Change, Courage, Hate, Justice, peace, Perseverance, reconciliation, Risk

Pulling Back the Veil

August 15, 2017August 16, 2017 Rev Kathy

How good and pleasant it is when people live together in harmony!

– From Psalm 133

How long, O Lord, will we experience hate speech and evil actions? How long will we see the kind of divisive and violent display we saw in Charlottesville? How long will we refuse to lift the veil to reveal the truth about our nation, about ourselves? How long, O Lord, will we remain silent, complicit? How long will it take us to stand courageously as people of God and proclaim in whatever ways we are able that racism, xenophobia, homophobia and every form of injustice will not prevail in our nation?

The God who made us and nurtured us expects us to act with courage in the face of evil, to speak, to write our leaders, to be present in the quest for justice, to wage peace, to pray for the strength to change our world, and most importantly, to be brave enough to pull back the veil, to truly see the depth of the division in our nation and the racism in our own hearts. This is God’s calling and challenge to us. But most of the time, most of us meet God’s challenges with hesitation and questions.

I am only one person with many limitations. How can I make any difference at all?

I don’t know enough to speak out. How can I influence anything?

I am not strong enough. How can I persist in the midst of such violence?

The lives of our sisters who live on in the Scripture encourage us by their courageous example and summon us to be change-agents that work for the day when God will reign on earth as in heaven.

Deborah, prophet and judge in Israel, calls us to emulate her wisdom, courage and compassionate zeal for justice. (Judges 4:4-14)

The four daughters of Phillip the Evangelist call us to prophesy as they did with boldness and courage. Eusebius refers to them as “great lights” or “mighty luminaries.” These strong women held a unique place in the early church, exercising their prophetic ministry freely and powerfully. Will we become “great lights” in the midst of hatred’s darkness? (Acts 21:9)

Esther calls us to the kind of bravery and courage that led her to risk her life to save the lives of her people. Like her, perhaps we have been called for such a time as this. (Esther 4:14)

The five daughters of Zelophead call us to be fearless. Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah stood fearless and firm, and as result reformed the culture of their day. Because they spoke up without fear, they reversed precedent. Their call to us is to speak truth to power. (Numbers 27:1-7)

Certainly, our deepest desire is for “people to live together in harmony.” But until that day comes, we will speak and work and pray for peace and justice.

My friend, Ken Sehested shares a prophetic line from a poem penned by Adrienne Maree Brown: “Things are not getting worse. They are getting uncovered.”

In response, Ken writes:

The poet’s counsel in light of these things would be mine as well: “We must hold each other tight and continue to pull back the veil.” (http://www.prayerandpolitiks.org/blog/2017/08/12/we-are-charlottesville.2776686)

I end with a wise word from another poet, Maya Angelou.

History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again.

With the example of our Biblical sisters, with God’s unambiguous call, let us move with courage, pulling back the veil, uncovering the truth, working for the day when people will live together in harmony.

Change, Courage, Dreams, Hope, Justice, peace, Perseverance

Raise Beautiful Trouble!

July 29, 2017July 29, 2017 Rev Kathy

Raise beautiful trouble!

Resist! Resist all actions that hinder peace and cause the madness of warring. Women have long dreamed of peace, dreaming of a world without war, hatred, racism, homophobia, xenophobia, and all forms of injustice. Our Jewish brothers and sisters proclaim “Tikkun Olam” calling us to heal the world. Tukkun Olam is a jewish concept defined by acts of kindness performed to perfect or repair the world. The phrase is found in the Mishnah, a body of classical rabbinic teachings and is often used when discussing issues of social policy.

Raise beautiful trouble!

Diane Wilson climbed over the fence at the White House, skinning her stomach on the steel barbs. Two weeks later she got a visit from two guys in black suits, black shoes, and wearing sunglasses, Secret Service agents who wanted to know if she had an authority complex.

Diane is active in the organization, CODEPINK, a women-led grassroots organization working to end U.S. wars and militarism, support peace and human rights initiatives, and redirect tax dollars into healthcare, education, green jobs and other life-affirming programs. (http://www.codepink.org)

Century after century women have yearned for and worked for peace. Through the years, women have walked hand in hand as they reflected on ways to create a just and peaceful world. Maybe it’s just a woman thing! Julia Ward Howe proclaimed these words in 1870.

