Shining Spirit

Steven Charleston, former Bishop of the Episcopal diocese of Alaska, a leading voice for justice for indigenous peoples, college professor and president, author of a dozen books on spiritual growth and formation, is a voice of wonder and warning. Charleston’s book entitled Spirit Wheel: Meditations from an Indigenous Elder contains the following meditation/prayer. May it bless both heart and mind on this good day.

Justice Never Bends To Fear

Beware of any generation that seems lost without a leader.
That search may become a dangerous thing to do.
A society that is fearful, money-worried
Anxious for order, hungry for law
A nation of wall builders, accustomed to war
Watching enemies without and enemies within
Afraid its glory will fade:
Longing for the strongman grows, ever so quietly
While people look the other way.
Help us, O Spirit,
Not to flirt with forces so ancient and so evil.
Rather let us put our trust in you
That justice never bends to fear
Nor freedom to false gods of power.
Amen and Amen

Pray, please, for all nations in this world,
for leaders of nations
for sanity and goodwill to prevail
for a broader and deeper trust in
the Creating God, the One who
blesses and lives among us in the Spirit.

My copy of Nan Merrill's book, 
Psalms For Praying, is showing 
its age.  Lots of marginal notes
have found their way to the pages.
It's just that good, these remarkable
Psalms restated in the book.  Here
is a sample that I offer as a good
Thursday prayer.

With my heart's ear I hear the injunction
to pray for my enemies, even those
who persecute me.  How can I, weak
and fear-filled, heed this difficult teaching?
Help me to understand the way of your
precepts, and give me strength to 
follow through.  My soul is willing,
O Merciful One, yet the body would 
flee.  Who is the enemy from whom I
run, but the fears hidden in the shadows
within.  Strengthen me according to
your word; lead me gently into the Light.
Amen

Rejoice in the blessings that come your
way today, and then give them all away
with gratitude.

This morning I walked through the tears of the earth,
over damp meadow grass, through the weeping stream
as water washed over its time worn stones,
producing, this day, the unbearable scream

of a parent who has lost an adorable child,
or a love, once cherished, but now denied.
My every foot plant through the whole mournful walk
caused all living things to sob or to cry.

Why? the Fox asked. Why this fate?
And his voice was joined by the Mockingbird’s plea:
Do you not see before you the wound that you’ve caused?
We grieve the deaths of magnificent trees

who stood strong and tall day after day,
and now just look, what do you say
to the squirrel whose family was crushed in the ground,
to the birds, my own, whose songs are now sounds

of the painful cracking of living hearts?
Why! Say why the necessity came
to fell these ancient and elegant trees
and cause this relentless, unbearable pain.

And there, strewn before me on the forest floor,
severed limbs, broken branches, piles of debris
that yesterday stood so regal and proud,
earth’s gracious gift of magnificent trees.

This morning I walked through the tears of the earth
and I looked to the open, sun-filled sky,
to the Eagle floating in the shifting wind
as his call echoed down, please tell me why.

I had breakfast with a friend the other day and while attempting to solve several world problems, I looked around the little cafe to see other pairs or small groups of folks quite intent in their conversations, clearly working on issues of worldly import. When it became apparent that my friend and I would not come up with a solution to the Conservation of Natural Resources issue, we shifted gears and topics. We started a game of “do you remember…” and since both of us, my friend and I, have extensive pasts (we’re old) we began to turn on lights in seldom used rooms. For instance: what TV show had characters with the following names: Ming the Merciless, Dale Arden, Dr. Zarkov? The lead actor was a very handsome Olympic Gold medalist in swimming, Buster Crabbe. Coming back to you now?

Flash Gordon was a TV treat back in the 1950s. If Flash said it, it had to be true. He always got the upper hand because he was virtuous, a soldier for the good. Every kid I knew wanted to be Flash, a name that became associated with courage, intelligence, strength and inevitable victory over the evil Ming week after week. What’s in a name?

How about the name “Christian?” Historians tell us that the word was first used in the city of Antioch long after the death and resurrection of Christ. It is associated with the travels of Paul and Barnabas, described in Acts 11 in the New Testament. But here’s the most interesting part: the word Christian means “little Christs”. Those of us who subscribe to the Christian faith are “little Christs” Now, that has all kinds of implications, doesn’t it. What if we all understood our calling and purpose in life to be “little Christs” for our community and our world? But, that’s exactly what we should be doing, isn’t it. We shouldn’t claim the name if we don’t live the life. Imagine what our communities would be like if, when we leave church every Sunday morning, we acted like “little Christs.”

