Our Weekly Devotionals are created by our staff and members to inspire reflections and conversation.
Songbird
I don’t know why Christine McVie’s death last week hit me so hard. Obviously, I never met her, and I never had the chance to see her perform live with Fleetwood Mac. Given her age–she was 79 years old, a year older than my Mom was when we lost her–it was not shocking news, but sad and unexpected when I heard about it, standing with a group of other women of my generation.
Resolving to Wait
And so we wait. The Latin adventus means arrival. As in the ceremony of an arriving king. And adventus is similar to the Greek parousia which implies that something is very near. In advent we expectantly wait for something important, life-changing.
Can we do that?
“Take a Moment for Mindfulness”
My Apple Watch haptics function futilely reminds me each morning (and in times when my heart seems to be racing) to take a moment for myself.
Yeah right. I press “Ignore.”
I don’t have a minute for mindfulness. I don’t even have 2 seconds to breathe big belly breaths for a full minute while I watch the circle graphic on my watch expand and contract in sync with my breathing.
Beautiful. Sacred. Holy.
Beautiful. Sacred. Holy. The words popped up in my mind, and a moment later, I realized I was hearing a trumpet playing a gentle melody as I walked with my dog back from the park. At first the sound seemed unearthly, with no physical source. But as I walked past the edge of Chinatown Square, I could see the man playing the trumpet as he has many days this fall.
Interim Times
Fall is an interim time. I recently received for my birthday the book To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings by John O’Donohue. I’ve been feeling unsettled and thought this book might help. The unsettled feeling is coming from this season of our life, an interim time.
The Sacraments of Fall
We had just finished a three-mile trail walk in the Arboretum woods on a warm day, beautiful in its own way, even though it was already more brown than green. We should have turned the car north for home, but turned south instead, just a few more miles to the cider mill…. I thought of the many years I have made that trek, and as we wove our way through the crowd to get in line, I thought of how years ago we were almost the only ones there.
Happiness
I was at a point where I had every reason to be stressed and unhappy with my slower than expected progress towards my doctorate. Yet on that day I realized that I could choose how I approached the world. I could choose to be kind and generous to the people around me. I realized I didn't need to let my own inner troubles impact anyone else.
Family of the Heart
During our visit, we talked about what he called a “family of the heart”…describing the strong feelings we can have for people not biologically related but with whom we are connected by experience, common outlook, and deep affection.
With a Little Help from My Friends
Our annual church stewardship campaign has just kicked off and the timing couldn’t be any more perfect for me to share my thoughts on giving (and receiving). If you ever needed a vivid and true example of what stewardship means, what it means to have the support and care of your community, go ahead and have yourself an unexpected surgery and see what happens.
We Help
“I am the Lorax, I speak for the trees!”
We all remember Dr. Seuss’ children’s book The Lorax, about a shortish and oldish and brownish and mossy man who fights against the mass destruction of his Truffula trees from the hands of the greedy Onceler. This story comes to mind when I think about my brother looking up toward the heavens to the top of a giant sequoia tree in Sequoia National Park, admiring its majesty, its towering height, its time on this planet.
Eye Contact
“Now look into my eyes.”
It was nearly the end of our busy week at Lacor Hospital in Northern Uganda, and people were starting to take pictures so we could remember. A few of us were posing with Sister Rose, head nurse at the hospital. Rose is funny, helpful, knows everything and everyone and is fully in charge. She’s been in this position far longer than the ten years I’ve been traveling there.
“This and That”
This past weekend Roxanne and I visited the Cahokia Mounds, a UNESCO world heritage site right in our “backyard” - just a few miles east of downtown St. Louis. Walking the grounds of what a thousand years ago was the largest settlement of indigenous Americans north of Mexico (estimated at between 10,000-40,000) was quite the experience.
Stereotypes
We had our garage sale a few weeks ago, and it went well. We live in a cul-de-sac, so we could watch the cars drive in, people get out and casually saunter over to our tables full of stuff. The one I completely failed to anticipate was the elderly gentleman who bought my mom’s entire doll collection.
The Door
“Sometimes when you push open one door, you find another door.”
That’s something a friend said to me recently. It was meant in a positive way – about the discovery of the unexpected. About pushing into new territory, imagining what you will find there. And then, instead of what you expected – you discover a whole new world of possibility.
We Choose to Go to the Moon
Religion's purpose is to inspire. We believe because it offers us comfort and clarity in a confusing and cacophonous world. So, when religious language and sentiment are used beyond the scope of religion, that use is often powerful. Last weekend, while I was in Central Florida, I paid a visit to the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) - the preeminent spaceport here in the United States.
Beautiful Gifts
“Hey Kel, I need your help with something…”
So begins a text message that suddenly spikes my heart rate.
His texts were usually like that – frantic, urgent, and apocalyptic. He sends me articles from The Atlantic that are 46 pages long about everything from politics to polar bears. My brother’s moments in his life have always been characterized by that – intensity.
Higher Ground
I’ve had the Stevie Wonder song, Higher Ground playing on repeat in the back of my mind for weeks now. The song was released in 1973, coincidentally the year Roe v. Wade became law (I was 8 years old), and its lyrics have proved to be evergreen. Depending on how you see it, the song is proof that the problems of our country and our planet are intractable and evergreen, too. After all, here we are fighting some of the same battles today as were being waged then.
Anchors
“Hello Handsome Mr. Kitty!” “Here’s your breakfast sweetie!” “Do you want to go for a walk sweet girl?”
These are the phrases that tumbled from my lips countless times over the past few weeks, as I fed, walked, and cared for my cat and my dog.
“Sometimes It’s Just The Little Things”
This week I saw something so beautiful, so simple, so unexpected, yet so profound. For weeks, my wife and I both have seen our neighbor’s lilies burst forth only to wonder when, or even if, ours might do the same. Frankly I’d begun to think it just wasn’t going to happen at all. Then it did. Just like that two gorgeous orange lilies arrived in all their fragile, temporary splendor.
Linen Napkins
A few events have converged resulting in our need to have a garage sale. Last year my parents moved from a large house into a much smaller apartment. Jonathan has been helping an elderly neighbor clean out her house. Also, I’ve been actively working on identifying any “linen napkins” we have.