Facing Covid 19: Daily Words of Grace – Aug 10

Monday, August 10, 2020

Holy Spirit

Holy Fire

Holy Wild Ride

Through Light and Life

Judges 8:23

Gideon said to them, ‘I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; the Lord will rule over you.’

2 Corinthians 10:18

For it is not those who commend themselves that are approved, but those whom the Lord commends.

Words of Grace For Today

Many strive to achieve for themselves great position of authority and power. For example one needs only look at all the bishops our church has had who seriously wanted to become bishops. They were disastrous for the church, each in their own special corrupt way.

The best bishops were those who did not want the work, nor the honour, nor the heartache of presiding over a church in decline.

The church remains in decline.

What does that say to us other than God has plans that are not those of the church which wants to grow … according to our measure of growth.

There is no shortage of people trying way too hard to make their plans into God’s plans for the church. All are dangerous and destructive.

What we need is leaders like Gideon, who though offered control and rule, chose instead that the people would be ruled by God.

To be ruled by God is something, not anything like being ruled by a code of what someone has determined is ‘for sure’ God’s will (though it looks like a terrible subset of faith, reduced so that that it is worthless.)

To be ruled by God is something, not anything like being ruled by a person who supposedly can speak God’s will. We’ve had no end of despots, also in the church.

To be ruled by God is something that will lead us in places we cannot anticipate, into adventures we cannot imagine, and to share life with people we had never known before as God’s people. It’s a wild ride.

Hang on tight

to the Holy Spirit’s fire and breath.

That’s all God gives us most of the time, everything else we see as solid is an illusion we create for our own sense of (false) security.

Facing Covid 19: Daily Words of Grace – July 29

Wednesday, July 29, 2020

Wood

for

Winter

Survival

Job 1:21

He said, ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there; the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.’

1 Timothy 6:7-8

For we brought nothing into the world, so that we can take nothing out of it; but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these.

Words of Grace For Today

One cannot be sure to leave anything of material worth to one’s children, but give them an education and no one can take that away from them.

Or so one thinks.

And similarly people strive to achieve – for themselves and their children … and their friends and their own – something that will be a legacy.

Legacies are remarkable … usually in how inconsequential they are.

Two things seem significant: The first one is that we recognize that we are born with nothing, we die with nothing, and nothing we can do will ever change that, for us or for anyone else.

The second one is that everything we have is a gift from God for which we can give God thanks and praise. Even the drive to work hard to accomplish and accumulate something that may be a security for us … that drive is God’s gift, and the result may or may not provide security.

We should not therefore cease to work to provide security for ourselves and our own, and our neighbours. ‘Winter’ is coming, and ‘wood‘ needs be collected to ‘keep the fires going’.

We can therefore remember to enjoy each person along the journey, and to provide as we can for those less fortunate than us … as God has provided for us, freely and graciously.

No matter the challenges, disappointments, and ever-present stinking ‘rot’ in situations and people, we are not driven to despair.

We give God thanks in all things. We wake rested, we work like dervishes noticing all of life around us, and we end the day with gratitude and contentment, for we have done as we could to respond to God’s gift of breath in this day.

Facing Covid 19: Daily Words of Grace – July 24

Friday, July 24, 2020

Imperfect

is what God

uses for abundant life for all.

Isaiah 63:19

We have long been like those whom you do not rule, like those not called by your name.

Matthew 6:13

And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.

Words of Grace For Today

Like the meadow outside filled with more weeds than grass, and years of dead weeds and grasses rotting underfoot, we were once and still are filled with the dregs of sin, the work of evil in and through us, rotting at our core, infecting like a super-virus, all that we think, say and do.

Though the weeds and grass can be mowed short to inhibit the proliferation of mosquitoes, to which I am allergic after so many bites in the past months, it is not anything like a well groomed lawn. There are many visions of beautiful blue-grass image of smooth green mostly for viewing and showing off to one’s neighbours, which can be used for picnics and croquet or soccer and bocce ball. The work it takes to create and maintain such an unnatural thing is huge: mowing, fertilizing, watering, more mowing and thatching.

This is not unlike the visions the devil fills our hearts and minds with, that our hearts, minds, and strengths could be so perfectly groomed into artificial perfection by our great efforts of attending to our souls. The creating of such perfection is beyond us, though we do have the fertilizing part down pat. Falling so short of an unattainable perfection, the devil then plants in us innumerable rationalizations that we can still attain the unattainable, using all sorts of excuses as we try to attain perfection in vain, running roughshod over other people and creation without pause.

These temptations, to try to attain our own perfection and use that as an excuse to ruin creatures and creation, are not our first request of God. We start this petition with AND do not bring us to the time of trial … Yet we pray this fervently each day.

We know we are hopelessly outmatched by the Devil. Only God can save us.

Jesus’ story assures us, God does save us. We cannot and do not need to strive to be perfect. We can strive to allow the Holy Spirit to work through us.

We can recognize that all that crap in our lives can serve as fertilizer for the Word of God to grow in us. We can attend to mowing, trust God to bring the water, sunshine and warmth needed for life, and be at peace with what God makes us.

