"At the beginning of each day, after we open our eyes to receive the light of that day, As we listen to the voices and sounds that surround us, We must resolve to treat each hour as the rarest of gifts, and be grateful for the consciousness that allows us to experience it, recalling in thanks that our awareness is a present from we know not where, or how, or why. When we rise from sleep let us rise for the joy of the true Work that we will be about this day, and considerately cheer one another on. Life will always provide matters for concern. Each, however, brings with it reasons for joy. Every day caries the potential to bring the experience of heaven;have courage to expect good from it. Be gentle with this life, and use the light of life to live fully in your time."
–from Always we Begin Again:The Benedictine Way of Living, John Acquisition II

I picked up this tiny book at a conference recently. It is not a particularly eye-catching book,no flashy cover or engaging photo drew me in. The title caught my eye, and my sensibilities. Always We Begin Again. To find that it was written by one busy lawyer,disillusioned with the church,who had stumbled upon The Rule of Benedict intrigued me. I, too, had been inspired by the Rule when in seminary….another tiny book written in sixth century Italy for a bunch of monks helping them create a way of living together, faithfully. The original Rule covers everything from how to worship together to how to cook and clean, how to deal with difficult, irresponsible people and most importantly how to begin again, each day, to live a life of gratitude and joy. It may have been one of the first "how-to" books that now flood bookstore shelves.

Always We Begin Again. There are nights when, as I go to sleep, I think back about the day’s events and am pleased, not only with what I have accomplished, but how they were accomplished. There are other nights, I admit,  I lay tossing and turning going over all the ways in which I might have said words differently, been kinder here, less judgmental there. As my eyes close, I actually look forward to the coming of the light, when I will, hopefully, get a chance to begin again.

Each hour….a rare gift. How often I forget. How often I move mindlessly from meeting to meeting, task to task, forgetting. Let us rise for the joy of our true Work. Whatever that Work….washing floors or faces, making meals or music, solving problems or crimes, meeting deadlines or people, saving coupons or lives……all with as much joy as we can muster, having the courage to expect goodness from the gift of it all.

What does this day hold for you? How will you go about doing your true Work? Where will you expect to find goodness, to bring goodness? Be gentle with this day…….for it holds a little glimpse of heaven, right here in our time.

Have a blessed weekend…………………..

"Up above me wayward angels, a blur of wings and grace. One for courage, one for safety, one for just in case."    Mary Chapin Carpenter

I pulled out a CD I hadn’t listened to for a long time. Yesterday ‘regular’ radio seemed unusually inane and MPR is in the midst of the pledge drive so….well, you get the picture. So I pulled out Mary Chapin Carpenter and listened to her throaty, haunting cross between country, folk and rock….always with deep lyrics that make you sit up and take notice.

On this particular disc the song that always grabs me is "Between Here and Gone", a melancholy ballad that explores the many ways we live in the now and the not yet. There are all kinds of images of journey, earthly life and heavenly life. It is a multi-layered piece of poetry, words that make you wonder what she was thinking or had experienced that made her write such lyrics.

The bridge of the song, which I’ve printed above, reminds me of the blessings we offer one another on any given day." I pray that you will have the courage it takes to get through this. Please keep this child safe as they test these boundaries. May you have the courage to know what to do and to do it. Safe travels, my friend." So much courage and safety is needed every day.

But then there are the "just in case" angels we call upon, the "just in case"prayers we offer……. just in case this doesn’t work out….just in case this diagnosis is not the one we want to hear….just in case there is no good decision, no better choice……just in case it may not get easier…..just in case I was wrong…..just in case I can’t control this…..so many times for "just in case".

May you be surrounded today by angels who bring you courage when you need it, by those who keep you and those you love safe this day…….and by that one wayward angel who walks with us, just in case.

Life is serious business. We know this because we see the headlines, watch the nightly news, try to take in the acts of violence and injustice present in our world. We have friends and family who are suffering from depression, illness, loneliness, any manner of dis-ease .Life is, indeed, serious business.

But life….to be life….is also filled with playful times, times for fun, relaxation, the sheer act of idleness, laughter, silly jokes…..’goofiness‘ as one friend of mine says.  "So I recommend having fun, because there is nothing better for people to do in this world than to eat, drink, and enjoy life. That way they will experience some happiness along with all the hard work God gives them.", the writer of Ecclesiastes(8:15) proclaims. No wonder we refer to this book as "wisdom literature."!