Arise, then, women of this day! Arise all women who have hearts, whether our baptism be that of water or of tears! . . . We women of one country will be too tender of those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs. From the bosom of the devastated earth a voice goes up with our own. It says, “Disarm! Disarm! The sword of murder is not the balance of justice.”

— Julia Ward Howe, 1870, From her Mother’s Day Proclamation for Peace

The dream persists. The peacemakers persevere, longing for a day when all people will “hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, And never again will they learn war.” (Isaiah 2:4 NASB)

The words of T.E. Lawrence offer stunning hope for better days.

. . . the dreamers of the day are dangerous men and women, for they may act their dream with open eyes, and make it possible.

Sisters (and brothers too), continue to dream of peace with eyes wide open. Raise beautiful trouble! Resist! Persist! The peace of the world is your reward.

Change, Christian Witness, Courage, Freedom, Hope, Justice, peace, Perseverance, Politics

Persevering Hope

July 16, 2017July 16, 2017 Rev Kathy

PAX

(pɑks ; päks; pæks ; paks). noun

1. the Roman goddess of peace, identified with the Greek Irene

2. sign of peace

The Reverend Jennifer Butler was wearing a white clergy stole with Pax embroidered over a cross and an olive branch. Enlight126 She Was singing as police officers restrained her, arms behind her back, both thumbs held tightly together with plastic straps. Next to be arrested was The Reverend Traci Blackmon, who chanted “justice, mercy” again and again as police restrained her and led her away.

The Charlotte Examiner described the event, The March to Save Medicaid, Save Lives.

Capitol Hill police arrested the president of the North Carolina NAACP on Thursday morning after he led a protest of the Senate’s proposed health care repeal-and-replace bill.

Rev. William J. Barber II, who was protesting in his role as president of Repairers of the Breach, was released from jail by 2 p.m. On that morning, July 13, 2017, Dr. Barber and other faith leaders led a group of about 50 people to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s office in the Capitol.

The group gathered a few blocks away at 10 a.m. and walked to the Capitol, chanting and singing along the way. Eleven protesters were arrested.

Reconciliation: The Heart’s Repentance

June 21, 2017 Rev Kathy

The long and arduous presidential campaign left behind a fractured nation. The political parties displayed unprecedented enmity between Democrats and Republicans. The citizenry followed their lead, and the result was broken relationships among friends and even within families. My own family exchanged sharp and hurtful words during the campaign, words that continue to affect our relationships.

We have made enemies of other nations. Some among us have made enemies based on race, culture, gender, national identity, religious practice, sexual orientation. And we remain divided and hostile, with no apparent desire to reconcile. And yet, we desperately need true reconciliation.

The Biblical concept of reconciliation suggests the presence of spiritual, divine intervention that creates reconciliation in the hearts of those who are estranged. Reconciliation assumes there has been a breakdown in a relationship, but through the heart’s repentance, there is a change from a state of enmity and fragmentation to one of harmony and fellowship.

It is going to require the heart’s repentance to restore a climate of unity, mutual respect, love and peace. Michael Curry, the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in America, offers these insightful thoughts about reconciliation.

Reconciliation isn’t just singing Kumbaya and everyone being nice. Reconciliation is about the hard work of working through our differences, maybe acknowledging them and not changing them, necessarily. Working through our differences, honestly and with integrity, and sometimes repenting of where our differences or my differences or yours has actually hurt relationship and not helped the human family.

Shall we just leave everything as it is? Shall we allow the distance to continue between us and those we have lost because of our differences? Shall we accept a fractured world and the divisiveness that now assails us? Or shall we instead commit ourselves to the holy work of reconciliation?

Our sacred calling is to restore peace within the human family, creating a world that can nurture our children and grandchildren, striving for genuine reconciliation among those from whom we are estranged, restoring peace and a community of love, transforming fractured and hurting humanity. This is what God implores us to do.

. . . This is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.

2 Corinthians 5:18-19

Courage, Covenant, Holy Spirit, peace, Pentecost

Pentecostal Power

May 25, 2017May 27, 2017 Rev Kathy

Art created by Jody Richards. The text is an adaptation by Satish Kumar of a mantra from the Hindu Upanishads and is commonly referred to as the “World Peace Prayer.”

