Category:

We have enough~

7/29/2015

To be washed before being distributed.

The Sunday church service went well. I gave it what I had, but as I said in my sermon, I did so with prayer, God’s grace, and the message I received from the story in John’s gospel of Jesus’ feeding of the five thousand. The Living Christ was among us. Jesus gave me enough pieces to pass on his message, and he gave the people in the pews enough pieces to hear what they needed. We all had enough.

We all have enough. In fact, most of us (those privileged to read or write blogs) have more than we need. “I’ll take more time…I’ll keep this extra just in case.”

This morning I started getting rid of all the extra stuff in the dining room—dishes, a collection of rocks and shells, three of six water pitchers, drooping, partially melted candles. I will pass the pieces on to family, the church fair, the put-and-take, and the dump. My challenge is to believe have enough time to do this in every room in the house. Yes, I have enough.

Rule of Availability

10/5/2014

More about the Rule of Life of availability of the Northumbria Community. We are called to be AVAILABLE to God and to others.

It makes perfect sense for a Christian to aspire to be available to God and others; the two are interwoven, of one seamless cloth. But how to stay available, when, as I believe, this means being available all the time? For me one of the stumbling block is that I forget the all the time part; put another way, one of the biggest challenges is to remember. I meet someone in the store or sit down at a meeting and my mind immediately takes over as we share family news or discuss who is bring bread for communion.

In calling me to be available to God and others, I am being asked to welcome the Christ in everyone I encounter--all the time. That can only happen if I begin from my heart, not my head. At least it’s a place to start.

We are called to be AVAILABLE to God and to others:
"Firstly to be available to God in the cell of our own heart when we can be turned towards Him, and seek His face; then to be available to others in a call to exercise hospitality, recognizing that in welcoming others we honor and welcome the Christ Himself; then to be available to others through participation in His care and concern for them, by praying and interceding for their situations in the power of the Holy Spirit; then to be available for participation in mission of various kinds according to the calling and initiatives of the Spirit."

Giving and receiving~

8/27/2014

Joan Chittister is one of my favorite contemporary spiritual writers. Here’s a recent comment of hers that resonated with me.

“If I do not need other people, what is their own purpose in life…?”

More than just resonating, it startled me, activating those dendrites to hop about in my brain. I realized how self-involved I am, always considering my own life purpose, always wanting to be in control, always thinking that other people need me. How difficult it is for me to step into their shoes and consider from their point of view. What an arrogant, privileged position it is to think that everyone needs me, needs my good works. How hard it is to let others do for me. But more than that, what a challenge it is to admit that I need them.

How do I change this egocentric attitude of mine? Consciously looking for ways for people do things for me feels patronizing and keeps me in control. Even my question is controlling. I’m open to new relationships of giving and receiving. I have no answers. Let go, let God.

Joan Chittister [email protected]

Giving and receiving~

6/19/2014

What follows is today’s post from my cottage by the sea blog. I want to say a little more about it here.

      If the term ‘random acts of kindness’ had been in the lexicon during Jesus’ time, I believe he would have was pretty clear that they had to do with giving and receiving. Sometimes we give, sometimes we receive; do both, trade off, don’t own one. If I am always the giver, I place myself in a position of power, superiority, and arrogance, and diminish the other person to weakness, inferiority, and humility. The world is full of such situations; just listen to the evening news. But if I trade off, sometimes giving, sometimes receiving, the playing field levels off and all that is there is love, which has no opposite.

Random acts of kindness. But are they so random? Should we be so surprised? Are they more usual when we are open to them? Would we be more apt to offer them if we stayed alert?

     At the Dublin airport yesterday, waiting for my flight to Boston, there I was, receiving an act of kindness. I was starving, so up I went to the little snack bar and ordered a croissant and cappuccino, only to be told that they only took euro. All I had were pounds sterling, but even the U.S. dollars at the bottom of my suitcase wouldn’t have done the trick. I walked away, feeling a little sorry for myself I must confess, and sat down with an hour to go before flight time.

      “Excuse me, are you the woman who didn’t have money for a snack? I know it will be a long time before we get fed on the flight; my wife and I have some extra euro, so here, buy what you’d like.” I accepted the 6 euro, gratefully returned to the kiosk to make my purchases.

      Sounds easy, doesn’t it. And yet, my first inclination was to say, “No thank you, I’ll be fine.”

     How hard it is to accept money from a stranger. After all, I am self-sufficient, a seasoned traveler, and not poor. How hard it is to accept with a simple thank you and smile, and leave it at that. But that’s pretty much what I did, adding that I’ll return the kindness to someone sometime.

P.S. Once on the plane I realized that I could have paid with a credit card. But then, there would have been no opportunity for that random, or may not so random, act of kindness, no opportunity to pass it forward.

Snow benefits~

2/21/2014

Like everyone else around here, yesterday morning my car was buried in snow and my windshield wipers frozen solid. Of course I turned them on before attempting to thaw them loose, and out they popped—out as in not attached at all. This sunny morning I located an automotive repair shop and drove the two miles for help. In five minutes the owner had snapped everything into place.

    “What do I owe you?
    “Not a thing. Glad to help you out.”
    “Thank you. Do you have anyone you would like me to pray for?”
    “Yes, please pray for my son.”
    “What’s his name?”
    “Nicholas. He just got back from his third tour in Iraq. He has troubles.”
    “I’ll put him on my list. Thanks again.”

     If you have a moment, please offer a prayer for Nicholas, and for all the other service people who are ‘in trouble’.

