by Christine Sine
A couple of weeks ago I broke my favourite mug. When I posted a photo of its sad state on Facebook, several people suggested I try mending it by using the Japanese art of Kintsugi, the 15th-Century practice meaning “to join with gold”. I discovered Kintsugi, the art of mending broken pottery with lacquer resin sprinkled with powdered gold, or silver or platinum, several years ago, long before I started to experiment with creative ways to express my spirituality, but never tried it, probably because it seemed too messy and I was afraid of ending up with a new object that was far from perfect.
Broken mug
I knew that my mug has too many broken pieces for a beginner like me so I decided to start with this broken flower pot, which only had one break, instead. After all how hard could it be to mend a single break like this?
Broken Flowerpot
Well as you can imagine it was much harder than I expected, and the resulting pot and its mend looks very messy. I think I added too much hardener to the resin. Nothing like the beautiful teapot in the photo at the top of the article. However, it was fun and quite therapeutic and definitely made me feel I wanted to give it another go, maybe with something smaller until I get the technique figured out. After all, mending the broken pieces of our lives is often very messy too and usually takes more than one attempt. Even then it is just as likely to end up with messy results as it is with beautiful ones.
Mended flowerpot
Knowing that imperfect objects can be remade into something more beautiful than the original gives me hope that that the imperfections in my life can be mended to make me into a more beautiful vessel than I was before. “Whether you’re going through the loss of a loved one or a job, or are recovering from an injury, divorce or other personal tragedy, Kintsugi can be a way to reframe hardships to remind yourself that you’re not a victim of your circumstances — and to help you come out the other side stronger.” says Candice Kumai in her book Kintsugi Wellness: The Japanese art of Nourishing Mind, Body and Spirit
None of us are without flaws yet God is able to mend and make all of us whole. And when God mends it is like pure gold has been added to our lives. There is beauty hidden in the brokenness all of us struggle with. God does not discard us because we are broken. Our remade selves are grounded in the transformation of our brokenness.
What is your response?
Watch the video below about the art of Kintsugi. What comes to your mind as you listen to this craftsman talk about his art? What areas in your life have already been mended with gold? What is the new beauty that has been formed in the mending? Write these down and spend time thanking God not just for the mending but for the brokenness that made possible new areas of beauty in your life.
Now read Colossians 1:15-20 from The Message
We look at this Son and see the God who cannot be seen. We look at this Son and see God’s original purpose in everything created. For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels—everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him. He was there before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this moment. And when it comes to the church, he organizes and holds it together, like a head does a body.
He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—he is supreme in the end. From beginning to end he’s there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is he, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross.
Now listen to this video
What is one broken or dislocated part of your life in which you still long to see transformation and wholeness? Name it and lift it up before God in prayer. Ask God to act as the master craftsman mending and making whole your brokenness. Now sit in silence allowing God to speak to you. Is there a pathway to healing that God is revealing to you? What action steps might be necessary to find the wholeness and the beauty God intends for you?
Luke 11.33-36
“No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light. Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness. Therefore, be careful lest the light in you be darkness. If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light.”
My fifteen-year-old grand-daughter, Leah, has become a gifted artist over the years, and yesterday she sent me an item from her latest coursework, which really struck a chord in me.
I really love this piece because I see here such a marked contrast between the wet and glorious glass-like quality of the human eye itself, and the soft gentle tissue of skin which surrounds it; even the eyelashes have been carefully positioned, and seem so real. I find it stunning. Her eye made me think of the reading above from St Luke’s gospel, especially:
“Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness.”
Apart from our eyes themselves being such a marvel, after all they are the most incredibly created and most complicated parts of the human body, they are also a gateway, into who and what we become in life. Whatever we allow through that gateway will determine how we live our lives.
If we entertain evil, which comes in so many graphic and enticing forms in our world today, we allow darkness into our souls. I don’t believe there has ever been a time in human history, where so many distressing images of all kinds of evil, particularly pornography, have been so easily accessible, to so many people of all ages, but especially young children! And how addictive social media has become!
Incidentally I wrote a song many years ago in the late seventies, long before the onslaught of social media, which began with these words:
Held in the spell of a screen that dazzles,
Staring eyes always hypnotised!