With joy and exuberance, we used to sing an old Gospel hymn, our voices echoing through the rafters of the church house: “Lord, send the old time power, the Pentecostal power . . . that sinners be converted and Thy name glorified.”

That was our mission: that sinners be converted and that God’s name would be glorified. Over the years, we may well have lost some of our evangelical zeal. We may have developed differing views about what it means to glorify God. It’s a sign of the times, I suppose, times that are rife with the fear of terrorism, war, and the destruction of our way of life.

Some Christian leaders seem to believe that glorifying God in these days means advocating for a ruthless national counter-terrorism policy. In a 2004 interview, Rev. Jerry Falwell recommended that we “blow them [terrorists] away in the name of the Lord.” (CNN 10.24.04) I cannot fathom that such a view is inspired by the One we know as the Prince of Peace. I cannot imagine that Pentecostal power means power against persons and nations we have defined as our enemies.

One of the most genuine truth-tellers of my generation is my good friend Ken Sehested. He never tires of speaking prophetically about all things related to peace and justice. These are his words from an article entitled “The Things that Make for Peace” published at prayerandpolitiks.org.

People of the Way remain committed to a peculiar allegiance and a distinctive conviction: that all violence, of every sort, is a form of evangelism for the Devil . . . We make this profession of our faith even knowing that we ourselves are not immune from the lust for vengeance. As César Chávez, the great practitioner of nonviolent struggle for justice, said: “I am a violent man learning to be nonviolent.”

The meek are getting ready. And they welcome the company of any with eyes to see and ears to hear Christ’s arising, arousing, and disruptive invitation to join Pentecost’s Resurrection Movement. Now, as much as ever, we are in a “fear not” moment. Wait a week—Pentecostal power, with its assault on earth’s beleaguered condition and seemingly endless walls of hostility, is coming. Babel’s confused tongues, nationalist claims, conflicting cultures, and racial enmity are being reversed. Lord, send the old-time pow’r. [*]

Yes, God. Send the old-time power that inspired us to wage peace, to condemn injustice, to love our enemies. Meet us inside the breezes of Pentecost where Holy Spirit wind and Pentecostal fire will descend upon us once again. Grant us the courage to use our power to condemn hostile power, to live into our covenant, and to return to our first love and highest calling: “that sinners be converted and Thy name glorified.”

For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

– I Corinthians 12:13, NASB
[*] From the hymn’s refrain, “Pentecostal Power,” by Charles H. Gabriel.

Bitterness, Faith, Hope, peace

The Wings of the Morning

April 4, 2017 Rev Kathy

Enlight70

Be soft. Do not let the world make you hard. Do not let pain make you hate. Do not let the bitterness steal your sweetness.

– Iain Thomas

I can add my own admonitions to these. Do not let weariness overcome your energy. Do not let despair steal your hope. Do not let chaos shatter your peace. Do not let your questions weaken your faith. Do not let betrayal destroy your ability to trust.

I’ve been there. I have confronted all of these circumstances, sometimes feeling as if I would drown in my negative emotions. In the years I have lived with kidney disease, weariness has been a part of my life. I well remember times of complete despair when I felt all hope was lost. Chaos has shattered my peace many times. Recently, my mind has been filled with questions that emerged out of skepticism, and I found myself in the midst of a faith crisis. A betrayal by a close friend in 2013 left me bereft and almost destroyed my ability to trust again.

In every instance, I found my way back by leaning into the loving arms of a faithful God who was there with me through it all. In such trying times, I often recalled the comforting words of the Psalmist.

O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
You know my sitting down and my rising up;

You understand my thought afar off.
You comprehend my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways.

For there is not a word on my tongue,
But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.

You have hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it.

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Where can I flee from Your presence?

If I ascend into heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.

If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.

– Psalm 139:1-10 NKJV

Contemplation, Life Journeys, peace, Prayer, Spiritual growth, Transformation

Transformation: The Spiritual Journey

February 8, 2017 Rev Kathy

The labyrinth is a walking meditation, a path of prayer where psyche meets Spirit. It has only one path that leads from the outer edge in a circuitous way to the center. There are no dead ends. Unlike a maze where you can lose your way, the labyrinth is a spiritual tool that can help you find your way.

The life quest of drawing closer to God is best described as a spiritual journey. But it is a journey of our own choosing. We are not forced to take it. God does not coerce us to travel such a path. Each of us must choose it, and in a spirit of prayer embark on an unknown journey.

