Tonight at prayer group, I began with three offerings:
A question that was in a meme I saw on Facebook – “How do I keep up with all the bad news?” We pondered what this might mean and how we should even engage with the question.
Then we watched a video that was recommended to me today called Keep Hope Alive by Kristen Graves and thought about the tension between the terrible and tragic and the concept of hope. We considered how we could actively hope in the world.
Finally, we watched this video by Sir David Attenborough:
After watching, I asked two simple and very complicated questions: What is your seed? And where does it need to be planted?
May we each consider our part in the healing of the world. Amen
BTW – If you have a prayer or if you wish to share your thoughts, please comment below and I will do my best to notice and respond.
Yesterday, as I was preparing to leave for church, I looked out our backdoor to the lake and there I saw the beauty of creation in a way I had never seen it before.
I think it was a rare confluence of events that made it so. In the eves of the overhang to the porch were these fragile ice crystal cobwebs. They were invisible to the naked eye normally (not that we’ve been doing a whole lot of outdoor sitting these days in -6 degrees), but the kerosene heater with an outdoor vent had come on. It was very cold, and the eves caught the moisture.
Every moisture molecule that landed on the spider’s web froze immediately creating this crystalline creation. Each layer upon layer brought forward and made visible the beauty of the underlying design. It is surely a wonder to behold – similar to dew captured on a web as it glints in the sunlight. Part of the wonder in both of these situations is its impermanence. It was there in this moment, but within a few hours they were invisible again. It was a deep reminder to pay attention – deep attention.
When we think of prayer, we often think of words that we say out into the world, but perhaps we should expand our understanding to include that which enters into us as well. Perhaps our prayer is that moment when our breath is caught and all we can utter are syllables: “ahh”, “ohh”, “wow”.
Sacred noticing is a spiritual practice to always be on the look out for wonder and to be willing to pause the rest of the world so that you can fully take it in.
In this case, I called my husband over to behold it with me and he too offered the sacred prayer of “Wow! That is amazing.”
What have you seen today that has taken your breath away?
This week in our Mid-Week Meditation: the Arts Edition we did collage. Most people associate collage to the vision boards that we all made in Jr. High where we pasted pictures from magazines on a board as a way to try to capture our hopes and desires. This session was a little different than that although the basic artistic process of cutting and pasting was the same.
I put out a plethora of materials, but only a few magazines (and the magazines that I read are not very picture oriented). I had glue sticks and created some modge-podge type glue through a 50/50 blend of white glue and water. I had both straight edge and design edge scissors out, but had considered not putting them out so that they would have to rip and tear the materials. I had old maps, bags with designs on them, excess materials from my scrapbooking days, and other odds and ends (I encourage you to trust that what you put out will be enough)
We opened as always with lighting the candle. Then, I then offered three short readings. One a quote from Pablo Picasso about taking a lifetime to create like a child. The second a quote from Rilke about living the questions. Then finally, this passage from Journey of the Universe by Brian Thomas Swimme and Mary Evelyn Tucker:
In a simple but elegant form, awareness appears in unicellular organisms. The capacity for discernment resides in a thin outer layer of each cell, called its membrane. The membrane, through its receptor and hannel protiens, selects what is of interest and what is not, what will enter and what will not. Each cell encounters a wide spectrum of atoms and molecules and otehr ogranisms floating alongside it. Each time the cell makes contact, primitive discernment emerges.
In the vast majority of these interactions, the membrane remains tightly sealed in order to block a novel molecule form its inner life. However, in encounters with molecules of particular configurations, the cell responds very differently. the molecules of the cell’s membrane latch onto this new molecule. The cell then alters the structure of its own membrane so that this molecule can be drawn in. Because of this discernment, the new molecule becomes part of the cell’s internal milieu. In this way the cell finds and captures its “food” – the energetic molecules it can digest.
Discernment is crucial. Mistaken decisions can lead to death because the inner coherence may be broken by the strange new guest-molecule. Thus, at the edge of its body, each cell makes an elemental choice. Is this a risk worth taking? Is this food nourishing? Will this increase the chances of remaining alive?
I then tried to offer as little direction as possible so that those that participated might look deep into their own heart. The two pieces of guidance that I did offer was:
Try to engage. At least, move yourself over to the materials and see what shimmers.
Don’t try to “make” something. Let you mind, heart, and the materials do the creating. Later we will look to see what may have been said through them.
They then got to it. We could have used a much longer expansive time, but due to our limitations and our desire to share about the process and our insights, we only had 30 minutes to create. (One benefit to a shorter period of time is that it encourages quick decisions that rely more on our gut than our mind that often gets high-jacked with judgement.)
When they finished creating, we took 2 minutes to listen to what God and / or our own inner being might be trying to say to us. Then we thanked God for this opportunity to create. We talked about what we learned in the process of creating and then about what we noticed in our own creations.
It was amazing, as always, how different they all looked.
