Life can turn on a dime. This afternoon Denise and I were in a training class for Stephen Ministers at church. My phone rang and it was our hospital’s Emergency Room. They needed a Chaplain for a trauma that had arrived. Denise and I went to the ER and our hearts sunk. A young father (younger than our youngest) and his daughter survived the accident. His wife, her mother did not. What had begun as a short family day trip up to Estes turned into a tragic car wreck. In an instance, lives had been changed forever.
As we continue to process this experience and think about this young family I am reminded once again how precious life is. It took me back to my Air Force days and the tragic deaths of so many young women and men cut down in the prime of life.
As I ponder and reflect on this young family, Thomas Merton’s prayer from Thoughts in Solitude came to my mind. I lift this prayer for this young father and daughter as they struggle to live life without their wife/mother.
“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always, though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.”
Lord in your mercy, hear this prayer on their behalf…
The sun has set and the Vesper Lights flicker and glow
The snow has flown and the wind has blown
It has been a day of Lenten preparation
It has been a day of reading and reflecting
It has been a day to simply Be Still
It has been a day with Thomas Merton
It has been an evening spent with my sweetheart
Now as my eyelids grow heavy
I lift this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee prayer from the heart of your Padre…
I am watching the debates tonight with my sweetheart. While lots of good points are being made, there is also a tremendous amount of shouting and shouting over each other. For someone (me) who embraces quiet and solitude more than I used to, it is difficult to watch. It is especially difficult to listen to. Perhaps it is the memory of my proper Canadian Mother who talked about “polite social conversation” and who would be appalled today by the yelling, shouting, and bashing that goes on.
Sadly, I believe that the environment in the debates is a microcosm of what I see too often on Social Media and in the 24/7 news cycle. Do you remember polite and civil conversations? These conversations are where people of differing opinions could dialogue, learn from each other, and <<gasp>> meet in the middle and cooperate!
This isn’t a political problem… this isn’t a church or theological problem… this is a human problem. Regular readers of my blog know that I have been focusing a lot on Jesus’s command to love all. I have also been focusing on Micah 6:8… Do Justice… Love Mercy/Kindness… Walk Humbly with God.
I have no pat answers to these issues… frankly I am not sure how to pull us back from the precipice. All I can do is pull myself back and pray that this example might make a difference.
In my reading today from Thomas Merton in Volume Seven of his Journals (The Other Side of the Mountain—1967-1968), I came across this quote on page 250 which hit hard and close to home!
The three poisons:
Craving,
Hatred,
Ignorance
These poisons are alive and well in the church and in society. As I chat with you, dear reader, I am looking into the mirror at myself. How can we make a difference? We can do it one person and one relationship at a time. May the Spirit guide us as She challenges us to be transformed by Her.
From our mouths to God’s ear, May we pray…
The sun has set and the Vesper Lights flicker and glow
Thank you Lord for this day
For a time of worship preparation
For time with my sweetheart
For our call to serve you
As the evening winds down
As my eyelids grow heavy
I lift this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee prayer from the heart of your Padre…
Since preaching this past Sunday about the Law and Scripture along with the gross mid-interpretation of both; I have been thinking a lot. I have been considering how much damage the church has done to so many people in the name of law, dogma, doctrine, and an us versus them mentality. In such conflicts there aren’t really any winners… all lose so much when love is replaced by hatred, mistrust, fear, bigotry… and the list goes on.
A musician friend of ours was talking about what he sees when he is out playing his guitar and singing. As the audience sings along and shares in the stories and the laughter he doesn’t see the division and hatred. While it is definitely out there, perhaps there is more hope then we are led to believe. Frankly, I have to believe it! And we have to be a part of turning this situation around. Turning it around in our lives, our communities, our nation, and our world.
As I was reading Thomas Merton’s book, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander, I came across this quote. Merton was contemplating the church and her laws from his Catholic perspective. His words are equally applicable to all religions as well as for other Christians. I see the laws of the Church, and all the various ways in which she exercises her teaching authority and her jurisdiction, as subordinate to the Holy Spirit and to the law of love. (p. 84)
Subordinate to the law of love. Jesus came to fulfill the law. He was asked what is the greatest commandment. “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 22:37-40)
Our challenge, dear reader is to live our lives according the law of love. As Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13:13 “…now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.” Love must inform our faith and our hope. That love is the love which Jesus taught his disciples and teaches us today.