We cannot predict its path. We can only give ourselves to its gentle turns with confidence that, along the way, we will discover and learn and grow in our faith. It can be transformational. Wendell Berry describes this journey with the words arduous, humbling and joyful, an apt description. Most importantly he describes “arriving at the ground at our own feet” and there learning to be at home. Here’s what he writes:

The world cannot be discovered by a journey of miles, no matter how long, but only by a spiritual journey, a journey of one inch, very arduous and humbling and joyful, by which we arrive at the ground at our own feet, and learn to be at home.

– Wendell Berry

Taking the journey leads us home, a place of peace and comfort, a place where we are comfortable in our own skin, a place where our heart meets God’s heart. The journey can bring transformation within us.

The danger is that we can shrink in fear from transformation because we cannot control the process. Giving up control is always a challenge for humans, but refusing the spiritual journey means that we will wander aimlessly, always searching and never finding our deepest spiritual self.

peace, Uncategorized

A Ring of Peace

February 6, 2017 Rev Kathy

Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because of your false words and lying visions, I am against you . . . My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and utter lying divinations. They will not belong to the council of my people . . . Because they lead my people astray, saying, “Peace,” when there is no peace, and because, when a flimsy wall is built, they cover it with whitewash.

– From Ezekiel 13: 8-10 NIV

Peace can be elusive. Unity can be very difficult to achieve when so many voices cry out for division, brother against brother, sister against sister. But God is clear about peace among people. God commands us to seek peace with all our hearts and to be about the work of creating unity. One Canadian group is taking God’s command seriously.

Members of Toronto’s Holy Blossom Temple will form a human chain, a ring of peace, around the Imdadul Islamic Centre this coming Friday while Muslim worshippers attend the weekly prayer service.

Co-organizer Zeeshan Abdullah said this to an Oslo crowd of over 1,000 people. “We want to demonstrate that Jews and Muslims do not hate each other. We do not want individuals to define what Islam is for the rest of us.”

Can we reach beyond our comfort zones to create a ring of peace? Can we value unity as deeply as God values it? I believe we can. I believe we must!

How good and pleasant it is
when God’s people live together in unity!
It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
down on the collar of his robe.
It is as if the dew of Hermon
were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the Lord bestows his blessing,
even life forevermore.

– Psalm 133 NIV

A Prayer for Peace and Unity

God, who cherishes all people and every person,

Make our hearts like your heart. Fill our spirits with the deepest desire for peace and unity. Move us, by your Spirit, to create rings of peace that include all people.

Infuse in us the courage we need to dissent against all that causes divisiveness, against all that devalues humanity. Instead, inspire us to peace.

Ennoble us to unity however we speak it . . . umoja, unidad, unita, unitat, ενότητα, ubunye, unity! Amen.

healing, peace

Our Reply to Violence

November 21, 2016 Rev Kathy

We have experienced some difficult days following election 2016. Violence was a part of the process, at least a violence of words. And violence takes its toll on the human spirit. The Southern Poverty Law Center has tracked 892 hate groups operating in the United States. The civil rights organization has also cited over 300 cases of hateful harassment or intimidation in the United States since Election Day.

For me, few things have helped ease the struggle of my spirit. The one thing that has helped the most is music. I have found myself singing hymns to myself several times a day and have been comforted by the familiar melodies and sacred texts.

Music has that kind of healing power for so many people during times of trial. Protestant Theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer stands out among the Christian leaders during the Nazi era, for he was one of the few to actively resist the racist actions of the Nazi regime. He said this about music.

Music… will help dissolve your perplexities and purify your character and sensibilities, and in time of care and sorrow, will keep a fountain of joy alive in you.

In the days that followed the assassination of President Kennedy, there were many heart-wrenching musical moments, like the New York Philharmonic’s performance of Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony. During that dark time, music director Leonard Bernstein gave an unforgettable speech at Madison Square Garden. His remarks include these words:

This sorrow and rage will not inflame us to seek retribution; rather it will inflame our art … This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly, than ever before.

May it be so … that music is our reply to violence.

peace, Prayer, Serenity, Silence

A Syllable of God

September 17, 2016 Rev Kathy

I long for a space of deep listening, but in my humanity, I can’t get there. My mind is too busy with mundane things. I can’t seem to still my soul enough to truly hear God speaking to me. I could surmise that the reason I do not hear is because God is not speaking. I could settle for a silent God that is simply not communicating with me.

