Shining Spirit

“I will have the life I want if I am present to the life I have.” The writer Mark Nepo, once again, stops me in my tracks. This is one to think about. Just suppose that Joe (fictitious) is sitting at a table in the coffee shop wondering why he has no friends. (Joe worries about this all the time.) As Joe is staring into his morning espresso, Bill (fictitious) stops and says “Excuse me, but I wonder if you might share your table?” “No,” replies Joe, “I’m busy wondering why I have no friends.” Hmm.

Charlie (f) is slumped in his easy chair in the family room, distant look on his face. “I feel so unloved; it’s like I don’t exist.” As that thought sinks deeper roots in his mind, his five-year-old daughter climbs up into his lap and snuggles into his arms; Bozo, the golden retriever, all the while laying at Charlie’s feet, shifts his body trying to get even closer, and Miriam, Charlie’s wife, calls out: “Come on, everybody, dinner is on the table.” Poor Charlie. He feels so unloved.

Long, long ago, Isaac sat under an olive tree pondering his life’s meaning and purpose. “Who am I? What am I to do with my life?” And, in the midst of his self-wondering, a stranger comes along, a young man with a group of twelve men following him. He stops, gets Isaac’s attention, and says. “Come with me, friend, and I will show you the fullness of life. Follow me.” Isaac declines, replying: “Thanks, but no. I’m trying to figure out what to do with my life.” Hmm, again.

“I will have the life I want if I am present to the life I have.” Don’t lose the present because you are so worried or focused on the future. This is the moment that will not happen again. It is a gift. Don’t waste it.

We don’t pay a lot of attention to that wonderful and insightful section of the Bible called Proverbs. Maybe we should, given the pressures, anxieties and worries of our day. Proverbs 10:9…”He who walks in integrity walks securely, but he who perverts his ways will be found out.” A good dose of integrity would not hurt the world today.

“The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office.” Dwight David Eisenhower

“Integrity without knowledge is weak and useless, and knowledge without integrity is dangerous and dreadful.” Samuel Johnson

“Image is what people think we are. Integrity is what we really are.” John C. Maxwell

“In looking for people to hire, look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence and energy. And if they don’t have the first, the other two will kill you.” Warren Buffett

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, given him power.” Abraham Lincoln

God help us all to be people of righteous character and unquestioned integrity.

You won’t find this day on the Liturgical calendar, although some of us treat it like a holy experience. Today is National Dessert Day. I looked it up: “a day dedicated to enjoying various sweet treats like cakes, cookies, pies, and ice cream (all at the same time: my editorial addition). While the exact origins are unknown, this unofficial holiday is a popular occasion for people to indulge in their favorite desserts.” Indulge! Isn’t that a wonderful word? And many of us are very good at it. I can be very indulgent toward an apple pie or chocolate brownies. I know people who even indulge God.

That’s right. They “yield to” God. When it’s convenient, necessary, or advantageous, they remember that you and I didn’t create reality…God did. That nothing we do causes the sun to rise and set…it’s what God did. That we do not cause the flowering of the rose bush or the twinkle of the star…God. Indulging God is like tipping one’s hat to the Creator as we rush by in efforts to run life the way we want it. Wouldn’t it be ironic if it all worked the other way: God indulges us. Pays casual attention only when necessary? But I can make a pretty good argument that the intensity and consistency of God’s loving presence is demonstrated, not by indulgence but by incarnation. The one whom we call The Christ was not and is not an act of indulgence. He was and is an act of intense love. So I leave you with this reality to think about today…to meditate on, to ponder about, and to respond to:

God is not an apple pie.

Moments of defiant challenge come to us all. When they do, we respond or retreat. Examples of those statements are evident in the story of Jesus of Nazareth. He defied brokenness in favor of wholeness and unity. Hate in favor of love; Evil for goodness; Despair for hope…it’s a long list. And while we like to think of Jesus as “meek and mild”, I believe his nature was anything but that. When it came to the welfare of human life, and all the elements of God’s creation, Jesus was like this majestic outcropping of stone, battered by wind and storms, but defiantly anchored to the core of the earth. Perhaps once smooth and beautiful on the surface, the stone has taken on a new look. And isn’t it beautiful, too. Perhaps one might say even more beautiful than the smooth surface that once looked out upon the Colorado landscape.

Today might be the day you are asked to stand in the strength of your faith convictions. Today the wind might blow hard against the structures of love, hope, faith, justice that you have built. If that is the case, be defiant. Have the courage to say “No” to behaviors or beliefs that diminish the principles or practices of Jesus, for he is the messenger and the message, not of vindictiveness and violence, but of creation’s worth and dignity. When the storm shakes the structure, remember the foundation. The basic question in the midst of challenging storms is so simple: “What would Jesus do?” Naive? Never. It must be the first and last question in our minds under all circumstances. If we claim Christ and declare his lordship, then times will come when we must face challenges and decide to live by four words and a question mark. “What would Jesus do?”

Dare to ask, and you will discover who you are along with directions to follow. Four words and a question mark.

When the skies are dark and the storm approaches,
When the report is not good and pain awaits,
When joy is crushed under the weight of grief,
When life becomes the repetition of irrelevance,

May the touch of a friend, the song of a bird,
the beauty of a sunrise, the laughter of a child,
the silence of a wordless prayer
sustain me with hope.