One of the interesting responses that I have been getting from these workshops is how not only are they a place of peace, but that the peace they find in the moment also carries with them throughout the day. I noted that this is important. There is definitely a lot of work to be done in the world AND we must balance that we self-care, time for reflection, and worship. The rhythm between the two becomes sustaining rather than depleting. It also helps us with our discernment about where to put our energy and invites us to think about problems from a more creative perspective. Activist, Attorney, and Author Valerie Kaur likens the balance we should find in life to giving birth. You cannot keep pushing. Periodically, you have to take a breath.
May we each find our balance and in our balance, may we offer the world a more grounded and compassionate perspective.
I usually try to create alongside the participants as best I can given the other things I am focusing on. Here is my creation that day.
If you take time to give it a try, I’d love to see what you create.
At this week’s mid-week meditation we explored the idea of Illuminating the Word: an ancient practice of embellishing our sacred scripture with drawings and designs. (A great article on the history of Biblical Illumination can be found here.)
First, we explored what has been done historically and then we engaged with the process. As we were not actually hand writing the entire Bible and only had an hour for our process, we chose single verses to illuminate. I had brought a scripture coloring book which had some scriptures pre-chosen and printed for anyone who was uncomfortable picking a text, but interestingly everyone opted to chose and write their own.
I shared with them what an important part of sermon prep for me writing the text long hand was. I have a specific way of breaking down each line and separating out prepositional phrases and such which helps me to see patterns and notice words in a different way. This personal interaction with the word helps me to integrated the text within me so that I can begin to play with it and ask it questions.
I also showed them an example of the many Bible’s these days that make space for Illumination within them these days.
This is an example of one that I have that I embellish periodically. Notice the nice wide margins.
Illuminating the text not only gives us an opportunity to get to remember the text better, but it also helps us understand it more deeply. In order to add to it, you have to listen to it with your heart first.
At the end of our time, which many of us agreed wasn’t a long enough time – some of these meditative activities you could engage in for hours, we shared our creations in the state they were in in the moment and reflected on the process.
Here are some examples of what people created.
Remember with all of these meditative art processes, it is not the product that matters. It is the process. Enjoy! I look forward to seeing what you create or hearing about your own Illuminating workshop.
This week we had the second of of our confirmation classes. This time we focused on Jesus. In each class, I’m trying to teach them a spiritual practice, engage them in actually reading the Bible, and connect Christian living into their everyday life.
So this week we started with a visio divina from Jesus washing a disciples feet. I had them look at three different pictures for three minutes each in silence and then talk about what they liked and found compelling.
You could no doubt pick any few pictures, but I appreciated how this scaled outward and showed something I suspected that they were at least somewhat familiar with. After sharing our reflections, we talked about how this action revealed a bit about Jesus’ view on leadership and then read Mark 2:23-28 which led to again a question about Jesus’ leadership style and general theology.
At this point, the kids needed a little fun, so we began a competitive sword drill. Sword drills are not too common in my experience of my progressive Christian arena, but I do think it can be used as a fun way to get to know the Bible. Since this is a relatively new church to me and I wasn’t sure about the kids familiarity with the Biblical text I limited our scope to just the gospels. Doing so also gave me permission to offer some vocabulary like gospel and synoptic. I was even able to talk a little bit about the potentially lost source of Q (Quelle) and the theory of when each book was potentially written.
The idea of the game is to have a prewritten list of scriptures for the teams to find. When they find the scripture, the scripture will name an item that you have placed some distance away from them. They have to go find the item and return it before the other. Here is the list that I created:
BE FOREWARNED – – -I learned that I had overlooked that in the Mark 6:8 scripture there is actually a belt and bread. On the positive, the scripture says no bread, but yes a belt. So you could argue the need for a more careful reading. In may case, I accepted both answers.
Also note, that to make this even more fun, we set the kids up in competition with the parents. If you are wondering who won, the kids crushed it.
Following the game, we moved into some ethical case studies and instead of trying to devise solutions, we tried to come up with questions Jesus might ask of the situation or himself to decide what the next best step was. (The case studies were borrowed from Goodcharacter.com )
The whole class was only 90 minutes, and I dare say they even enjoyed it a bit.
I have found that art is a great way to shut down the noise of life and settle into the arms of God. Recently, I’ve been using art as a way to help others do the same. In my new church setting, I am offering my second series of mid-week meditations. Our first meeting was this morning when we found our center by doodling.
It is funny that when we are young, teachers and others try to get us to stop doodling. “Pay attention. Don’t doodle.” “Why are you just doodling? Draw something real.” As adults though, we need to recapture the freeness of doodling.
Doodling has been associated with all sorts of benefits: everything from improved concentration to better memory, from calmer disposition to reduced cortisol levels. Artistic skill is not a necessity and there is a benefit to its repetitiveness. So doodle, doodle, doodle all day long.
Doodling isn’t as much about the art as it is about the state that you are able to bring your mind into. Different people have different reactions to it based on the mood that they are in, but in general doodling helps us open our heart and quiet our mind. In that state we become more receptive to God.
Today, I shared this practice with several congregants. The workshop was an hour long. We began with a prayer and read a poem. Then for 15 minutes we worked off of a preset doodle to warm up and get used to the process. At the end of the 15 minutes, we reflected on the process and continued on to read another poem. Then we moved to the “scary” idea of a blank sheet of paper. Where participants had another 10 minutes to draw from scratch.