But my faith knows better than that. The years of my journey of faith have taught me that God is speaking far more than I am listening. It is my task to find a space of stillness, to put my heart into that good place of solitude and peace. It is my task to get to that place that allows me to hear God’s promptings.

Author and contemplative Macrina Wiederkehr describes this for me.

And don’t we all, with fierce hunger,
crave a cave of solitude,
a space of deep listening –
full of quiet darkness and stars,
until finally we hear a syllable of God
echoing in our hearts?

And so I continue, searching for that “space of deep listening full of quiet darkness and stars,” listening for that syllable of God.

Contemplation, peace, Prayer, Self care

Oh no! Mercury is in Retrograde!

September 1, 2016 Rev Kathy

My friend, Martie, is always the first to sound the dire warning, “Oh no! Mercury is in retrograde.” She announces it with such emphasis that you believe her prediction and heed her advice. This phenomenon is one of the few that affects everyone in a fairly uniform way, and its effects are always obvious. Once you begin to pay attention to how events in your life change during these phases, you will soon see how important it is to take note of them.

I won’t go into detail about what Mercury is actually doing. You can look it up online if you’re interested. I’ll simply report that The Huffington Post confirms it: “The planetary cosmos has an evil plot to make your life go crazy from August 30 to September 22. It’s called Mercury Retrograde.”

The critical advice from all the best sources boils down to these ten points:

1. Don’t Make Agreements. It’s a horrible time for negotiating contracts or making decisions.

2. Don’t Accept or Start a Job. If you do, you may regret it.

3. Don’t Try to Close the Sale. Closing a deal is often based on taking advantage of great timing. Unfortunately, you’re timing couldn’t be worse when Mercury is retrograde.

4. Don’t Initiate New Projects.

5. Scheduling Meetings. Avoid (or minimize) scheduling meetings and events during Mercury retrograde, because you’re more likely to experience confusion, mistakes and cancellations.

6. Avoid Traveling A Lot. If you can’t put certain trips on hold, just be aware that you can expect an unusual amount of last-minute flight cancellations, meeting postponements and long transportation delays.

7. Don’t Purchase Computers or Begin Installations. This is when you’ll discover that you bought the “computer from hell.”

8. Don’t Repair Your Auto unless you absolutely have to.

9. Don’t Buy Things.

10. Don’t Select a Roommate or Move in With One.

So if you believe the planetary situation, you’ll basically lay low between August 30 and September 22. It may be a good time for recharging your batteries, taking care of your soul, contemplating all that is good in life, spending some time listening to God, otaking some deep breaths and gathering your strength.

That’s what I plan to do.

Contemplation, peace, Serenity, Silence

Sitting in My Own Silence

August 20, 2016 Rev Kathy

It’s a day with no words. I have contemplated hope, grace, kindness, worry, faith. And yet I have nothing to say. Perhaps my lesson is to listen, to sit in the middle of my own silence, to wait on words from God. And so today, I recommend to you a time of quiet meditation sitting in your own silence.

I think our deepest love finds its voice when we have run out of words to express it. There is no language that can capture what a lifetime has brought to be, the private journey of a single soul through the twists and turns of time. We are the sum of what we feel when feeling defies reason and runs to places no logic has ever seen. As careful as we are to wear our masks among the crowd, alone we know the untamed extravagance of a spirit that wants to care more than to control. So let us, each one, in silence share our truth, seeing in one another’s eyes the mirror of our own silent story. – Steven Charleston

Words are not always needed. Apparently I need to rest in this present reality. Perhaps I need to refresh and refuel and allow something fresh and new to rise up in me. Until then I have no riveting subject to write about, no words to share. And that’s okay.

“In Silence there is eloquence. Stop weaving and see how the pattern improves.”

― Rumi

Faith, Fear, God's Faithfulness, peace

I Will Never Leave You

August 19, 2016August 19, 2016 Rev Kathy

At times I feel completely alone. I felt alone when I was in the hospital. Fear and anxiety would swallow me in the hours after midnight. I was quite simply afraid. Afraid of illness, afraid of pain, mostly afraid of being alone.

