or even thought about whether and/or how many pearls they may find. One thing I am sure of is that the oyster has little to no thought of that irritant as being of any value; for them it is an annoyance and problem they wish would just go away.
Second, there is the wonder that a rosebud holds. The rose unfurls its petals gently and delicately until it is open and then it reveals an exquisite beauty, often a beautiful fragrance as well as a delightful place for the bees to tumble about in and gather pollen for honey. In the photo below one can see the intricate design of the petals as well. So much wonder…..in the world around us, within our own bodies, relationships, families, nature – just everywhere….O to take the time to observe and enjoy.
Today I was challenged to replace my worry with wonder….now that is quite a stretch for sure. It is especially a stretch for someone like me who tends to capitalize on worry rather than trust. One way that I have learned how to cope more effectively with worry and turn my worry into wonder is through gratitude. Taking time to develop a lifestyle, yes, I said lifestyle on purpose, of gratitude tends to turn worry into wonder – it causes one to see how much God has given and gifted us within our lives. For many of us we tend to worry more than we wonder – or if we wonder we tend to have a negative side to our wonder. Let us ponder this beautiful rosebud that I happened upon a couple weeks ago. Now I take many, many photographs but never do I ever remember a bud with such intricate texture on the petals themselves. And the delicate blending of the colors is another wow here for sure. In my inquisitive mind there are many running thoughts here – how big will this flower be when it is open? Will the colors blend together throughout the entire blossom? What color will the center of this rose be? Will it have a strong or delicate scent or possibly no scent at all? Will the bees come and roll in the pollen and then make some sweet, sweet honey? How long will it take until this bud opens? And the questions could go on but I think by now you have also been captivated by the wonder of one rosebud. What an incredible Creator God we have!
So how is it that I can replace my worry with wonder you may ask? How can I really pray to God to handle a problem and then ‘let go and let God?’ Again, I am reminded of another couple verses in the Scriptures:
Matthew 6:27-29 (The Message) “Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? All this time and money wasted on fashion—do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them.
Yes, again we are encouraged to let go….to embrace the wonder, the creativity of God as well as the capability of God. This has all lead to an acrostic I have entitled:
Discerning the Wonder & Beauty of the Year 2022
Tis the beginning of a fresh new year –
Wonderful treasures are wrapped neatly in 365 days –
Eventually each one will arrive to be embraced and lived –
New experiences, new adventures, new people to meet –
Trying to navigate each part of the daily path –
Yes – step by step, moment by moment, I will live to glorify God.
Trying to embark on a new year, a new day, a new beginning
With relished excitement and wonder
Entails a conscious effort and choice on my part –
Not feeling the certainty and predictability
That life once seemed to offer –
Yet choosing to embrace the present as a gift – – –
This is where the Almighty Creator God comes into focus –
With His invitation once again to trust and walk with Him
Onward on the path He has mapped for me – for you – the path through twenty-twenty-two.
God: help us to embrace the gifts of this year we have just begun. Some of them may well prove as irritants but give us the grace to allow them to develop into beautiful gifts we may offer to others along the way. Some of them will take a while to open into fulness but give us the patience to allow You to unfurl the moments, hours, days, weeks, and months into beautiful gifts with which our lives can then bless others in this world. Thank you, God, for the opportunity of sharing our lives with Your creation. In Jesus’ Name, amen.
“You can infuse your life with joy, even right in the middle of winter when you need it most…”
Join Christine Aroney-Sine for a series of five inspiring conversations, based on her book, The Gift of Wonder: Creative Practices for Delighting in God.*
Wednesday nights from 7:00 – 8:00 p.m on Zoom
- January 19 – The Awe of Wonder (Introduction)
- January 26 – Wonder & Trauma
- February 2 – Play!
- February 9 – Reminiscing
- February 16 – The Joy of Gratitude
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