A Foggy Morning

I awoke this morning to a mild morning hushed by a blanket of pea-soupy fog. As I drove along my gravel road, I glimpsed a pheasant as he scooted across the road and into the ditch out of my path. I remembered to slow down, to respect the right-of -way of others. Even on Interstate 35, the fog was thick enough to cause everyone to turn on headlights and stay alert. Life is like this a lot; I have to remind myself to take a deep breath and slow down, to stay alert for God's messages, to shine a light into the dark places. At one point on my drive into work, I experienced a brief moment of disorientation. The fog obscured all my usual landmarks...where the heck was I? Had I missed my exit? I feel adrift in my life like this at times. I keep moving, but to where? I have to trust that God is there with me, that He knows where this road is going even when I don't. Once I made it into the city, traffic crawled to stop and go along Fleur Dr. As frustrating as it was to sit there stopped in traffic, seeing only red tail lights as they disappeared slowly into the fog, I had to remind myself that I'm not in control, that God is directing this traffic called life. I might never know why my life crawls at too slow a pace or speeds up so I can barely catch my breath. I might never know why one dream stops and another begins. All this unknown is okay, though. God knows; I don't need to. All I need to do is trust.

Becoming An Easter Person

Last evening Elizabeth spoke about Easter in her homily. No, not about the holiday we celebrated on April 12th, but of Easter, the time now, after Christ's resurrection. I have to admit, I've always been one of those people who Elizabeth referenced in the message; one who checked off the holiday on the calendar. "Okay, we've done that; I've sent Easter cards to the grandkids. Now I can start thinking about...." But as Elizabeth explained, Easter is not just about Christ's suffering on the cross or rising from the tomb. It's about what happens next; it's about the 'but' that Luke uses over and over as he tells the story. "But...they found the stone rolled away." "...but..they did not believe them." (the words of the women) "But him they did not see." All these things happened after Christ's death and all of these things are the rest of the story, the story of being an Easter person. Christ comes again and again, patiently explaining his story, God's story. "Yes, I suffered. Yes, I died, Yes, I come again to you to fulfill the Scriptures. And yes, because I did all these things, I am always there for you, always present to guide, to comfort, to help you, to rejoice with you. I am real and because I am real, I stand with you. Not just on Easter morning, but always. You are my Easter people."

Celtic Worship

Last Sunday evening Edith and I attended a Celtic worship service at her church, St. James. It was a small group, maybe 30-40 people, who gathered in this 1905 church built of beautiful creamy stone. The dark wood pews, paneling and arched beams set off the jewel-like stained glass windows of the Anglican-style church. It felt so peaceful and refreshing to listen to the harp play soft Celtic melodies. The liturgy was traditional Episcopalian, but the prayers were Celtic, much like this one:

MY SOUL'S HEALER
My soul's Healer,
Keep me at even,
Keep me at morning,
Keep me at noon,
On rough course faring,
Help and safeguard
My means this night.
I am tired, astray, and stumbling,
Shield me from snare and sin.

It was a lovely close to a wonderful weekend.

A Blessing of Renewal at Easter

To Come Home to Yourself

May all that is unforgiven in you...be released.

May your fears yield...their deepest tranquilities.

May all that is unlived in you..blossom into a future graced with love.

John O'Donohue

Guest Commentary: The Golden Rule

I regularly read an online newspaper column written by an acquaintance, Rich Mayfield. I met Rich several years ago when he was pastoring Lord of the Mountains Lutheran church in Dillon, CO. This is where my good friend, Anne, attends church and when I'd visit her, we'd always make Sunday service part of our weekend. Rich is a vibrant speaker who has the knack of provoking some really deep thoughts with his well-delivered, profound sermons. He's retired now and writes a weekly column on 'this and that' for the Summit Daily, a newspaper based in Dillon. I share with you today's column on the Golden Rule. I especially like the end of it when he quotes one of my favorite writers, Anne Lamott. Sometimes other people just get it right...thought I'd share.

Read it here

As I researched this entry, I found that Rich has his own blog, Reconstructing Christianity. Try it out!

Good Friday

I direct you here to one of my favorite blogs to see a medieval rendering of Good Friday. It's amazing to me how chilling this piece of illuminated art is and how vividly it conveys the despair of the crucifixion.