Normally, I am not a person of fear. Normally, I am confident and have assurance of God’s presence and protection. But I have seen a lot of life. I have seen pain and loss up close. I have known moments of fear.

In such times, I give myself the wise counsel I have given others. I reinforce within myself the promise that God will protect me. And I turn to the fourteenth chapter of John’s Gospel.

I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you . . .

These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you. But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

In this passage of Scripture, I hear the divine promise. I lean on the assurance of the abiding Holy Spirit. I rest in the grace that God’s Spirit will never leave me. Listen to these words of promise written by Bishop Steven Charleston.

I will not leave you. The seas may rise and throw their fury against the land, the storm tossed night may rage to hold back the glimmering sun, but I will not leave you. I will stand through the night watches when all the world is asleep and I will hold my place in weather so fair it tempts others to drift away. I will not leave you but remain steadfast in my prayers, holding up your name to the listening heavens, repeating my call to care for you until the angels themselves bend low to earth to see such love. I am the Spirit that watches over you and I will not leave you.

Thanks be to the God who knows our fears and will never leave us or forsake us. (Deuteronomy 31:6)

peace

A Night Devoid of Stars

August 4, 2016 Rev Kathy

The newscasts report on our enemies. The politicians call out their names, adding that we should kill them before they kill us. They call them by name: “radical Islamic terrorists.” “ISIS.” “Al-Qaeda.” The list could go on.

We watch the bloodshed on our televisions. We entertain fear of the terrorism that could happen anywhere, at any time. There is no shortage of people who demonize our enemies.

To be sure, there is danger swirling about us. But as Christians, how do we justify killing and carnage? How do we justify millions of refugees trying to find a safe place to call home? I have no sure and certain answers to such wrenching questions. But my better self calls on these words from Dr. King.

I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. — Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

How shall we then live without adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars?

Contemplation, Dreams, peace, Serenity

Serenity . . . The Peace of God

July 24, 2016 Rev Kathy

Even in retirement, I find it difficult to set aside quiet hours, hours of peace and serenity. I tend to get caught up in current politics, the news of the day, and all of the interruptions that come up. Yet, I need quiet time. I need times of reflection and contemplation. It is during those quiet times that I find the peace of God. I find serenity and find myself dreaming new dreams again.

Bishop Steven Charleston writes about the gift of God’s peace that waits “beyond the clam our of the day.”

Quiet the hours that surround us, still the moments through which we pass. The peace of God is a gift, freely given, to any and to all, waiting just beyond the clamor of the day, available to whoever will receive it. No illness or strife, no worry or hurt can keep this calm hand from reaching us, no distance, no time. The feeling of what is holy is serenity, an assurance that love will never be lost, that mercy is as certain as forgiveness, that none of us has walked this way without reason. Heaven waits behind closed eyes, the other world of what is now, the blessing we were born to live.

Indeed, we were born to live this blessing and to find what is holy in our times of serenity. And so I work to keep out distractions and worries, reaching out for the calm hand of God.

Hope, peace

The Power of Hope

July 10, 2016 Rev Kathy

Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.

Psalm 42:11 (NIV)

In these difficult days, I often find that my soul is downcast. Inside, I feel disquieted. I find it difficult to be content when so much violence is surrounding me on the news channels. Hope is a rare commodity. Yet, the remedy seems to be in the power of hope, putting my hope in God and looking forward to better days.

That is the foundation on which to build our activism. With hope in God, we move from despondency into action. With hope in our hearts, we find ways to stand up and name the violence. We find ways to speak truth in the face of chaos. We find ways make peace. We seek God to determine the ways we can work in our community.

We definitely are experiencing darkness. There are no simple answers to racism, hatred and the violence that assails us. We could control guns. We could conduct better screenings for police officers. We could create ways to more accurately identify perpetrators of violent acts. There are many actions that could help. But hope in God must be our first line of defense. Stubborn hope that never gives up finds us in the dark. From there, our remedies can take shape, pointing toward the dawn of a new day.

Anne Lamott writes about the power of hope:

Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing, dawn will come. You wait and watch and work. You don’t give up.

I leave you with two things: a challenge to become an integral part of your community as you proclaim peaceful ways; and this blessing from Scripture:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13 (NIV)

peace

Wherever You Go Take Peace

June 28, 2016 Rev Kathy

When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you.