How true to life these prophetic words have become!
We can also be easily seduced by the constant flow of advertising which tempts us become self-indulgent, to want more and more, in a world that so often closes its eyes to the needs of the poor and the disadvantaged.
But, if we make a conscious effort to set a guard on our eyes, and take in what St Paul recommends in his letter to the Philippians below, we will have light for our souls and God’s peace in our hearts.
He writes: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4.8-9)
We can’t ever hope to make other people conform, but we can set the best example possible ourselves, and, rather than wondering what it is that fascinates those we love on their social media platforms, we could always watch with them, and become the influencers ourselves? Remember, that gateway will also let God’s light out!
We all need the Wholeness of God…this resource includes reflections and activities for coping and thriving during challenges in search of shalom as well as hope for restoration.
I am home from an amazing week in Baltimore, Maryland at the It’s All About Love: A Festival for the Jesus Movement. This was a revival gathering of the Episcopal Church and people who love the work and people of the Episcopal church like Presiding Bishop Michael Curry . If you aren’t Episcopal you might know him from the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle because he preached the wedding sermon and told the entire world that it’s ALL ABOUT LOVE or it isnt’t Christianity. The focus this festival gathering was threefold, three tents: Evangelism, Creation Care, and Racial Justice and Reconciliation. I was invited to create a Sacred Space prayer experience for the gathering under the Evangelism Tent and led a workshop on how to begin to host Sacred Spaces and make church. bit less boring by using Experiential Worship and teaching to all our learning styles not just to our ears.
A Sacred Space Prayer Experience is an interactive, multi sensory way to pray. If you know about Montessori School, this is like Montessori Church! It’s a station based way to pray. A prayer experience is a series of prayer stations created around a theme, sermon series or a scripture passage. A Sacred Space can be set up for a special event like a conference or a retreat, or it can be set up in a church or a coffee shop as an outreach event. Sacred Spaces are a great way to invite people to experience God who might not ever attend a regular worship gathering. Sacred Spaces are great inter-generational worship experiences too. Sacred Space is about participation! You actually do an action at each of the stations.
The theme for this Sacred Space came from reading the First Nations Version New Testament and thinking about Jesus’s invitation to us to Follow Him. Jesus invites each of us to join him on a journey, on a pilgrimage of love and justice. We are invited join him on the Road of Love.
Love is patient and kind. Love is never jealous. It does not brag or boast, It is not puffed up or big-headed. Love does not act in shameful ways, nor does it care only about itself.
It is not hot headed, nor does it keep track of wrongs done to it.
Love is not happy with lies and injustice, but truth makes its heart glad.Love keeps walking even when carrying a heavy load.
Love keeps trusting, never loses hope, and stands firm in hard times.
The road of love has no end. “
I Corinthians 13:4-8 First Nations Version
I loved this last verse: Love keeps walking even when carrying a heavy load.
Love keeps trusting, never loses hope, and stands firm in hard times.
The road of love has no end.
So I titled this Sacred Space ” The Road of Love…or Joining Jesus on the Road of Love”
You are invited
on the
Road of Love!
Jesus says
Follow Him on a Pilgrimage
of LOVE!
On a Pilgrimage,
we watch for the signs of God’s love for us.
We allow Jesus to surprise us with his love and unexpected gifts.
We allow Jesus to love us along the way and we are transformed in the journey.
On a Pilgrimage,
we watch for the signs of God’s love for us.
We allow Jesus to surprise us with unexpected gifts.
We allow Jesus to love us along the way and we are transformed in the journey.
Pilgrims take time to notice and pay attention.
They listen, watch for signs, and allow for interruptions.
We pilgrims follow closely and get the dust of the rabbi on us.
Consider the Road you are walking with Jesus right now. Is it smooth, rocky, covered with trash or gifts? Tell Jesus where you are. Maybe you need to give yourself permission to stop at a rest stop and take a break.
What gifts have your received on the Road with Jesus lately? Take time to say thank you to Jesus.
How has Jesus surprised you lately? Are you paying attention and watching for signs?
Consider who needs to walk with you and pray for them to join you and Jesus on the Road of Love.