We are not perfect meadows or lawns. We are a mix of good grass and noxious weeds and thistles. There is plenty of old weeds rotting within us. We need not be concerned, for God accepts us as we are, replaces our records with Jesus’ record making us pure in each moment, and then the Holy Spirit sends us out to share this same story of salvation for all with all people.

Croquet on an imperfect lawn is more fun than on a perfect lawn, for the play of the mallet on the ball is not what brings success. Success is measured in the pure joy one shares with the time one spends with the other players and those who watch.

Facing Covid 19: Daily Words of Grace – July 20

Monday, July 20, 2020

John Lewis

Get into Trouble.

Good Trouble.

Isaiah 46:12-13

Listen to me, you stubborn of heart, you who are far from deliverance: I bring near my deliverance, it is not far off, and my salvation will not tarry; I will put salvation in Zion, for Israel my glory.

Titus 2:11-12

For God shows no partiality. All who have sinned apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law.

Words of Grace For Today

“Get in trouble. Good trouble. Necessary trouble.” – John Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020).

One of the many who took part in the freedom rides, integrated interstate bus trips (a right guaranteed by the Supreme Court), he was beaten many times, once nearly killing him.

Stubborn hearts of racists and police who were eager to willing illegally arrest black and whites travelling together brought hardship, bigotry and hatred to the fore many times over.

Stubborn hearts do the same still today, everywhere. Even here.

Last night three quads showed up, about an hour apart, the last at 2:30 am, helping them selves to the wood I’ve collect, cut and stacked to help minimize the dangers of the coming winter. All together they took about two day’s worth, simply to party away with a fire in front of them. Shame on them.

I startled the last with a flashlight from 10 feet away, since he seemed only focused on finding the wood to take. He sped off running over a pine tree, careening to turn around to leave up on two wheels and nearly running off the path into the trees.

Maybe that will put an end to the theft.

God deals with stubborn hearts all the time, theirs and all of ours. God comes close, well God is always close, but God goes out of God’s way to make apparent to us God’s presence with us.

God shows no partiality, all is just based on truth, in God’s judgments of us. And there will be judgment for each of us.

The trouble these thieves get up to is trouble, but hardly good trouble or necessary trouble.

It’s just evil trouble. The devil’s work.

The end of course, carried on far enough, will be that I do not have enough wood for winter; and their theft can cause my death.

Good trouble, necessary trouble, is the kind that puts a stop to this kind of petty criminality, and to the widespread biases in the justice system, from the RCMP bullying, harassment and violence, to the Courts that turn a blind eye to the truth of abuse done to men by women (and men.) That blind eye invites women to lie profusely to the Courts, and for RCMP to act far outside properly or fairly … and everyone gets away with it.

Except God does judge fairly, equitably.

Thanks be for Jesus, who gives us his record for our judgment, for otherwise we would all be wiped off the face of the earth all before breakfast at 6 am.

Because Jesus steps in for us, we not go through life, making our way with violence. Jesus makes our way for us. We need not go through life full of anger. Each will get their due justice delivered by God. We need not go through life ashamed of lies told about us, or false accusations, or even false convictions. These do not define us. Jesus defines us … as his followers.

With Jesus always with us, the Holy Spirit guiding us, and God’s love pouring over us each day, we can boldly take on the trouble, the good trouble, that God sends us into each day. We do not need be shy or self-righteous (as if trouble did not belong to us at all).

No, today we can courageously get ourselves into trouble, good trouble, necessary trouble, trouble that will make a good difference possible for many other people.

Facing Covid 19: Daily Words of Grace – May 11

Monday, May 11, 2020

From of Old

From of Now

From of Then

Psalms 44:2

We have heard with our ears, O God, our ancestors have told us, what deeds you performed in their days, in the days of old.

Luke 10:39

She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying.

Words of Grace For Today

We have received great gifts from God … many through other faithful people.

We have received the ability:

To listen …

To learn …

To listen to Jesus …

To listen to our ancestors …

What would happen if we could listen to the generations yet to come?

God has performed many great deeds, that we remember, that we can listen to as others tell the stories handed down for generations.

“In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, … God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good….”

“A wandering Aramean was my ancestor; he went down into Egypt and lived there …. When the Egyptians treated us harshly … we cried to the Lord…. The Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with a terrifying display of power, and with signs and wonders; and he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey….”

“In the night in which he was betrayed, Jesus took bread and gave thanks …”

God has preformed many great deeds even in our time that we can share with each other and give time to listen to and learn from.

An elderly woman’s car would not start in the grocery store parking lot. Covid 19 limited the interactions others could have with her … still a man noticed her distress, walked over and offered to help. Diagnosing it as a battery too drained to start her car, he offered and then insisted that he would run home, grab some jumper cables and set it right. She suggested instead that she could call AMA. He said it was not necessary. Within minutes her car started and he advised her to take a drive to recharge the battery. It worked.