Church people can be particularly serious, charged with ‘saving the world’, it is very easy to take oneself quite seriously. So I was particularly taken with this quote from the most recent Alive Now! magazine in an article written by Dan Benedict. "The liturgy is God’s playground, and, by the Spirit, God calls us to ‘come out and play."

When was the last time you thought of getting up on a Sunday morning….driving to church….to play? Wow! Benedict goes on to describe this kind of play as those acts that help us "feel at home in the world", as a way of "finding our home and center", as something that helps us know "where we belong in the immensity of the universe."

As children, we all pretended to be Superman, Wonderwoman, a cowboy, a clown, a doctor, a nurse, a teacher, a mother, a father. We imagined ourselves being able to fly, we built castles, created bold and colorful pieces of art, we ran races, jumped rope……..we played.  All of this playing helped us grow into who we are, who we are becoming, find our place in the ‘immensity of the world.’ How is the way you play as an adult different from how you played as a child?

A very important teacher once said:"Unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kin-dom of heaven."(Matthew 18:1-3)

Seems pretty clear to me…….Come out and play!

I have been sitting in my office as a new playground is being built under my window. The large oak tree I have written about before will now provide shade for the children as they play.It is a beautiful sight…sturdy brown and green metal and heavy plastic with objects that spin, spots to slide, lots of places to climb, hide and rest. There is a tick-tack-toe board built within and a little ‘general store’ for quieter play. I look forward soon to hearing the sounds of children playing beneath my window.

What I heard today was not the sound of children playing but of whistling. One of the workers, digging or pouring cement, began whistling….."Oh, Susannah, Oh don’t you cry for me….for I come from Alabama with my banjo on my knee." I laughed out loud at my desk. It seemed an odd choice…if it was a choice…of songs. Perhaps the tune just floated into his consciousness and he let breath and puckered lips do the rest.

I am imagining that it is a joyful job to install playgrounds. To know that your work will bring joy, laughter, fun to all sorts of children. The playground’s placement under the perhaps 100 year old oak tree reminded me of the Shel Silverstein children’s book The Giving Tree. Do you remember it?

The story involves a young boy and a tree who love one another. The small boy finds shade, rest and fun climbing the branches of the tree.The tree stands watch as the boy becomes a teenager and pays less attention to it but the tree stands firm and watchful over the boy. As the young boy grows into a man he wants material things and asks the tree for money. The tree offer its apples for the young man to sell. Then the man wants to build a house and the tree offers its branches. Next the grown man wants to travel far away to see the world and the tree offers its trunk so the man can build a boat and sail away.

What remained of the tree, stood faithful and firm until the old man returns. The tree has given so much of itself but offers the old man what it has left……. its old stump to rest his weary body. It is a wonderful story of the cycles of life…….of sacrifice…..of faithfulness…..of love.

As our children play on this new playground, may the mighty oak watch them grow and thrive. And may we offer what they need……a place to question,play,doubt,test,contribute,offer their gifts,…..a place to be truly known and valued……a place of sacrifice, faithfulness, and love.

"We are made in God’s image. We find fulfillment in Community, not in isolation."

I’ve been thinking about community this morning. Yesterday as we gathered for worship in the backyard of our parsonage, I was struck with the fullness of community to which I belong. There were all those people I have known for years, those I had just met-‘visitors’, there were those younger than myself, those older, teenagers laying on blankets, babies and small children happy to sit on the grass and feel the freedom of a summer breeze. But yesterday morning our community was even fuller. We worshiped under the shade of the crab apple trees I mentioned earlier this spring, hostas danced all around us and the large Dutch Elms stood full of strength to the east and north of our gathering………adorned with large orange circles. We will lose them soon and we will be less for it.

Community………in a culture that so values individuality it is easy to continue to send ourselves messages that "I can do this alone" or " I have to make this happen" or " I , I,  I". You get the picture. But yesterday as I was privileged to stand in a circle of people that blessed those who were celebrating 25 & 37 years of marriage, I knew community is where I know God. As we blessed the courageous one celebrating three years and two days of sobriety, I knew that it was in this healing circle where the Holy shows up. As one of our young men stood proud and tall and told of his new job which will take him away from us, I knew that the circle moves and reshapes so we become the arms of the Divine holding him and others as they move out into the world. As the children, full of excitement for summer, celebrated last days of school, I knew that to be a part of a community that reflects the fullness of life’s joys and sorrows is what it means to be the Body of Christ.

