"But Ruth said, 'Do not ask me to abandon or forsake you! For wherever you go, I will go, wherever you lodge I will lodge, your people shall be my people, and your God my God.'"
Ruth 1:16
Interestingly, I woke up thinking about this reading one night earlier this week. I wondered why God woke me up with this story of loyalty and friendship, but it is surely worth a ponder! Pray-As-You-Go asked the question, Who do you cling to when times are difficult? I thought back this morning and remembered the friend who brought me lunch at the vet's office, while I waited through a difficult dog diagnosis. I thought of the friends that raced right over to see me when my mom passed away and the friends who kept vigil with me when my friend Helen struggled through those last hours. I remember the friend who picked me up after a medical procedure and helped me once I got home. These are the "Ruths" in our lives, Friends, and, thankfully, they are the ones we cling to when times get rocky. As we think about and thank our Ruths, let's also keep our eyes, ears and hearts open for opportunities to do the same for others! Our summer is waning...let's get out there and enjoy the weekend! Love, heidi
Friday, August 25, 2017
Thursday, August 24, 2017
It's good to be back!
"Nathaniel's response was, 'Can anything good come out of Nazareth?'"
John 1:46
Is it just a human, knee-jerk response to look down our noses at someone from another town, culture, country? Looks like it's been going on for centuries. I get it, though. It is easy hanging out with like-minded folks. It's easy spending time with people who agree with us, share our hometown or history. It's easy for me to go to the SCL Mother House; number one, because everyone is so kind and nice to me. Often, they taught me or my kin in school in Billings and they are forgiving in their recollections of us! Thanks Be to God! Also, I'm among very like-minded folks. We are all unique, certainly, but we may be inspired by similar things, maybe we tune into the Holy Spirit on the same channel. Whatever it is, it is lovely on top of that mountain and it feels daunting to climb back down and resume life-as-usual. That's today for me. After such a rich and wonderful experience, it's time to share that richness with others as we are all called to do. So, today, this late August Thursday, let's be aware of any time in our day we are tempted to look down our noses at someone from another town, creed or culture. That's definitely not what Jesus calls us to do, but in this difficult time of divisiveness, it's all too easy to say, "Can anything good come out of ______?" Love, heidi
John 1:46
Is it just a human, knee-jerk response to look down our noses at someone from another town, culture, country? Looks like it's been going on for centuries. I get it, though. It is easy hanging out with like-minded folks. It's easy spending time with people who agree with us, share our hometown or history. It's easy for me to go to the SCL Mother House; number one, because everyone is so kind and nice to me. Often, they taught me or my kin in school in Billings and they are forgiving in their recollections of us! Thanks Be to God! Also, I'm among very like-minded folks. We are all unique, certainly, but we may be inspired by similar things, maybe we tune into the Holy Spirit on the same channel. Whatever it is, it is lovely on top of that mountain and it feels daunting to climb back down and resume life-as-usual. That's today for me. After such a rich and wonderful experience, it's time to share that richness with others as we are all called to do. So, today, this late August Thursday, let's be aware of any time in our day we are tempted to look down our noses at someone from another town, creed or culture. That's definitely not what Jesus calls us to do, but in this difficult time of divisiveness, it's all too easy to say, "Can anything good come out of ______?" Love, heidi
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