God's Message

I've been struggling with making a decision about an opportunity that I've been offered. I'm so fearful of making the wrong move, of doing something that will cause me to fail and end up on welfare or even worse, a bag lady! My heart tells me to take the giant leap of faith that this decision demands and see what happens. My heart just sings when I think of the doors this decision might open. Then my mind gets involved and starts with all the 'what ifs' and negative talk. Does this make financial sense? What if you use up all your money and need something?Does this make your future more secure? In these economic times can you afford to risk a good job and security? It's been an endless tug-of-war. Today my daily Lenten email arrived bright and early in my inbox. It was the loaves and fishes story from Christ's ministry. Here's what it said:

"It hasn't ended yet, Jesus assured them. Just wait and see. Trust me.
Sometimes, you have to start your good thing, even if you don't have a specific plan. Sometimes you just have to do the good thing right now, even if you don't know how you're going to finish it, even if you don't have all the pieces yet. Even if you don't know what all the pieces are.

Ask, and the Lord will provide."

I think God is trying to tell me that this opportunity is the 'good thing' that I need to start, that I need to trust him and if I ask, he will provide. Not sure just how this will work...I 'don't know what all the pieces are.' But I do trust him and I will take this leap of faith.

A Portal to the Passion

In her homily yesterday evening, Mary referred to Palm Sunday as the 'portal' to the week of Jesus' Passion. Portals or doors have a way of opening and closing according to God's plan, not mine. This lovely door, a portal to a Provencal home, did not open to me when I visited France; God definitely opened the portal to Holy Week for me through Mary's sermon and the liturgy last evening, though. How many times have I heard the Easter story? So many, yet last evening for the first time I felt as if I were there. First, in the triumphal crowd cheering Jesus, then as Peter denying Him. I traveled with the crowd to Golgotha and scorned Jesus with the rest. Yet, in the end, I stood with the centurion who acknowledged this Jesus as 'truly the son of God.' As Mary said, standing at the foot of the cross is not easy and to get there we must walk with Jesus through this week of Passion. It is an emotional time for Christians.

A Prayerful Experience

I experienced a unique prayer opportunity this past Tuesday. I belong to the St. Timothy's prayer group which means I receive prayer requests from our faith community and include them in my daily prayer practice. One of the other things the prayer group does is send a representative to the church's monthly Vestry meeting. The Vestry in the Episcopal Church is like the Presbyterian Session or the Methodist Church Board...they are the elected members of the congregation who assist the Rector in running the business of the church. These were my instructions from Bev:
"The vestry meets in the chapel where the prayer group gathers.
Arrive a little early…grab a chair and find a comfortable spot a bit away from the
meeting…or sit in a nearby Sunday School room.If you need help getting
settled…ask Karen Voss or one of the clergy.
Bring along a Bible,
Prayer Book or other God-centered reading. Invite God’s presence and guidance at
the meeting and then you can read for a while. I especially enjoy reading the
evening prayer and Compline services at vestry meetings."

I wondered if it would feel strange to be there sort of 'lurking' outside the meeting, but still within earshot. It didn't feel weird at all; I felt very engaged even though I really couldn't hear much of the discussion. I could tell when they would begin a new topic and each time I would pray for God to support them and guide their decisions. I did read both the Vespers and the Compline services in the Book of Common Prayer; I also prayed for each individual member of the group to be open to God's words for them. It felt like I was a intimate part of the gathering with an important gift to offer.

I couldn't help but think how comforting it would be to have someone praying for me during the painful meetings that I both attend and preside over at work. While I always ask God for guidance, I would feel so strengthened by the prayers of another during those stressful times.

This is a little story that Bev included in her email instructions:

"Prayer Representative at Vestry Meetings: When my little grandson, Benjamin, was 3 years old he would put a stuffed animal in the doorway of his bedroom before he jumped into bed. When I asked my son about this he said that Benjamin was afraid of wolves but when he posted a stuffed animal there by the door to watch and protect him from the wolves he was able to sleep peacefully. This is kind of like a prayer representative at a vestry meeting. We go and pray and watch and ask God to join us in watching and to provide protection and guidance. There is more peace for everyone knowing that there is a team there watching and protecting against wolves and other bad dogs that might be lurking."