(Luke 10:5-6 New International Version)

In the world these days, peace is hard to find. There is an abundance of hate, rancor, battles and wars. Humility and kindness are in short supply. We find ourselves sharing opinions, convictions, battle-laden speech instead of passing peace one to another. Countries are at war, communities fight intolerance, individuals find hate easier than love.

I love the thoughts shared recently by Nikki Finkelstein-Blair.

Not everyone will receive peace, and not every place will live with peace; but everywhere you go, take it. To everyone you meet, offer it. Because where it is shared, the Kingdom comes.

Thanks be to God.

Faith, peace

Flowing Peace

June 16, 2016 Rev Kathy

“I’m not surprised you are a minister,” said a friend in my leadership class. “You have this peaceful aura about you.” I was surprised by her comment. But I knew immediately that what she saw as an “aura” around me was not really me at all. It was actually God’s peace flowing through me.

The world continues to cry peace when there is no peace. (Jeremiah 8:11) But those who trust God know that God is the source of the peace that transcends all understanding and flows within us—even though we may not even be aware of it. (Philippians 4:7)

After their last supper together, Jesus promised His followers this peace as He prepared them for His death and resurrection. He told them that although they would have trouble in the world, God would send them the Spirit of truth to live with them and be in them (John 14:16-17).

The Spirit would teach them; the Spirit would be with them; the Spirit would comfort them and give them peace for the days ahead. Yes, He told them they would face many trials. He also told them not to be afraid, because the Holy Spirit’s presence would never leave them.

I am in a constant quest to sense God’s peace, as elusive as it seems at times. Though God’s peace is within me always, there are times when chaos takes its toll. I allow life’s worries and challenges to fill my heart and soul, often losing the flow of peace in my life. I know better, of course, but I allow it to happen.

God’s desire for me is to open myself up to inner peace,to allow God’s peace to flow through me. What a blessing it is to know God’s flowing peace, always there, always available to strengthen my faith and refresh my life.

peace

Wonderful Peace

June 11, 2016 Rev Kathy

A beautiful 19th Century hymn written by W.D. Cornell speaks of a peace that comes from God.

The words of “Wonderful Peace” are comforting:

Far away in the depths of my spirit tonight
Rolls a melody sweeter than psalm;
In celestial strains it unceasingly falls
O’er my soul like an infinite calm.

Peace! Peace! Wonderful peace,
Coming down from the Father above;
Sweep over my spirit forever, I pray,
In fathomless billows of love.

What a treasure I have in this wonderful peace,
Buried deep in the heart of my soul,
So secure that no power can mine it away,
While the years of eternity roll!

I am resting tonight in this wonderful peace,
Resting sweetly in Jesus’ control;
For I’m kept from all danger by night and by day,
And His glory is flooding my soul!

How I long for a life of peace! It’s not so easy to accomplish. So many things get in the way . . . work, traffic, house payments, issues that demand our constant attention. And then there are the more serious robbers of peace like illness, pain, grief . . . The list could go on and on.

And yet we have a definite promise found in Scripture:

“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” – John 14:27 (KJV)

I want to move closer to the kind of life that ensures that my heart is not troubled and afraid. It’s a promise I want to claim for my life. And it’s time for me to enjoy God’s wonderful peace. I hope it’s time for you, too.

Courage, Freedom, peace

Freedom

June 2, 2016June 2, 2016 Rev Kathy

In New York Harbor stands the statue that reminds us of freedom. She reminds us of our nation’s commitment to invite others into our special place of freedom, to encourage them to build their lives under our flag. I hope that commitment never changes. I hope that this nation will always be one that welcomes strangers.

Welcoming those who dream of living in America is the pinnacle of the word philanthropy. Philanthropy (from Greek φιλανθρωπία) means etymologically, the love of humanity, in the sense of caring, nourishing, developing, and enhancing what it means to be human. Sharing our freedom with those who come to our shores is an incredible way to show love for humanity.

I hope that freedom will always remain as an integral part of our lives as Americans. I hope that the poem of Emma Lazarus, engraved on a tablet within the pedestal on which the Statue of Liberty stands, will abide in our hearts.

The New Colossus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,

With conquering limbs astride from land to land;

Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand

A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame

Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name

Mother of Exiles.

From her beacon-hand

Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command

The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.

“Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she

With silent lips.

“Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

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