Good morning…
“Nothing on our spiritual journey is ever final,” says Betty Skinner on page 83 of my old, tattered copy of The Hidden Life. “It is a continuous change and movement from what is good (the place where most of us live, desiring to love and serve God) to what is better (an open and intense desire to hear God) to what is best (when all of our prayer becomes service and all of our service becomes prayer). Most of us stay in the good and never obtain the better or the best because the inner work of change is so difficult, our fears are so great, and there are so few to love us and guide us there.”
Feeling loved and guided by Betty’s brave wisdom, I taught The Hidden Life at Northside Church and in my living room, again and again and again. Then I had the opportunity to invite the book’s co-author, Dr. Cathy Snapp, into our home to speak to a group of about thirty-five women in the spring of 2016. That same spring, I felt a deep urge to meet 90 year old Betty Skinner in person, so I met co-author Kitty Crenshaw for the first time in Jacksonville, Florida, hopped in her passenger’s seat, and we drove to Ponte Vedra to take Betty out to her favorite restaurant.
Fully present, Betty held my hand and looked me in the eye, saying with complete confidence, “The ‘Big I’ must die!” This tiny, tenacious woman credits her own holistic healing from clinical depression to the process of dying to self while totally surrendering to God. Because I loved our visit so immensely, I returned last spring to share another “birthday season” lunch with Betty, Kitty, and Cathy. Now, this Friday and Saturday, I feel humbled and honored to share Cathy and Kitty with about two hundred of you in our Atlanta community.
When we find a wise 92-year-old woman, who has faced great fears to do the difficult inner work of spiritual transformation, we lean into her love and let God guide us up from the deep valley to the peak of life’s mountain range. He holds the deepest part of the earth in his hands, and the mountain peaks belong to him (Psalm 95:4, CEV).
…Sue…
P.S. If you find yourself mysteriously free on Friday morning, 9:30-11:30 am, or Saturday, 9:00 am-2:30 pm, please join me, Cathy, and Kitty at our Awake To Wellness Women’s Retreat. See details at stphilipscathedral.org/episcopal-church-women-ecw/awake-to-wellness/