Family Promise~

11/1/2013

Last night at a local church I helped serve the evening meal to several families participating in Family Promise, a national organization whose mission is “is to help homeless and low-income families achieve sustainable independence.” (To learn more, check their website.)

I am in awe of the resilience, commitment and courage of these moms and dads, who are determined to turn things around for themselves and their families. But more than, that I am humbled.

Lindisfarne inspiration~

8/27/2013

The following poem was sent to me by prayer friends in England. I met Margaret and Gordon on Iona about fifteen years ago and we have kept in touch every since. We had a wonderful reunion on the island ten years ago, and since then we have been in contact through email, Christmas cards and telephone conversations.

     Recently Gordon, who is in his eighties, sent me this prayer by David Adams who was warden years ago on the island of Lindsfarne. It has been an inspiration to Gordon throughout the years, and continues to give him hope as he undergoes radiation and chemotherapy for skin cancer.

     There are many wonderful things I could tell you about Gordon and Margaret, but if you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time you know that I keep my friend’s privacy. And that I will continue to do. That being said, I am so grateful for the faith and continuing trust in God that they have shown me. What more could I ask of a friendship?

    I do, however, want to share something that hopefully will inspire you, as a church members or as individuals trying to do God’s work in the world. Five days a week for four weeks members of Gordon’s church drive Gordon and Margaret, to his appointments 40 miles from their home. The schedule varies daily, but someone shows up at their house to what they can, namely drive, while Gordon does what he can, get better. This giving and receiving keeps everyone faithful and grateful.

      And now, I ask you a favor. In your own way, please say a prayer for these two dear friends of mine.

I HAVE SEEN THE LORD

Where the mist rises from the sea
Where the waves creep upon the shore
Where the wrack lifts upon the strand,
                         I have seen the Lord

Where the sun awakens the day
Where the road winds on its way
Where the fields are sweet with hay,
                           I have seen the Lord

Where the stars shine in the sky
Where the streets so peaceful lie
Where the darkness is so nigh,
                            I have seen the Lord

The Lord is here,
The lord is there,
The lord is everywhere,
The lord is high,
The lord is low,
The lord is on the path I go

Praying with out ceasing--again~

8/23/2013

I’ve returned, once again, to praying without ceasing. It still seems to be a habit that gets forgotten and then renewed. Such a mystery this ebb and flow or prayer. But here it was again as I started a day of cooking for friends who are having a tough time medically. I wanted to take them a meal, a nice meal, which I knew would take added effort and time on my part. But I didn’t want this to feel like a burden or a chore. I wanted all the preparations, including the brownie baking, to be part of the gift.

And the Jesus Prayer, Jesus Christ have mercy on me, made it so. I didn’t say the words out loud; they were in my consciousness. Along with the meal, the prayer produced a calmness and delight in the preparation.

Um, I wonder what drew me back to this praying without ceasing. God, of course, but that’s still hard for me to believe. What’s that marvelous scripture? “I believe; help my unbelief” (Mark 9:24).

Praying for a kind heart~

8/18/2013

Give me a kind heart that will endure,
One that's strong and secure.
To help someone along the way,
May this be my goal everyday.
Let me lend a helping hand
To someone whose life has not gone as planned.
Reaching out to one in need,
May this be my daily good deed,
To provide a guiding light
For someone lost in the dark of night,
Let me take time to care
For someone experiencing despair,
Whatever I do, everywhere I go,
Your will, dear Lord, let me know.

                                                         Eve Kiley

I say this prayer every morning. It’s one my mom gave me when she was 95, six years before she died.

     “I try to help someone every day,’ she told me, ‘and I want you to have a copy of this prayer that I read every day.” With that, Mom marched down to the front desk where she was living, prayer in hand, and asked Delia to make a copy for me.

    My mom was very wise. She knew that when we repeat something, be it a poem, scripture or prayer, we begin to internalize the message and act on it. I guess that’s what she wanted from me.

In this prayer we are asking God to guide us in lending a helping hand in a variety of situations: some, just minor bumps along life’s road; others, life changing, life chattering caverns.

·      To someone whose life has not gone as planned: this might be for those who, looking back over their life, had thought and hoped that they would have experienced more joys.

·      Reaching out to one in need: this might involve a small act of kindness for a small need.

·      For someone lost in the dark of night: this might be for someone who is not certain of the right decisions to make during a particular stretch in life.

·      For someone experiencing despair: this might be for someone in the midst of terrible tragedy was feeling no hope or resolution.

      This prayer starts by asking God to give us kind heart. Um, I thinking that that’s where prayer for others begins.

Gift of solitude~

7/25/2013

This morning as I read this meditation on solitude by Henri Nouwen, it occurred to me that I often treat solitude as a goal, and end in itself, not as a gift that leads to a greater purpose beyond me.

In solitude we can slowly unmask the illusion of our possessiveness and discover in the center of our own self that we are not what we can conquer, but what is given to us. In solitude we can listen to the voice of him who spoke to us before we could speak a word, who healed us before we could make any gesture to help, who set us free long before we could free others, and who loved us long before we could give love to anyone. It is in this solitude that we discover that being is more important than having, and that we are worth more than the result of our efforts. In solitude we discover that our life is not a possession to be defended, but a gift to be shared. It’s there we recognize that the healing words we speak are not just our own, but are given to us; that the love we can express is part of a greater love; and that the new life we bring forth is not a property to cling to, but a gift to be received.