The tradition of using a string of beads or rope knots in prayer is an ancient tradition and a ritual shared by many faith traditions around the globe. The common connection is the ability to give structure to personal prayer devotion. It offers a way to remind and revisit various areas of focus and concern. Repeated rituals can be powerful as they help shape our habits. Please use the image of the Prayer Beads above and the Guided Meditations below to enhance your prayer life.
Song of Creation
Each Saturday morning for the last three weeks, a small group of church-goers have been hiking in the wet and wild woods for Rugged Spirituality. Professor Scott Angus is adept at guiding us through the trails and pointing out various geological, historical, and ecological features of each hike. While navigating the terrain, we listen to stories, answer soul-stirring questions, and listen to the voices of nature speak to us.
Our last hike was particularly muddy and wet. At one point many of us asked Scott if were still on the trail or if we missed a turn and were hiking in the creek. As our conversation slowed while we focused on our footing, I was struck by how alive the mud was. It was crawling with worms, frogs, and even a turtle! My son Ahmmit was with us that day and, as an unreserved 5th grader, he picked up all the squishy, slimy things along the way so we could all have a closer look.
As we continue with our worship series, Sacred Earth, Sacred Work, I hope that we might find ways to cultivate our child-like curiosity and reverence for creation. I hope we might develop an eye to see the worm in the mud or the turtle in the grass. I hope we might take the time to listen to their songs and consider their plight in the world that we alter with our action and inaction alike.
Today, I’m reminded of Psalm 148 (reimagined by Nan Merrill) that sings in part:
“Give praise to the Beloved, all the earth,
All that swim in the deep, and all the winged ones in the air!
Give praise all mountains and hills, all trees and all minerals!
Give praise all four-legged and all that creep on the ground!
Leaders of nations and all peoples, young and old, Give praise!
Unite together in all of your diversity, that peace and harmony might flourish on earth!”
May we remember we are bound in shared destiny and that being one another’s keeper includes even the squishy, muddy creatures. What is the song of creation singing to you today?
With Grace and Peace,
Pastor Lauren
Everything Doesn't Happen for a Reason
...but some things do. On Sunday, Jerry McGinty-Gayer consecrated communion and reminded us that even though things happen in our world that are not of God, some things are.
When Jesus shared the Passover meal with his disciples, he knew the end was near. He knew that this might be his last opportunity to give a lasting gift to the ones he loved. So, he gave them a ritual, gave them a gift that has been passed down to us through our family of faith.
Since Jerry reminded us that some things are for a reason, my spirit has been stirred and I have been looking for the intentionality of God this week. I have seen God in meetings and in classes. Noticing how someone may ask something that someone else in the space knows something about. From my window at home this week, I watched a dog jump the fence and watched as immediately a group of kids playing in the park ran to help it return home. On a day I was feeling a little down, I got a letter in the mail that picked me right back up again.
During times when it seems sorrow surrounds us and we question what is happening our world, may we remember that some things do happen for a reason. Let us look for God who is within us and by our side. So I ask, where has God spoke to you this week? What are some of things that have happened for a reason in your life?
Don't Give Up!
Last week, I shared one of my favorite poems: Wild Geese by Mary Oliver. Recently, Adrrie Kusserow wrote her own version of this poem.
As you read, think about how you might rewrite this poem during these times. What message do you have for yourself? What message do you have for the world? What might you let go of and what might you remind yourself of?
Mary Oliver for Corona Times
(Thoughts after the poem Wild Geese)
by Adrie Kusserow
You do not have to become totally zen,
you do not have to use this isolation to make your marriage better,
your body slimmer, your children more creative.
You do not have to “maximize its benefits”
by using this time to work even more,
write the bestselling Corona Diaries,
or preach the gospel of ZOOM.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body unlearn
everything capitalism has taught you,
(That you are nothing if not productive,
that consumption equals happiness,
that you are at your best when you resemble an efficient machine).
Tell me about your fictions, the ones you’ve been sold,
and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world as we know it is crumbling
Meanwhile The News barks at you, harsh and addicting.
Meanwhile a new paradigm is composing itself in our minds,
could birth at any moment if we clear some space
from the same tired hegemonies.
