Thursday, July 18, 2019

On the bus...

"Jesus said, 'Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.'"
Matthew 11:28

Yesterday, I was on the bus headed downtown. The bus was quite full and I found a seat near a lady who was on a video call on her phone (for those of you familiar with the bus rules, she had earbuds in). She was chatting away most of the ride down, when quite suddenly, she burst into tears. She quickly pulled the I-want-off string and the minute the bus stopped and doors opened, she fled, still weeping. I watched her leave and my heart just hurt for her. What had happened in that seemingly OK call? Had someone broken her heart? Had a loved one shared bad news? I wanted to chase after her and comfort her. I had to settle for praying for her. That's not too much a "settle" though, but it seemed like it. I prayed that God would comfort her, that Jesus would give her rest--she was so obviously heavily burdened. We just don't know what is going on in the lives of the people we, either metaphorically or actually, ride the bus with. We just don't know. That's why we need to be kind to everyone. We don't know what news they may have just received that hurt them. Today, we are all passengers on this great bus of life. Let's hold each other carefully, in love, and ask God to especially bless all who are so heavily burdened. Love, heidi

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Who am I?

"But Moses said to God, 'Who am I?'"
Exodus 3:11

God, in the burning bush had told Moses that the people of Israel will be freed from bondage in Egypt and Moses was the guy to do it. Moses had a couple concerns and wasn't sure he was the right man for the job. But instead of saying "No, I couldn't possibly..." Moses asked for clarification (like a good Spiritual Director!) Who am I to lead the people out of Egypt? It's a question we can all ask ourselves everyday (well, not the Egypt part, maybe). But, who am I, that I have this incredible life in a treehouse? Who am I, that I get to work with adorable five-year-olds, getting ready for Kindergarten? Who am I, that I have the life I am living? If God calls us to help with something, we may not feel entirely up to the task, but we can trust that God will help us with it, just like God helped Moses. We certainly may not feel called to such a huge task as Moses (think back to the movie, "The Ten Commandments!" Oy!) But our task may be no less important in God's eyes. Our task may be tying a shoe for someone who cannot tie their own or reading to someone who cannot read for themselves, or even smiling and holding the door open for a stranger. That's no parting of the Red Sea, but may be just what needs to happen in our environment today. God is calling to us each day to make the world better for someone else. Who are we? We are God's Beloved...and we can definitely do it, with God's help! Love, heidi