This weekend take time to join Jesus on the Road of Love
Below is a video description of the On the Road Sacred Space. I love curating spaces and helping others learn to practice experiential worship. I’m creating a downloadable kit of this experience that will be available later this summer.
PRAY WITH ME :
Explorer God,
You have put within us
A spirit of adventure move beyond the immediate,
And to see
In the ordinary things
You extraordinary presence of love.
Propelled by your Spirit,
May each day become an adventure
Of people, tasks, places and responsibilities.
And when we feel grey and lifeless
May you remind us
That each day holds
It’s own gifts:
New truths,
Restored vision,
Inner healing, and the possibility
To forgive even our enemies. AMEN
Peter Millar (Iona Prayer Book)
LAST CALL! Join me THIS August 28-Sept. 4th. Finding Your Thinplace Retreat Pilgrimage.=IN SCOTLAND! 5 days on Iona!
by Carol Dixon
Happy International Friendship day!
What a lovely reason to think of all our friends across the globe today and remember them in our prayers.
I am blest living in the United Kingdom to be part of a group of 4 nations – England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland (more if you count in the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands which have their own parliaments). Most of the time the separate nations get along fine but at least the actual fighting, particularly between Scotland and England came to an end over 300 years ago with the Union of the Crowns – Northumberland often felt the brunt of the battles, being a border county ravaged by the English going north and the Scots marauding south.
I was fortunate to be brought up by an English mother and Scottish father so I learned the history and culture of both countries. My parents were very hospitable too and we often entertained visitors from different places and quite a few of our relatives emigrated to different continents – Canada and Australia mainly and it was really interesting to receive letters from them describing their new places of residence and the different customs. Their visits too were a fascinating insight into different cultures and at home we have quite a collection of knick -knacks from different countries given to us over the years by friends and relatives from across the world in our glass cabinet – France, Germany, Sweden, China, Malaysia, Borneo, the Holy Land, Pakistan, India, Jamaica, Lithuania to name a few – each one bringing back lovely memories of the stories attached to them.
Some of the knick-knacks from other countries given to us by friends
Since I was twelve I have corresponded with my Swedish penfriend – we’re now both grannies in our 70s and it’s via instant email these days, not letters which took 7 days to arrive. We were delighted to visit them in 1972 (when we made front page news in their local newspaper!) and, as well as some visits during the 1980s with our children, we last saw them in 2016 and enjoyed their family hospitality as well as some lovely days out together.
Over the years my husband, Donald and I have travelled, too – wonderful camping holidays in France with our children where we sampled different foods and saw interesting places quite different to ours. It was good to be able to speak a little of the language too (albeit school French) which allowed us to converse with our neighbour’s and chat in the village shop.
When Donald was at university as a mature student we hosted some of his fellow international students for Christmas. Most were the same age as our youngsters so they had people of their own age to converse with, not just us oldies. The Chinese Malaysian family became great friends of ours and we were invited to their weddings in Kuala Lumpur which gave us a wonderful opportunity to experience a totally different culture and faith (Buddhism).
They called us ‘English parents’ and we were honoured to be invited to take part in the tea ceremony at the wedding where the newly married couple serve tea in their new teacups, normally reserved for close family members only. It was wonderful too when Donald was invited to read Paul’s hymn of love from I Corinthians 13 at a Buddhist wedding.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8 New Living Translation
4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.8 Love will last forever!
St Paul’s great statement about love is a wonderful example of international friendship too. If you intersperse the words ‘A true friend’ for ‘Love’ In St Paul’s letter it works wonderfully. eg
4 A true friend’ is patient and kind. A true friend’ is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. A true friend’ does not demand their own way. A true friend’ is not irritable and keeps no record of being wronged. 6 A true friend’ does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 A true friend’ never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.8 A true friend’ will last forever!
True friends are all these things whether they live next door or across the other side of the world and Jesus is the greatest friend of all. As he told his disciples at the last supper ‘12 My commandment is this: love one another, just as I love you. 13 The greatest love you can have for your friends is to give your life for them. 14 And you are my friends if you do what I command you. 15 I do not call you servants any longer, because servants do not know what their master is doing. Instead, I call you friends, because I have told you everything I heard from my Father.’ (John 15: 12-15). The song that encapsulates this for me is a beautiful hymn from Ghana ‘Kneels at the feet of his friends’.
