Holy Wednesday...lessons of silence

"The great secret of monastic life, which on the surface looks like total withdrawal from human society, is that years of solitude, silence, and prayer, if they are undergone in the right spirit, lead to an expanded heart."

Paula Huston, "Simplifying the Soul"

 

I am still very new at the whole solitude and silence stuff, but the interesting thing about it is that it always sends me forth, back into the world, to do what I do better.  It's never just about MY silence or MY solitude, it is always about what I can do better for the world after the silence ends.  The first silent retreat at the Hermitage in Mesa showed me how I need to do my job better with the Commission for the Blind.  It was so clear to me, after days of silence and solitude, that I need to be more aware of doing my job for and with Jesus.  As I left the Hermitage and got onto the road for home, I called coworkers and promised to be a new, more willing partner in the future.  As I read this today, I am so aware that my times of silence send me forth to do a better job at living for others.  Ms. Huston's activity for today is to pray for strangers we may meet through our day.  Everyone is going through something, as we can all assume.  And our prayers may just help them on their journey.  Today, as we cross paths with many others on our Holy Week Wednesday, let's pray for them and whatever they may be going through...God only knows!  Love, heidi

Holy Tuesday...Not so fast!

"Jesus answered, 'Where I am going, you cannot follow me now, though you will follow later.'"

John 13:36

 

Jesus is being so mysterious here and we can just sense how desperate Peter is when he says, "Master, why can I not follow you now?" (v. 37) Peter and the others had followed Jesus for three years and had given up their previous lives to do so.  Now, why was Jesus saying this stuff about leaving them?  We can understand Peter's angst.  Do we share it?  Do we desperately cling to Jesus in our work-a-day lives?  Sometimes it's hard to even think about Jesus as we go about our daily routines, isn't it?  This is Holy Week and yet, the rest of the world carries on business as usual.  I even heard on my favorite Christian radio station, the announcer call this week "Easter Week."  Not so fast, I said to the radio!  We have to walk this very difficult road first. We must have Holy Week before we have Easter Week.  Today, let's think throughout our day, about Jesus and Peter and the desperation of losing someone so critical in our lives...someone we love so dearly.  We have the gift of knowing how the story ends, but Jesus' followers did not.  Tuesday of Holy Week...let us walk with Jesus.  Love, heidi

Holy Monday...Where's Waldo?

  "I, the Lord, have called you...

I have grasped you by the hand..."

Isaiah 42:6

 

Whenever I have a long day of travel, like yesterday flying home from Kansas, I invite Jesus to show himself to me in the mass of humanity I encounter on such a journey.  I had to wait through three flights and a four-hour airport layover to find him, but I found Jesus, just like finding Waldo!  It was the very last leg, the last flight. I had spent every one of my kind words and was on my last nerve as I hunkered in the seat to catch forty winks before we landed.  Very near me was a very loquacious young teenager who was full of stories...many, many stories.  Her kind seatmate was a lovely young woman, maybe thirty or so, who listened patiently and kindly through the whole flight.  Periodically, I wiggled to consciousness and the teenager was still talking.  And the kind woman was still listening.  The listener was so affirming and generous, I knew she was Jesus on that flight.  After we landed, got our luggage, and the teenager left with her family, I thanked the young woman for her kindness and told her how wonderful she was with the talkative little gal.  She smiled a beautiful smile at me and went on her way.  Thank you, Jesus, for showing yourself to me in that long travel day.  I'm grateful I recognized you and didn't sleep through the whole lesson. I hope to be that patient, kind and generous with others this Holy Week and beyond!  Love, heidi

To do your will...

"To do your will, O my God, is my delight..."

Psalm 40:9

 

And how do we discover God's will so we can do it? Just like discovering how our friend takes her coffee or what your other friend likes to read, we spend time with God to really learn God's will.  We can read God's Word, in which Jesus spells out exactly what God wants us to do (Matthew 25).  We can sit quietly with God and just listen for the still, small voice.  We can talk to God openly and honestly, just like an old friend.  God's will doesn't have to be mysterious and murky or like something out of a Cecil B. DeMille movie.  God's will can be as tender as sharing a hug with a friend or as daunting as moving the St. Vincent de Paul store to its new location!  As easy or hard as God's will seems in our lives, it is our delight to do it.  We share with God when we share with others.  We share with God when we support each other.  We share with God when we love each other.  That's not that mysterious but it may not be easy. Dear Friends, I'm headed off to the SCL Motherhouse early tomorrow morning to soak in some of that wonderful SCL charism!  Blessings on your weekend and as we head into Holy Week, I had one thought:  If you have the book, "Jesus: A Pilgrimage," by James Martin, SJ, and you just haven't cracked it yet, just begin this Holy Week by reading the three chapters of the Passion--Jerusalem, Gethsemane, and Golgotha.  I am planning to re-read them during Holy Week and I know reading them will give me a front row seat for this Holiest of weeks.  Love, heidi

Blessed are the meek?

"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the land."

Matthew 5:5

 

We, here in Idaho Falls, had the first night of our parish mission last night on the Beatitudes.  Our presenter, Mary Sharon Moore, through the gift of the Holy Spirit, really got me thinking--especially when we discussed this one, the third Beatitude.  Blessed are the meek...

Who are the meek?  Why would meekness be considered to be a good trait?  Why would the meek be considered blessed? It was so rich to learn that the meek are those who are pliable and flexible to the will of God.  The meek are not the wishy-washy people who cower and hem and haw about stuff.  The meek are those who leave their own agenda and embrace the will of God. Just like Mary, who said, "May it be done to me according to your word." (Luke 1:38)  I will need to continue to pray with this for some time.  I tend to take such comfort in future plans, am I not being pliable enough? The plans I have in mind for the future get me through the day to day now...plans for retirement, doing something different from what I've done for these long many years.  But am I leaving enough room for God's plans?  This is amazing, Friends! Love, heidi

 

Who is without sin?

"Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more."

John 8:11

 

Most often, when this reading comes up, I think of it as Jesus' answer to the death penalty debate.  I still feel that, but I also caught a glimpse of something else today, perhaps worth mentioning. Earlier in this Gospel Jesus said, "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." (v. 7)  Pray-as-you-go asked the question "Who is without sin?"  And that brought to my mind the times I judge others harshly and unfairly.  I am certainly NOT without sin, so there should be no stones in my pockets at all! And yet, I finger them in my pockets every time I judge someone else. Today, these words of Jesus will be at the top of my mind.  "Neither do I condemn you..."  Lord, please help me to drop the stones out of my pockets. I have no right or reason to judge others harshly.  I, myself, have been forgiven and treated with mercy.  Please help me to do the same for everyone I meet today!  Love, heidi