Feed A Need Today
Good morning... This week I had the privilege of meeting with both the founder and the current director of Grove Park Renewal, a non-profit which supports the need for affordable housing in downtown Atlanta. After an energizing conversation about important possibilities, one of the men handed out copies of a blog post he had read that morning. Now I prayerfully ponder the impact of this challenging vision. ****** What a "Last Day" Image [...]
Rise Up As We Ache
Good morning... A truckload of immigrants die in the heat. Loved ones are buried after mass shootings. Wars rage on and on, devastating ordinary lives. These are big newsworthy aches which beg for our prayers. Alongside our communal pain are quieter, daily challenges. Depression. Disabilities. Dementia. Divorce. Death. We all face various aches throughout our lifetime. Aches we would never choose. Aches in ourselves and aches for loved ones and strangers. Aches we [...]
Experience Truth – Israel 2023
Good morning... On our walk and talk last week, my friend earnestly asked, "Do you really believe it's true? Do you really believe Jesus lived, died and rose from the dead? How can we know that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is absolutely true?" Take a moment now. How might you, yourself, honestly answer my friend's candid question? As we stood at a stoplight waiting to cross the street, I sensed my own [...]
Ripening Truth Takes Time
Good morning... After our shared silence, she read aloud a poem. Deeply. Slowly. Gently. In this sacred moment, might we each read out loud? Deeply. Slowly. Gently. ****** something unnamed is being called forth in the depths it has the familiar sound of an Abraham and the quiet certainty of a sunrise it has the movement of geese surging past a season of trees surrendering to another snowfall or another leafing something unnamed [...]
Equal Partners
Good morning... I am empowered by the deep wisdom I gleaned from our Ignatius House retreat about Mary Magdalene. Mary had sensed God's inner voice all of her life, a relentless whisper which clashed with the loud male voices in her everyday world. Her father. Her brothers. The powerful men in leadership. Instead of becoming a young wife and an attentive mother in an arranged marriage, which was common in her culture, Mary [...]
Overturned
Good morning... Yesterday was a historic day. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, sending the authority to regulate abortions back to the states. Regardless of our position on these important issues, might we still our souls in the quietness of this moment? The Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says to the people, “Come back and quietly trust in me. Then you will be strong and secure” (Isaiah [...]
Why Are Some Hollowed Out?
Good morning... I shared with her my retreat insight. I am carved out to carry the light of Christ. Nutshell by nutshell. Day after day. She asked, "Have you ever read the poem entitled Mother Wisdom Speaks?" Since I had not, she emailed it to me later. I savor it now for a second time with you. ****** Mother Wisdom Speaks Some of you I will hollow out. I will make you a [...]
The Real Me In A Nutshell
Good morning... Slowly walking through the woods, I noticed a nutshell. Small. Sliced open. Simply symmetrical. Secreted in our depths is the dawning awareness: The shape of Christ is the design of me. When life slices us open and our "Big I" begins to die, our true self begins to come to life: I am made to mirror the person of Christ. For you died to this life, and your real life is [...]
An Unexpected Gift
Good morning... One week ago today, we began our Zoom study sharing hard news. The son from a family close to many in our community was found dead the day before. As a summer study group, we stopped right away and lifted a deep prayer for the family and friends whose ordinary lives will never be the same. Throughout the week, I have continued to pray for the loved ones of this young [...]
When Worries Exhaust
Good morning... While on weekend retreat at Ignatius House Retreat Center, I happened upon a touching story. ****** Love Does That (by Meister Eckhart) All day long a little burro labors, sometimes with heavy loads on her back and sometimes just with worries about things that bother only burros. And worries, as we know, can be more exhausting than physical labor. Once in a while a kind monk comes to her stable and [...]
Children In A Burning House
Good morning... "I just read this devotional and it makes me think of our relationship," I wrote to LaTonya Gates, founder and director of PAWkids, and her compassionate daughter, Larenzia. "So much growth, so much God." I forwarded to them the challenging wisdom below. ****** DAILY MEDITATION | JUNE 18, 2022 - Henri Nouwen Compassionate Solidarity When we think about the people who have given us hope and have increased the strength of [...]
This Fertile Father’s Day
Good morning... Heading into this fertile Father's Day weekend, which includes celebrating the freedom gained on Juneteenth, we simplify down to the abundant gifts of God. We choose open and generous living rather than secure, selfish, sheltered. Like the cover of the PAWkids photo book above reminds: "For a community to be whole and healthy, it must be based on people's love and concern for each other." This morning, I think of the [...]