Different people find their connection with God in different ways. For some, they sit in silence. For others, they prefer to pray or sing. These are all ways that we have acknowledged and are included in most worship services. Less accepted are movement and art, but they are also legitimate ways to center ourselves.
May we all be willing to experiment with how we can best hear God speak to our heart.
Resources:
Open my mind to remember your presence. Open my mouth to speak your wisdom. Open my heart to extend your love. Open my hands to serve you generously. Open my whole being to you.
We specifically use A.A. Milne’s poem and the one by Dan Albergotti. There was no drinking except water and tea.
Have fun and Enjoy!
May you quiet your mind enough to hear God in your life.
Here was our first Mid-Week Meditation series which was based on spiritual practices. Our next series will be the writing edition where we will focus on the written word.
As we enter into this Epiphany Season, we are beginning a series about seeing this in a new light: basically, considering alternative perspectives. As I’ve been rattling this theme around in my mind, I have felt compelled to put together a bulletin board using some of my photography in ways that make people think more deeply.
Now one bulletin board isn’t going to change the world, but in conjunction with the remainder of the series, I hope it may affect a few people. I’ve always been amazed at how sometimes old-school ways, like a bulletin board, can really help people connect with a message.
I actually enjoyed putting this particular board together. In fact, I have really come to enjoy photography. I don’t mean fancy photography that requires special lenses or careful development; I mean Contemplative Photography. Contemplative Photography invites me to commune with the sacred and to really pay deep attention to the world. I simply use the camera on my phone to capture places where I see God is still speaking. I have been doing this so often that I began to look for an outlet for some of my pictures.
One of the places you might see some of them is in the UpperRoom’s Sight Psalms. There is no financial reward for these submission, but I find that I get the reward of hopefully opening the world in a new way for others, and it causes me to reflect even more deeply.
Here is the link to the one that I most recently had published and below is a modified picture of it. Interestingly, these blackberries were picked from wild blackberry bushes fresh that day I photographed them. In fact, that is how the photo started. My husband picked one and said that they were delicious and so we decided to pick more. When I saw the lush abundance in my hand, I decided I needed to capture that to remember God’s abundant care for the world. I hadn’t planted these bushes. I hadn’t weeded this garden. I was simply enjoying the harvest on this particularly lovely day. For this, I needed to be grateful, and I suspect we have all had an occurrence like this.
Abundance:
God provides. Let us be thankful for the many ways we receive what we need.
The photography will not ever make it into the Louvre, but that is not where I hope it is displayed. I’d prefer that such pictures help people open their hearts.
For some, Tuesday brings to mind Tacos. For others, it may mean dance class or Pilates. Perhaps for some, it is payday or the day they regularly go visit their parents. For me and for members of my church community, Tuesday has meant prayer night.
Each Tuesday since the beginning of Covid (circa 2020), I have posted this or a similar post on my personal FaceBook page and that of the church I am serving. Each Tuesday evening I then open a Zoom room where several of us gather to have a moment of devotion and hold the prayers that we have gathered for that day.
Some people may find this an incredibly futile act given the enormity of the issues that people are dealing with, but I believe that our gathering and our regularity makes a big impact on the world. It may not be a “cure”, but simply our gathering and sharing of the prayers give the petitioners the comfort of knowing someone else cares. I think it also softens the heart of those who hold these prayers.
None of us knows exactly what prayers do. They surely do not always work as we expect them to, but that is not to say that they are ineffective or unneeded. In fact, Soren Kierkegaard, Danish theologian and philosopher, is reported to have said, “The function of prayer is not to influence God, but rather to change the nature of the one who prays.” To some degree, I have witnessed this first hand in the prayer time that we hold each Tuesday evening. The people in the group have even begun carrying around pads to jot down prayers as they come by them; so that they can be remembered and upheld in the group. We listen and remember those who have asked for prayers over time. Our hearts become more open and more supple to the issues of others and definitively to each other.
This little 1 hour gathering has become the consistent beat in my life for almost 5 years now. Occasionally now I even get a text or private message from people who are afraid that perhaps they may miss the time to get their prayers in and so they send a note to me privately rather than waiting for the “official” post. This makes me realize how much others have come to expect and to appreciate this rhythm..
Margaret Mead once said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” She surely did not mean this within the context of a prayer group, but I do think it applies.
It is Tuesday, do you have a prayer that you would like held?
If you ever have a prayer that you would like held, I invite you to email me with it or post it below and you can trust that it will be held and lifted up each Tuesday evening.
Thank you for this day, which I know not everyone was afforded.
Let me, this night, fall to sleep in the warm embrace of my many blessings.
Amen.
NOTE: All rights reserved for poetry. Permission to use in educational or religious settings provided attribution is included.
Reflection and Action
Sometimes it is hard for us to remember that a day need not be spectacular to be a blessing. To just wake up, get up, and be able to interact with others, we are blessed. It is worthy to take time to count our blessings. Sometimes, when we take the time to account for the blessings of our day, we are surprised by the many which we walked by virtually unnoticed and definitively unappreciated.
Wandering and Wondering 