Flash fought the evil Ming week after week. But when the series ended, it was all over. Jesus lived, died, and lives again in the minds, the hearts and the hands of “little Christs” and he calls to us to be diligent in honoring the name Christian. Can you imagine yourself to be a “little Christ” in the world around you. Wasn’t it Albert Einstein who said “imagination is a preview of coming attractions in life.”

Imagine that. Press on.

For some people, the major question of the day is “What shall I wear?” Usually that person has lots of choices. What matches? What compliments? That one is too tight around the middle. I feel rather “burgandy” today…that’s the color, not the liquid. There is, traditionally, appropriate attire for funerals and weddings and going to church. Remember when people actually dressed up to go to church. Now the issue is not dressing up, it’s showing up. Anyway…

Here’s where I make a slightly tongue-in-cheek suggestion that the Bible could use an update in some of its wording. There are a number of reasons that I am not a member of the Literalist Society when it comes to reading the Good Book, and Ephesians 6 is a good illustration of my dilemma with Bible words: it tells me how to dress for the day. Body armor, a helmet, a shield, a sword. Wouldn’t it be better to say: if you want to put on Christ for the day, wear a ball cap for your head, a pull-over shirt, Nikes for your feet, shorts because the temperature is going to be about 105 degrees today. Maybe carry a walking stick for the trip from the air-conditioned house to the air-conditioned car to the air-conditioned Mall? When was the last time you saw someone walking down Oracle Road in full body armor?

But, we know that Ephesians 6 is not about clothes for comfort. What the writer is describing is a PF 200 for the soul. I dare not go outside for any extended length of time here in Arizona in June without sunscreen protection. The same principle applies to the soul. It’s tough out there. Dress appropriately. So, I hope you will take this into account as you dress each morning. To think about the well-being of the soul is a wise thing to do. Above all, put on Christ. Intentionally and consciously, wrap yourself in Christ each morning, then make choices about a pull-over or a button-up.

“How does this look, honey? Does this match? Okay, I’ll try another shirt. What’s wrong with my socks?” This getting dressed each morning is becoming quite a chore. “How about this one, sweetie?”

Dress for the occasion. Dress for life. Put on Christ.

Early in Mark’s Gospel, Jesus is accused of being crazy. He is doing strange and bizarre things. No one in their sound mind would act like this young man. For instance: he ate meals with people of very poor social status. This aggravated the social purists. He told people they were forgiven. That made the religious leaders furious. They thought they were the only ones who could forgive sins. He started gathering disciples, committed followers, and that infuriated the political authorities who looked at him as a threat. And he embarrassed his own family, so they said: “He’s crazy.” Imagine that! His own family, hearing of his activities, declared him “out of his mind” and started a journey to “take charge of him.” Were they really going to force him to come home where they could watch him and make him “behave”? Imagine the disappointment Jesus felt when he was told that his family was standing outside, waiting for him to come out so they could force him to conform.

But the work of God in this young man was not to insist on conformity. It was to invite commitment. Conformity dulls the senses. Commitment ignites the imagination. Conformity is safe. Commitment, particularly in regard to the Good News that Jesus described and lived, forces decisions that often require sacrifice and self-denial. Then and now it is easy to conform. Just blend in, perform on cue, don’t ask questions, don’t stand out. The goal of conformity is survival. The joy of commitment to his “craziness” is salvation. Maybe his family was right. He was “out of his mind.” He preferred to live from his heart. As should we who claim to follow him.

Want to know how to make a rather common, unattractive pathway into a delightful experience? Fill the air with song! Forget the excuses. Yes, you can sing. Maybe you shouldn’t audition for a role in Phantom Of The Opera, but you can sing. If you really have a complex about your singing ability, hum.

Uninhibited singing, on or off key, is a way to put a little spring in your step and a good thought in your mind. Caution: stay away from funerial songs. Those will take you straight to the first bench, and then the walk’s done. No, try some of those old hymns of the church, the ones you know by heart. Songs like Holy, Holy, Holy or For The Beauty Of The Earth or Joy To The World. You know the tunes, and even if you don’t remember the words, you can make up some. Imagine this: you are walking along the path and you’re singing All Hail The Power Of Jesus’ Name and you meet someone walking toward you and you tip your hat and give them a friendly greeting and you keep on singing. See, that felt good, didn’t it. Believe me, the world needs a song or two.