From what we know of Jesus, he was about the work of creating community…..where ever he went crowds gathered, people ate and prayed, people were healed, people went out and told their friends, and they told theirs, and others were welcomed into the circle. In this living of community we become the ‘incarnation’ (God-with-us) of the Holy in our time.

Where do you find community? Where do you find God? May your circle be wide and full, holding you in the embrace of the Beloved One.

Yesterday was the last day of school in our district. As I sat having my morning coffee, I watched, as I have most mornings this year, the kindergartner that lives across the street get onto the bus for the last day of school. Next year he will be in first grade…..very different from kindergarten….as any six year old will tell you. As any parent will tell you. I have watched him grow over this year from tentative to bold as he  crossed in front of the bus, climbing on now to sit with friends he didn’t know nine months ago.

All over the cities, all across this country, high school seniors are graduating, celebrating twelve years of education, friendships, hardships, goals accomplished and others missed. Still others I know are graduating from college, their lives seeming to narrow-in a positive way- into a more defined pattern and understanding of who they are, what they will do, how they will evolve, what life is asking of them, what they are willing to contribute, sacrifice.

This cycle, I believe, does not stop with those ‘commencements’. Each day is an opportunity to step onto the bus for the first time, to move your mortarboard tassel from right to left, to dream once again of the answer to the question ‘now what?’ This cycle is not confined in the years we have walked the Earth….it is the gift that comes with the rising of each new day and our commitment to our own unfolding at whatever age we find ourselves.

It is written in The Talmud: "Every blade of grass has its Angel that bends over it and whispers, "Grow, grow." Whether that blade is newly sprung from the seed, has been tromped on countless times, or has withstood the winds of time, the urging is still the same.

As people of faith, we are called daily to bring the message of hope,abundant living and growing into the world….to those who need to hear, for those who long to hear, for those who have never heard. Every day is a Commencement……………now what?

"I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly."  John 10:10

Blessings on your weekend…………..

I had the privilege of spending some time in New York City this week. I always enjoy the energy and excitement of this amazing city. Monday was a particularly rainy day and people were scurrying around, both tourist,workers and residents searching for a place to stay dry. At one point we chose St. Patrick’s Cathedral, shaking our soaked umbrellas out and slipping inside for well….sanctuary from the storm. The humidity hung in the air, a maintenace worker was busy inside the doors carrying out the futile and thankless job of mopping the wet floor. We stood still for a moment and were bathed in the beauty and the comfort of the stone, stained glass, the sounds of many languages being whispered.  An organist practiced, people prayed quietly in pews, a few others slept with their worldly belongings beside them on the floor.

I began to make my way around the outer wings of the church looking at the various statues that surrounded the main sanctuary. St. Jude, St. Andrew, St. Brigid(a favorite of mine) and of course, St. Patrick. Candles glowed, tokens of flowers, pictures, pieces of paper had been left by the faithful. But my eyes fell upon this sign above a small wooden box affixed to the wall: Alive & Well Offering: One Dollar.

I looked around for an explanation but saw none. Alive & Well Offering…….perhaps it is the place to give thanks for answered prayer. Alive & Well Offering…….perhaps it is simply the box where offerings are made because, at this point in someone’s life, they just realize they are…alive and well, that is.

There are very few, if any, ‘charmed’ lives. We all have tragedy, sorrow, loss, grief, disappointment, at some point in our lives. Sometimes it seems as if these negatives are all that exist. If we look around our world, we see countless human beings who may have only known the difficult way, the way of hopelessness, despair.  May our prayers surround them.

Today, I am alive and well…….how about you? I pray it is so for you as well. Alive & Well Offering? One dollar? Seems like quite a deal!

"If the only prayer you say in your entire life is ‘Thank You’, that would suffice."
                                                                                            Meister Eckhart, 13th Christian mystic

One of the first phrases we teach children is thank you. Almost immediately after ‘Mamma’ and ‘Daddy’ and ‘Bye-Bye’, comes ‘thank you.’ There is a certain sweet simplicity to hear a small child, just learning to speak, utter the words that sometimes only a parent can understand…something that sounds like ‘thank you’. While being given a toy, a Cherrio or cracker, to hear the infant’s emerging voice say those words brings pleasure and delight to all around.