In my joy and in my sorrow,
In all that succeeds and all that fails,
In moments of remembering and moments of regretting,
In the light of a glorious sunset that enflames the
world with breathtaking beauty,

May I remember that everything is temporary, all is sacred,
nothing can separate me from your love,
I am a unique gift to a good creation.
I matter. You matter. We are children of Light.

Amen

And they sang Hallelujahs for all to hear
as the darkness gathered ’round;
it was a sad and mournful praise,
a hollow, empty sound.

See that man on the side of the road?
His blood stains the cobblestones;
he cries for help to those who pass
but he is forever alone.

Hear that child who weeps in the night?
Listen with your heart instead.
He shakes as gunfire echoes loud
while he hides beneath his bed.

Over there, in the woods; those shadowy shapes;
the lion and the lamb lay down,
seeking shelter and respite from the band of men
who walk on blood-soaked ground.

If you refuse to care for them,
then you do not care for me.
If you cannot feel their pain and despair,
if your eyes refuse to see

then lift your hands and sing your song;
pretend that you know my name.
You will inherit your just reward,
the prize of unending shame.

So they walked away, unmoved by his words,
quite sure of their chosen way,
determined, by power and cruel might
to claim their glorious day.

The man by the road, the child in the night,
all creatures that try to survive;
these are the ones who will name our sin.
Hallelujahs won’t keep them alive.

Those empty words and hollow sounds,
but where the rugged cross?
That old, cracked bowl, the ragged towel?
Without them we are lost.

One Way will finally end this pain
of destruction, chaos and hate,
but we are the ones who must shoulder the cross.
It’s never, never too late.

O, lamb. How foolish you are.
Don’t wander, you were told.
Predators, you were warned.
Shepherds are too busy to look
for one lost lamb.
Profit margin, you know.
One gone? Forget it.
Move on to market.

Silly lamb. Trapped in the sheer ravine.
No way out. Howling in the distance?
Leave the flock. Wander away.
Expendable.
Food for the wolves.
You’ve chosen your fate.

Exhausted from the futile efforts to
climb the steep wall, lamb
falls lifeless to wait for
death’s cold breath.
Come quickly, merciful death.

It is not death who lifts one lost lamb.
Strong arms cradle.
No hungry snarl; a smile instead.
She knows the voice.
“Precious lamb.”

Now I lay me down to sleep;
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
If I should die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take.
God bless mommy and daddy, etc.
Amen.
(1781 The New England Primer)

Now I rise to meet the day;
Tell me, Lord, the words to say.
If she should turn and speak to me
what will I do; how will I be?
She’s really very cute.
Amen.
(1958 American Boy)

Now I rise; it’s four a.m.
Jog five miles; a one mile swim.
I hug my wife and pet the cat,
catch the bus; I forgot my hat!
This commute is getting old!
Amen.
(1975 Harried Husband)

Now I rise; my back is sore.
My left knee hurts; I won’t say more.
Lord, help me walk and not to fall.
I think I’m out of Tylenol.
Are these the Golden Years?
Amen.
(2005 Newly Retired)

Now I wake; I used to rise
but now I need another’s eyes
to read the fine print carefully,
the words are just a blur to me.
I thought trifocals would help.
Amen.
(2020 Senior Citizen)

Now the clock says 3 a.m.
What is that old, familiar hymn?
It rattles through my aging brain.
What’s left to do? What more to gain?
I heard the angels sing.
Amen.
(2025 Happy Acres, Room 226)

Now the hour has come at last.
I’ve lived it all, sometimes too fast.
But through it all, I’ve tried to be
a man in whom the world might see
your light and guiding hand.
Amen.
(2032 At The Funeral)

Now I lay me down to sleep.
I trust that God will surely keep
my soul and heart close to his own,
for I have lived in Him alone.
I see a light ahead.
Amen.
(2040 Approaching Home)

Rise, my child; you’ve earned your rest.
You’ve lived for me; you’ve done your best.
You fought the fight; you lived The Way.
This is your eternal day.
Beloved child…you’re home.
(Eternity)
Amen.

I invite you to read the following paragraph slowly, thoughtfully, pausing as the Spirit suggests, and then to hold it up against your means and methods of encountering God.

“Spiritual awareness (is) about being aware of God in the midst of the change and movement and flow of life, in the rising of the morning sun, in the work and relationships of daily life, in the great struggles of society and nation, in alertness to the interior life of the soul, in times of rest and sleep and even dreaming. God is at the heart of all life, in both the visible and invisible. We don’t have to try to reach God through acts of devotion, for God is closer to us than our very breath…this is not pantheism. It is rather to believe…that God is the Being on which all being rests, the Light within all light, the Life at the heart of all that has life.”
(Listening For The Heartbeat Of God, J. Philip Newell, p. 76)

Sit with these words today as if sitting with a friend. You are.

I am the child of an audacious God,
made known in a daring man,
and experienced in a
bold spirit.
I believe that all living things are connected
I am the verdant earth
I am the bird that sings
I am you as you are me.
I commit myself this day to the risks of
justice, mercy, and love.
I am forgiven and, therefore, I forgive
Today I will live "outloud"
Today I will not simply think of Jesus
I will be The Man.
And I will do these things because I
am the child of an audacious God!
Hallelujah!