So, sit down right now and think of a song, a hymn, that you know…the tune, if not the words…put on your walking shoes and hit the road. Let the world know you’re here, challenge the birds’ songs, surprise the people you pass, wave to the ones who look at you like you’re strange. Some folks seem to be afraid of joy, but you’re not because the joy you carry and express is the presence of the Spirit of the God who made you and lives within you. You ARE strange…not better than or superior to…but different because of the way you see the world and live out your life. Like Christ, the Song within you wants to be set free into the world. Take heart. Have courage.

This world needs a song today. You’re it.

I’ve never seen wind, but I know it exists.
It laughs in the grasses along the beach
and tosses the froth of rolling waves
and rattles my window to sing me to sleep.

I’ve never seen love but I know it is real.
It fills the tears that run down my cheek
and soothes the pain when you touch my hand
and brings me joy when my world is a mess.

I’ve never seen God but I know God lives.
Not as a man on a cosmic throne
but a Presence that offers options and choice
that sings in my heart and creates in my mind.

I’ve never seen me, though I’ve looked all around.
The mirror reveals a shape and a form
but deep within the fiber and bone
is a child who dances to the mockingbird’s song.

Prayer For The Day:

Lord, today help me see the things I usually don’t see, things of
substance and beauty. Turn on the light in my imagination
before the one in my reasoning. Pull back the curtain of my
shallow reality and show me again the deep gladness of
being alive, awake and surprised by awe.
Amen

Yesterday, on the spur of a quick moment, I decided to leave the bike in the storage room and go for a walk instead. So, about 6 a.m. I stepped onto the asphalt of The Loop, a 137 mile biking-walking path that circles the entire city of Tucson. No, I’m not about to tell you that I walked the whole way, only two, but in that two-mile jaunt I discovered something I knew as a child. Touching the earth can be a moving experience.

For the first mile or so, I stayed on the asphalt. It is recently laid on the ground, so it’s bright and shiny with plenty of yellow lines to mark lanes and turns. Signs give directions and milage to the next significant point. It was quite pleasant, until… Everything changed when the landscape flattened out and the bare, raw earth appeared on both sides. Uneven, rocky in places, the earth was quite a shambles compared to the manicured beauty of the asphalt track. On impulse, I stepped off the track and onto a magic carpet. I was hooked with the first step. I think it was the sound, the crunch of boot on gravel. No, it must have been the ups and downs of the not-so-smooth ground. No, it was the little blue wildflowers unseen from the pathway. No, it was the result of stepping off the “expected” and onto a kind of unknown. With each crunchy step, the earth said good morning and welcome and how are you today and enjoy your walk. I really like the ground better than the path. It is alive and gracious…and talkative.

Created by God and labeled as “Good!” the planet lives and breathes just like us. It produces our food and provides all the resources we need to live happily ever after. There are a dozen very good reasons to treat the earth with respect and gentleness, the obvious being that we can’t live without it. When you walk today, whether to a destination or just for recreational fun, step off the paved predictable and listen to that marvelous sound of life touching life. The earth is your best friend, and mine, too. Thanks be to God for this little grain of sand we call home. It’s the best we have, so let’s treat it like a member of the family. It is exactly that.

If I were to ask: “Will you dance with me?”
since today is anniversary number sixty-three,
just how agreeable would you be
to dancing with a bald, old man like me?

When I look back, do you know what I see?
A path we’ve forged, you and me,
as we grew together and learned how to be
a wife, a husband, then parents of three.

I don’t think I’d change any days in our past.
We knew from the start we would make this last.
Of course, we’ve been supported by a wonderful cast
of friends and family and people we’ve known,

and it’s no secret that we’ve been shown
examples of patience as we have grown
into the beautiful person you are today
and the old bald guy who forgets to say:
Thank you, my love, for each lovely day
that you have created along the way.

Now, if I were to ask: Will you dance with me?
since it is anniversary number sixty-three,
would you join me as we honor our past,
but, please, my love, don’t dance too fast.

(In celebration of our marriage vows sixty-three years ago today.)