Remember, you are allowed to be still as the white birch,
stunned by what you see.
Even if your life looks nothing like the Sabbath,
your stress boa-constricting your chest.
Know that your antsy kids, your terror, your shifting moods,
your need for a drink have every right to be here,
remind yourself over and over,
all the swells and storms that run through your long tired body
all have their place here, now in this world.
It is your birthright to be held
deeply, warmly in the family of things,
not one cell left in the cold.
May you know that you are enough no matter what your days look like in these times. Remember to reach out to friends, family, and your pastors if you are wanting some company or are in need of being reminded of your importance in our family.
Just Be Your Own Beautiful Self
One of my favorite poets is Mary Oliver. Every morning, Oliver would go outside to welcome the sunrise, listen to the birds, and wake up alongside the natural world. She disciplined herself to writing every day, her observations of nature guiding her poetry. One of her most famous poems is Wild Geese, a poem that she says just came to her one still morning. Today, read this poem and let it seep into your soul. What comfort do you find in these words today? What challenges you? What gives you hope?
Wild Geese, Mary Oliver
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting -
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
May you find peace, and grounding this day and this weekend. May you find assurance that you are a unique expression of God and you have an important place in the family of things.
Easter Reflection from Pastor Lauren
Resurrection Sunday!
We began this Lenten journey with ashes on our foreheads remembering that from ashes we came and to ashes we will return. Then, we took a 6-week journey reflecting on God’s ability to speak right through the middle of our ordinary lives. When entering upon this journey, who would have thought that we would spend over much of this Lenten season fasting from our ordinary lives? Who could have imagined we would be forced to reframe the meaning of practices like worship, prayer, sacrament, food, and community so significantly?
Collectively, we have experienced anxiety, grief, sorrow, and loss this Lenten season. Unfortunately, our Resurrection Sunday celebration does not coincide with going back to our ordinary lives, but will we ever return to life exactly as it was before this Lenten journey? I hope not. Lent should transform us and our relationship with God. For the rest of our lives, we will remember this Lenten journey. We will know where we were this Easter.
When we get to reunite at church, when we can go to the grocery store without masks on, when we can hug each other, and go out to eat, I imagine our hugs will be tighter, our kisses sweeter, and our meals more savory. Our worship will be more connected and our smiles brighter. Coming out of this experience, we will be transformed -- how could we not? And, what else might be transformed? My hope is that the disparity between rich and poor will decrease, healthcare might turn into a right rather than a privilege, and we will no longer take for granted simple things like sharing a cup of tea with a friend. After all, I cannot believe we have gone through this suffering for nothing. God will redeem this time. God is up to something long-term as God also responds today through the doctors, researchers, public health experts, grocery store employees, and other frontline workers.
So today, let us sing boldly in our homes, “Christ the Lord is risen today!” Let us shout, “He is risen!” Let us celebrate the empty tomb. Let us see that God hasn’t failed us yet - God hasn’t brought us this far to leave us now! Indeed, God will be with us throughout this experience and with God’s help we will be stronger, wiser, more innovative, and more collaborative.
So today, I leave you with one final question: What is resurrecting in our world?
Reflection for Friday, March 20 from Pastor Lauren
It’s Still Lent
Lent is a time for reflection, refreshing our relationship with God, and integrating ourselves into community in a more thoughtful way. In many ways, Lent is about revitalizing our worship to God. As we near the middle of our Lenten season, it strikes me at how strange this Lenten season is to any others I’ve observed. I reckon that is the same for you!
For many of us, we are becoming experts in new technology, innovators of connection, and health news junkies. We may be delighting in online concerts, fun videos, and extra calls between friends. We may also be lamenting physical contact, loss of routine, and anxiousness around our own health and wellbeing or the health and wellbeing of others.
With all this in mind, let us slow down and contemplate how we can see this Lenten season as an extended Sabbath -- a time of rest and renewal. How can we reframe social distancing into Sabbath? Today, I invite you to notice how God is at work in our midst and take some time to recenter yourself in the Lenten season by journaling or meditating on the following prompts:
What are the ways you hope to grow closer to God during this season of Lent?
How might you be of service to your community in a new way or how might the community be in service to you?
How do you see God at work around you?