Thank you. Simple words, really. We say them all the time….to the person who bags our groceries,  the gentleperson who holds a door as we struggle with things in our hands, our child who passes the milk in the morning, the neighbor who shares some newly picked spring flowers. Thank you. Polite words we learned at a very early age.

But thank you as prayer goes deeper. Thank you as prayer connects us with the on-going love and care of our Creator. Thank you for my life…for my living…for the beauty that surrounds me, for those that stand with me, for the food that is a gift of your earth, for the air, the Sun, the Moon, the water, oh….so many things for which to utter the words "thank you."

What is the place of your gratitude today? What gift has appeared in your life that has surprised you and filled you with wonder? How has the Holy One shown up and taken your breath away today?

The syllables are few, the intention deep. Let us pray.

"Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it."  Hebrews 13:2

Sometimes as I am trying to fall asleep at night, I will think back over the day and recall all the things I have done, all the people I have encountered. Of course, age being what it is, this gets more difficult each year.However, some days certain people I have encountered remain clear in my memory.

A few weeks ago a young man came into the church and asked to speak to a minister. I met him in the front lobby and I proceeded to listen to his story, some of it rambling,much of it unclear and jumbled. It was clear he needed something, I was unsure what. He was troubled, hurting, questioning. I was not as articulate as I would have liked. I did not in any way feel helpful.I felt as if I had failed him. He left the building and I was unsure what had actually happened during our conversation. The meeting haunted me for days.

I was reminded of a few lines of a poem by Rumi….. " Be grateful for whoever comes, Because each has been sent, As a guide from beyond."…..  We come into contact with countless people during each day. Some we know. Some we love. Some annoy us. Others confound us. Some bear gifts. Others bring trouble. So many people…….on and on.

Rumi seems to be saying that each, if well received,bring guidance for our journey. Like the apostle Paul in his letter to the Hebrews, Rumi invites us to be open to the arrival of the stranger, the unexpected ones in our midst.  Strangers, those who just show up for a talk, seeking answers to their deepest questions, can be angels…..messengers of God. Strangers well received can help us to see the Holy in the movement of our daily life…….and the Holy within.. 

I wonder what happened to that young man. I pray he is well and safe. I am grateful for his visitation.

While reading an article by Barbara Brown Taylor recently, I realized she and I have at least one thing in common."I spend a lot of time with the followers of Jesus. Some exercise their ministries as clergy while others do the trickier work of ministering while they do business, take depositions, teach school or care for grandchildren. They come from a wide variety of churches. Many serve as leaders in their congregations. Others have left institutions that no longer engage their energies or imaginations. What they have in common is their fascination with Jesus."

A fascination with Jesus……these words found in the ‘Faith matters’ column of April’s Christian Century magazine, caused me to sit taller in my seat. A fascination with Jesus. It would make sense that in ‘my line of work’ I would be surrounded by people who have a fascination with Jesus. But, like Brown Taylor, I also have many friends outside the institutional church that share that same fascination, those who spend time devouring the latest book on the historical Jesus but have generally given up on church. At parties, these same people will find interesting ways to bring up questions, to enter into the fascination dance, to once again try to make further sense of this central character of the Christian faith. And themselves.

For some people Jesus is simple. For me, I fall into the always questioning, always trying to understand, a little doubt here, a little faith there fascination with Jesus. I am humbled and amazed by his deep knowledge of God’s movement and call upon his life, by his attention to healing, by his alignment with the poor and the marginalized, by his justice and unconditional love. I love the stories he told and the room there is to walk around in them, how they challenge me to see myself in the characters. I am frightened by his willingness to die for all he believed, all he was.

I am sure his life calls me to follow.  Most often that is where things get tricky. Brown Taylor writes:" What if ministering in his name meant answering questions with more questions? What if it included refusing to do for others what they must do for themselves? What if it meant maintaining a critical distance from our most beloved institutions, declining to fulfill the roles assigned to us?"

I guess my fascination with Jesus doesn’t call me to ask the question "what would Jesus do?" Instead, it calls me to ask "What would I do?" See, now it gets tricky.