WHAT IF?

On a rainy Monday morning, Spud and I settled on the couch for “prayer time”.  I relished the idea of quiet, uninterrupted time with God and Spud,  as wind and water pelted the window.

Secure in my arms, Spud snuggled as close as he could, closed his eyes and went sound asleep.  As I stroked his head and took in this mutual communion of love,  I thought:

What if God loves me as much as I love Spud?

What if I trusted God as much as Spud trusts me?

What if  I rested  in God’s embrace as eagerly as Spud rests in mine?

What if I was as sure of God’s love as much as Spud is sure of mine?

Perhaps an odd comparison, but it worked for me.  I found myself smiling and nodding “YES!”

Give it a try, with whomever you might substitute for "Spud" in those questions.

BETWEEN SATURDAYS

Many of you who will be reading my ponderings, participate in our Mornings Apart at St. George’s.  So I think it would be interesting to have a “Between Saturdays” post, where we can hear from one another about what resonated or what questions came from our time in community.  If you are receiving this as an e-mail, click on  “Seeds of Faith”, written in blue at the end of this post to get to my home page, where you can enter a comment.

Every month we start with a welcome that asks folks to set aside any preconceived agendas or expectations about what will happen during the Morning Apart.  We say, just let the morning flow and see where God takes you.  Well, I must confess to doing exactly the opposite today!

“Wakeful Tranquility” was the theme, as our priest, Amy Pringle, shared her passion for tea and how it has been incorporated into her spiritual life.  It was obviously a wonderful experience.  The enthusiasm for sampling tea, finding a favorite, and then quietly reading with a warm mug in hand, permeated the morning.

Yet try as I might, tranquility evaded me. I wanted to find peace sipping a cup of tea, but it was not to be.  Still, God found me, just not as I had envisioned.  Maybe next time I’ll heed my own words and leave my preconceived expectations at the door!

Peace

                                                                

I awake

to anxious thoughts.

A fitful sleep

stirring

unwanted images.

Where are you God?

Why this?. . .again!

I wanted

peace today.

I busy myself

searching for calm.

I listen for words

to quiet the voices.

Nothing fits.

Nothing works.

Until. . .

I sit by

the Bonsai.

Delicate branches

whisper to me

of the gentle soul

that tends

its growth.

A ceramic deer

resting in the moss

gazes

past my layers

into my heart.

Oh, you ARE here God!

I almost forgot

to look

at the familiar

for a glimpse

of the extraordinary.

January 21, 2012

GOD SIGHTINGS

People usually don't accuse me of jumping into something new too quickly!  I like to "mulch", as Bill says, adnauseam.  If I'm going to take a risk, I'd like the guaranteed happy ending, thank you very much! I often wonder if God shakes His head and says "Good grief, Carol, how many signs do I have to send your way before you'll fly out of the nest?"

I believe the final push for me to attempt starting a Blog came with a book I'm reading in my small group. It's called God Hides in Plain Sight by Dean Nelson. The author beautifully points out ways God is part of our day to day life, how the Holy shows up at every turn and if we pay attention, we will be more and more aware of His presence.

I began looking back at the last year, connecting the dots, and knew God had been speaking to me. A big part of that realization came from sharing our God Sightings within the group. There's something about verbalizing, to other safe people, that gives our wonderings clarity. It is so powerful, we've decided to start our meetings with reports of God Moments during the month. It seems the more I'm on the look out for God, the more I see!

I will close with a quote from C.S. Lewis: "We may ignore, but we can nowhere evade the presence of God. The world is crowded with Him. He walks everywhere incognito. And the incognito is not always hard to penetrate. The real labor is to remember, to attend. In fact, to come awake. Still more, to remain awake."

Here's to God Sightings!

God Spelled D-O-G

God speaks to me through my dogs.  I don’t know what it is, but they teach me about life and myself and – yes – I think God.  New Year’s weekend we finally laid Tyson’s ashes to rest.  He died in July and it has  taken us this long to give him back to the earth.  I was surprised by the emotions that sprang up as Bill started to dig a new place in “Lucy’s Garden”.  I recalled the poem I wrote when Maya passed away in March and was not at all happy to feel the unwelcomed visitor of grief once more.

As we sat on the brick wall, after Bill set Tyson’s marker on his grave, Spud (our newly adopted two year old Boxer) came zooming by with one of his toys in his mouth.  He leaped around the backyard in shear joy, tossing his toy here and there with complete abandon.  Just as fast as it came, my sadness turned to gratitude for this new companion who had brought such happiness back into our home.

Isn’t that just like God, to bring us a smile when it is  most needed and least expected? 

                                    

     

Grief

Does it lie

inside me,

waiting to

be awakened?

Or is it

a visitor

coming unannounced?

Either way

it drifts

into my heart.

Makes a nest

inside my soul.

For now

I must surrender,

to this

uninvited guest.

March 18, 2011

                                                         

LEAP FEARLESSLY

As I sit here at the computer, this angel is leaning against the lamp. . .watching. . .and asking me to "Leap Fearlessly".  Now those are two words I rarely use together in the same sentence!  Yet starting a blog is going to require just that - "Leaping Fearlessly".

Do you believe God plants seeds?  I do, even though I must admit to doing a poor job of cultivating them most of the time.  The seed for this adventure was planted over a year ago, at which time I said "Who me?  Don't think so!"  But God is persistent.  Through encouragement from friends, the seed began to germinate.  The daily water from 'prayer time' with my babies (Tyson, Maya, and now Spud) produced roots.  The weeds were continuously culled through life's challenges.  And learning what it means to "shine" created the light needed for the seed to risk leaving its safe warm home and begin to sprout.

It is my hope we can share our seed stories; those "aha" moments when it seems as though God is sitting right next to us, and those times we struggle with His very existence.  No matter what stage in the growth cycle, they are ALL "Seeds of Faith".

So here's to a year when we can "Leap Fearlessly". . .occasionally!  

OK, I'm going to click the 'publish' button now :-)