So today perhaps you would like to give thanks for your friends at home and across the world and maybe let them know how much you appreciate their friendship. I shall start the ball rolling by saying a BIG THANK YOU to all my Godspacelight friends across the world. Thank you for your wonderful reflections which are so uplifting (& sometimes challenging). Thank you for your love and prayers during my times of ill health and your good wishes in times of joy. And above all thank you Christine for the opportunity to share our Christian faith with one another whatever our ethnicity, nationality, or denomination in love, respect and hope through Jesus our Lord.
Many blessings for International Friendship day 2023.
Looking for hospitality inspiration? We have an entire resource page dedicated to hospitality. Find recipes and reflections on numerous hospitality topics, including Celtic hospitality, prayers, and liturgies. Click on Hospitality for more!
by Laurie Kline
Her gaze froze me in place.
“Be a spokeswoman for peace,” author Susan Vreeland said.
Five words. Oh, how they sobered and thrilled me: a sacred charge.
Have I even begun to fulfill it? A little, perhaps. These days, with fewer years to grow into the calling, I want to live kindly, wholeheartedly—as St. Mildred did, in her tumultuous times.
Daughter of 8th century Anglo-Saxon king Merewald of Magonset, young princess Mildred braved the perilous journey by sea to France. The Abbess of the convent school there, in Chelles, had agreed to educate her.
At some point during training, a noble relation of the Abbess sought her permission to wed Princess Mildred. Did the Abbess imagine gold for her coffers? Consent was given.
“I was sent here to learn, not marry,” the girl meekly replied.
Despite threats and blows, gentle Mildred held her ground. The Abbess was not a woman of peace. Legend says that she threw her student into a blazing oven. For three hours.
Mildred stepped out, blinking perhaps, “unscathed and radiant.”
The Abbess went postal. Tradition tells us savage beatings followed.
Mildred endured.
Is this how a heart for peace takes root?
Reports of the abuse finally reached Mildred’s mother. The Anglo-Saxon Queen, by now an Abbess herself, sent ships to rescue her daughter. Escaping by night, Mildred carried home a sacred nail, reputedly from the cross.
Reunited at last, Mildred joined her mother at the island monastery, Minster-in-Thanet, where she became a nun. How surprised she would have been to learn she would become a revered saint, her feast day celebrated, worldwide, in July.
Eventually, Mildred succeeded her mother as Abbess, consecrated to her new calling by Theodore, the archbishop of Canterbury. For three decades, the former princess and bride of Christ ceaselessly served her community.
Legend claims that while Abbess Mildred prayed one night, the prince of darkness extinguished her candle.
An angel drove him away, then relit her taper.
Renowned and beloved as a peacemaker, Mildred died from a painful, lingering illness. In 1033, her remains were transferred to a shrine in St. Augustine’s Abbey, Canterbury, along with her precious collection of relics. Testimonies of miraculous healings surfaced, and her fame spread across England and Europe.
Paragon of gentleness, generous compassion, and serenity, St. Mildred was an advocate for widows and orphans, troubled people and social pariahs.
I like imagining a gravestone bearing her name, which means “peaceful counsel.”
Friends, what will we write or speak this day in the name of peace?
***
Author Juline W urges us to emulate Mildred’s example:
Through constant prayer and frequent fasting,
by ceaseless hymnody and great humility,
the glorious Mildred forsook
the allurements of her royal rank,
trampling underfoot all worldly pride
and presumption. Wherefore,
let us imitate her virtues,
that, free from all earthly attachments,
we may join her
at the wedding feast of Christ our Saviour.
Prayer cards are available in the shop for many occasions and seasons–from everyday pauses and Lenten ruminations to breath meditations and Advent reflections, enjoy guided prayers and beautiful illustrations designed to delight and draw close. Many are available in single sets, sets of three, and to download–even bundled with other resources!