The sun has set and the Vesper Lights flicker and glow
It has been a day of reflection
It has also been a day to be challenged
Do we simply be content with our own lives
Or do we become compelled to work for justice for others
Help us to discern your path, Lord
And now as my eyelids grow heavy
I lift this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee prayer from the heart of your Padre…
Today Denise and I drove down the mountain to see the movie, “Just Mercy” which is based on the story of Walter “Johnny D” McMillan who was wrongfully put on Death Row for a murder he didn’t commit. Bryan Stevenson, a newly minted lawyer from Harvard took on Johnny D’s case and eventually beat the racist and corrupt legal system to have the charges dropped and Johnny D released from prison. To say that it was gut wrenching would be a massive understatement!
Part of what made it even more poignant was the fact that we had visited the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama as a part of our Civil Rights Trail journey from Selma to Montgomery last September. We walked through exhibits in “The Legacy Museum: From Slavery to Mass Incarceration” which is housed in a warehouse where slaves were kept prior to their being sold in the nearby square. The above picture is from the Museum. We also went to the “National Memorial for Peace and Justice” which was a stunning memorial and sculpture remembering the thousands of lynchings in the US between 1877 and 1950. In 1950 mass incarceration became the new form of terror against the African-American community. Each jar (there are over 1,000 jars in the museum and at the memorial) represents dirt collected from the sites of lynchings along with the name of the man, woman, or child who had been lynched. Few States were immune… my home state of Minnesota was sadly included.
This is a picture of a small portion of the hanging steel rectangles with the names of lynching victims by county. There are a total of 805 rectangles representing the counties in the US where lynchings occurred between 1977-1950.
A quote from Bryan Stevenson that sticks with me is this: The opposite of poverty is not wealth. The opposite of poverty is justice. As we watched the movie unfold, this became brutally clear. Sadly, with the resurgence of out in the open racism we are seeing the divide grow even wider. As I continue to walk with Thomas Merton, I often wonder what his response would be to this national horror today. In his book No Man Is An Island, Merton said the following: The God of peace is never glorified by human violence.
As I continue to process the story of Johnny D and others who have been wrongfully incarcerated (and the large number of innocents who have been executed) my heart aches. At the same time, his story challenges me to do more as a Christ-follower and pastor. God help each one of us to be the difference in this world.
A beautiful reminder from Christine Sine ❤️
I am getting ready for Easter. Lent is just the pathway of preparation. And I am not getting ready for Good Friday, which often seems to mesmerize us and demand our attention. I am getting ready for Easter Sunday and the celebration of new life, new creation and resurrection living…
— Read on godspacelight.com/2020/02/17/meditation-monday-getting-ready-for-resurrection/
The sun has set and the Vesper Lights flicker and glow
Another busy Lord’s day
A time of worship and fellowship
An afternoon with my sweetheart
A time to reflect and simply Be Still
For the blessings of this day I thank you Lord
Now as my eyelids grow heavy
I lift this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee prayer from the heart of your Padre…
For almost 21 years I served within an institution that rewarded ambition. If you completed the requisite Professional Military Education, and dot all the “i’s” and cross all the “t’s” you will be rewarded for this work by promotion to the next higher rank.
I can tell you that it didn’t always work out that way. At some point in my career, I realized that ambition and promotion were hollow. At some point I realized that there was more to life than self-centered ambition. There was a calling deep within me to let go. To let ego go and to embrace the humble and life changing calling of God.
I am still processing a lot of what happened in my ministry in the military and after I retired. One thing that I can see is the call of God to continue to serve. That will be a central point of concentration in my Doctor of Ministry degree. The degree isn’t about me or about adding some letters after my name. It is about trying to understand and to process my life, my professional experience, and what God is calling me to do with all of it.
As regular readers of my blog know, Thomas Merton has been a significant part of that process. I couldn’t find the source of this quote from Merton but it truly resonates with me and the journey I am on. When ambition ends, happiness begins.
As I consider the ministry God has called me to, I also consider why I continue to serve. It really isn’t about me… it is about following God’s call… it is about something far greater than me. My prayer is that I will remember that and keep the focus on God’s call.