My husband Tom and I are just back from our three day refocusing retreat at Anacortes. I loved walking on Rosario Beach picking up colorful pebbles and My husband Tom and I are just back from our three day refocusing retreat at Anacortes. I loved walking on Rosario Beach picking up colorful pebbles and breathing in the beauty of God’s world seemingly untouched by the disasters happening all around our world. My heart goes out to the millions suffering the impact of searing heat, of floods and forest fires as well as those whose lives are forever changed by the ongoing wars – Russia’s war with Ukraine, and civil wars in Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Libya, Mali, Somalia, South Sudan, and Syria. We live in a very unstable and uncertain world. May we learn in the midst of it to trust God’s unchanging nature of love, faithfulness and justice.
I talked about our retreat time in yesterday’s Meditation Monday: My Work is Loving the World and how impacted I was by Mary Oliver’s poem My work is loving the world. Her poetry is currently one of my guiding lights. Her words are refreshing and renewing my soul. I love the way that God provides voices like hers at just the right time for us. As I mentioned yesterday, I have read very little scripture in the last few months, but poetry and my garden walks continue to strengthen and sustain me. I feel as though the last few months have been a bit of a Sabbatical season – unnamed but still refreshing. I have not held any workshops. I have written very few articles (some of you may have noticed that there has been a lot of reposting on Godspace recently.) Poetry and the garden have provided me with the kind of soul nourishment I most need. This last week I initiated a new practice – watering the garden instead of having a morning devotional time. It has been wonderful and reminded me of Vigen Guroian who, in his book Inheriting Paradise, reminds us that water is the lifeblood of the garden and of all creation. Every time we water the garden it is a little like baptism, “we tend not only the garden that we call nature but also the garden that is ourselves, “
I think that my Sabbatical time will probably fade as the summer does and focus once more on the serious work of writing and speaking. I am planning a series of retreats that you might like to pencil in on your calendar now: September 2nd – Rhythms and Seasons, October 14th – Living in Gratitude and December 9th – Advent Quiet Day Retreat. I hope you can join me for this series. Each will be a stand alone retreat but the series together, I think will enrich our lives, nourish us through the rest of the year and prepare us for a busy new year coming.
Don’t miss last week’s posts. They were all very engaging and inspirational. June Friesen’s reminder that Saturday was National Ice Cream Day had us celebrating with our favourite caramel caribou ice cream shared with good friends. Lilly Lewin’s Cell Phone Prayer Practice was greatly appreciated by everyone too. Such a creative and practical way to pray for those we care about. On Thursday we delighted in helping Jeannie Kendall launch her new book Heroes or Villains. Each chapter has some imaginative writing from the perspective of a bible character – twenty in all – the text of part of their story, and an exploration of a quality we may (or may not, there might be surprises!) associate with them, and the relevance for our lives. I can’t wait to get hold of a copy. Diane Woodrow, in her fascinating post juxtaposes 2 very different celebrations of July 12th – Malala Yousafzai, the amazing young woman who at 17 was shot by the Taliban for advocating and encouraging female education in Pakistan and Orangemen’s Day celebrating William of Orange’s defeat of the last ever Catholic king of Britain, James II.
If you are interested in the poem I wrote about the pebbles on the beach at Anacortes, check out my Instagram account where I posted it with a short video of the waves washing over the pebbles on the beach. It was a fun thing to do.
Let me end with another beautiful poem by Mary Oliver.
I WAKE CLOSE TO MORNING
Why do people keep asking to see
God’s identity papers
when the darkness opening into morning
is more than enough?
Certainly any god might turn away in disgust.
Think of Sheba approaching
the kingdom of Solomon.
Do you think she had to ask,
“Is this the place?”
~ Mary Oliver
From Felicity
Many blessings
Gift of Wonder Retreat
This online retreat is based on Christine Sine’s latest book The Gift of Wonder, but with much more! Going deeper into a discovery of new depths of awe to draw us closer to God. I invite you to reawaken your inner child and rediscover the depths of awe and wonder that reconnect us to our passionate God who delights in life, celebrates with joy and exudes a sense of awe and wonder.
by Christine Sine
Tom and I are just back from a delightful 3 days spent at Anacortes on retreat. In spite of the distraction of breathtaking views across to Guemes Island, and walks along Rosario Beach, it was a wonderfully refreshing and refocusing time. Our last retreat was at the end of December last year when I wrote a list of intentions for 2023. I wrote:
This year I am not making resolutions. Instead I am setting intentions. “Setting intentions is powerful when done properly” says Anna Marie Houlis in How to Set Intentions “It is more than setting goals – it is about being purposeful in pursuing your desire… an invitation to step into your preferred story especially when your intentions solidly align with your values.” She then goes on to say “When setting intentions, it is like laying foundations for what you would like to have, feel and experience, providing you with the opportunity to actively participate in your life the way you want to live it”
Unfortunately I promptly forgot my list of intentions. No wonder I needed another retreat. Here we are half way through the year and I have forgotten what I felt God was stirring within me. Fortunately, as I read through what I wrote six months ago, I realized that God has kept me on track in spite of my forgetfulness. Perhaps it is because God constantly nudges me and reminds me of who I am meant to be and how all that I am doing fits into that.
Interestingly the ways in which my intentions have been lived out is not quite what I expected. Here’s what seems to have happened.
- Strengthening my spiritual practices. As I thought about this I realized that I rarely read the scriptures each morning. Instead I wander around the garden admiring the beauty, inhaling the fragrances and listening to the birdsong. Gardening, creativity and writing are the practices that have drawn me closer to God over the last few months. Acknowledging that these are indeed spiritual practices and making sure that I continue to strengthen them over the coming months is part of my resolve for the future. Instead of sitting in my sacred space constantly distracted by the beauty outside my window, I plan to initiate early morning garden watering as my new spiritual practice. I think it will do more for my soul than the unfocused reading of scripture could.
- Dream and be creative. This second one of my intentions still resonates deeply in my soul. My desires to start a podcast and write another book have had some setbacks but they are a growing passion within me. I suspect that this time of thinking, dreaming and planning will make both of these much stronger projects.
- Live in awe and wonder. Over the last couple of years, following my sinus surgery and the health issues that followed it, I let go of my awe and wonder walks. Reinstituting these has been one of the most inspiring aspects of the last few months, and it is not just as I walk that find myself in the awe and wonder of God. It is also as I garden, as I write poetry and create fun forms of art and spiritual activities that I enter into that awe. I am more convinced than ever that awe and wonder need to be at the centre of my life.
- Build relationships and connections. Part of the joy of the last six months has been the opening up of my life once more to social engagements. My trip to Australia to reconnect to my family was incredible and the added bonus of sharing them with one of my best friends stunned me and left me rejoicing in the goodness of God. Reconnecting to friends here in Seattle and other parts of the country and around the world has added to that delight. Zoom calls have become an important part of our lives and how we interact with people, but there is nothing like that personal contact to enliven our souls.
- Seek regular intellectual stimulation. As an avid reader, my life revolves around intellectual reading and learning, but this too has been greatly enhanced by the opportunities we have had this year to attend conferences, small group meetings and theological discussions. As an extrovert, I learn best through discussion and personal interaction and realize that I need to much more intentionally incorporate these in my days.
- Take Time to Retreat. Setting aside a few days, like we have just done, is wonderful but is not always possible. Setting aside an hour or two each week is often much more doable, and I know that as I move forward through the rest of the year, I need to do this much more intentionally.
- Relax in the presence of unanswerable questions. The longer I walk as a follower of Jesus, the less I realize I understand of who God is. The cosmic God who created the universe so immense and complex, is not a God we can ever hope to understand. We are too small, too limited, too unable to grasp the truths of God. Sitting in that place of uncertainty is increasingly a part of my faith journey.
No wonder I resonated with the words of Mary Oliver’s poem Mysteries Yes which I quoted in last week’s newsletter
Let me keep my distance, always, from thosewho think they have the answers.Let me keep company always with those who say“Look!” and laugh in astonishment,and bow their heads.
My work is loving the world.Here the sunflowers, there the hummingbird — equal seekers of sweetness. Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums.Here the clam deep in the speckled sand.Are my boots old? Is my coat torn? Am I no longer young and still not half-perfect? Let me keep my mind on what matters, which is my work,which is mostly standing still and learning to be astonished.The phoebe, the delphinium.The sheep in the pasture, and the pasture. Which is mostly rejoicing, since all ingredients are here,which is gratitude, to be given a mind and a heart and these body-clothes, a mouth with which to give shouts of joy to the moth and the wren, to the sleepy dug-up clam,telling them all, over and over, how it is that we live forever. ~Mary Oliver
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