A long term care facility was, like all others, cut off from everyone except the workers coming and going. A staff person volunteered her iPhone to allow video calls to family and the staff started collecting contact numbers for each resident. Even though many suffer dementia they are afraid and lonely. Now they are connected again regularly with family.

With the increased danger of wild fires, a resident of a spread out rural community started noticing almost no one had ‘fire safe’ areas around their properties or homes. He organized a list of the elderly who needed the help first, a list of the properties that needed and wanted help fire-safe-ing, and a list of equipment available. Coordinating it all, with safe physical distances maintained, he organized equipment, people and locations to do the minimum fire-safe work. Almost done, he’s starting a list of more thorough fire-safe-ing and wide fire break paths to stop a wildfire from spreading over more than a quarter section. Of course that is getting organized as well. Everyone contributes. Everyone is safer. There is less risk that a wildfire will necessitate an evacuation, or if it does that any property will be damaged by anything other than smoke.

What stories of God’s great deeds can you share? What stories of God’s great deeds have you listened to and learned from?

What if we could also listen to those from future generations, looking back at our time, so that we could listen, learn, and live more responsibly.

Are we listening?

Are we learning?

2020.04Apr12 Easter – – – – Just Because

Sometimes a photo turns out just so unexpectedly more than I wanted it to, and the marvel of the light plays even deeper than my imagination,

So I want to see it, more often, and posting it to share seems a small bit of Grace.

Easter in isolation is something for us all, though I’ve been at it for a few years now.

And then, the light shines just right and plays off the moisture in the clouds and off the rolling snow.

What have you had to leave behind?

What is wrenched so out of your life by the health orders in place, so that you are left living outside the normal routines and security of things being tomorrow like they were yesterday?

How are you re-ordering your life in a manner that makes good, wonderful, life-giving sense for you and those around you?

Know that many others could use a word of encouragement, of thanks and gratitude, and of their worth in the ever changing footing we find ourselves standing on these days.

We should be able to empathize more for those who lived during the time of the plagues, for example when the Black Death, which hit Europe in 1347, claimed an astonishing 75-200 million lives in just four years, or 30% to 60% of the population. And it came back 800 years later.

See https://www.mphonline.org/worst-pandemics-in-history/ for more details of pandemics in history.

The Light of Christ does not end, die with us, or need to return. It is always here, even in the darkest night, and through all our darkest times.

Be courageous. Find Beauty each day. Know Truth always. Be grateful, gracious and generous, with yourself and with the other sinners God put in your life. God forgives them, after-all. Why can you not also?

Facing Covid 19: Daily Words of Grace – Apr 6

Monday, April 6, 2020

Look for the beauty no matter how small. Be guided by Beauty and Truth.

Hosea 8:12

Though I write for him the multitude of my instructions, they are regarded as a strange thing.

John 18:37

Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.’

Words of Grace For Today

Sometimes we cannot see anything straight, so blinded by our greed, envy, guilt, and anxiety. Some political satirists refuse to use Trump for material anymore. His lies are no longer at all humorous. Asked on Jan 22 whether the US should be concerned about a pandemic, he responded: “No, not at all. We have it totally under control. It’s one person coming in from China, and we have it under control. It’s going to be just fine.” Trump’s lies have deadly consequences. As I write this predictions give 100k and 240k deaths in the US, alone. But before we defend this man, or attack him further, Stop. Think. Confess.

We all do this out of anxiety, guilt, envy or greed. We lie, even to ourselves. God speaks, we regard God’s Word as a strange thing, in order that we can carry on in our sinful ways.

Jesus came into the world to testify to the truth. No matter who we are, or what we say, no matter what we believe or disbelieve, Jesus was born to demonstrate the truth to us at it’s core. God loves us, all of us, even when we lie to ourselves and others about real important things in life. God sent Jesus to save us from our own lies, so that we can listen once again to Jesus’ voice: Love one another as yourself, even your enemies.

Covid 19 — Invitation: Be Heard, Listen, Give Help. Be Creative.

But safely apart at home,

If you have one.

19:00 hours: One Minute to Be Silent, Then One Minute to Be Connected –
Separate yet Together

Covid-19 has separated us physically from one another, or rather
we have separated ourselves in order to protect ourselves from SARS-Cov2.

But we need not be socially or spiritually separated from one another.

Take a minute at 19:00 hours (7 pm) to say a prayer or keep silence or remember others.

None of us are in this alone. Most all of us can reach out to others. Do what you can, for yourselves and for others. Be careful, respectful, and courageously hopeful.

Take a minute at 19:01 hours (7:01 pm) to say, by making noise, creative and loud noise (so that others know), you are there and well.

If you are in a car, honk!

If you are at home, set up music to play very loudly!

Or set off your smoke alarm (test button only, not smoke- be smart!)

Or have the children join you in loud singing their favourite song, or hooping and hollering!

Be creative, coordinate your noise making with neighbours, so that there’s cooperation in the music or noise.

Then at 19:15 listen in quiet, unless …

At 19:15 (or later when the noise stops) if you need help now it’s your turn to make some noise.

If you need help urgently, if it is an emergency, make the three long noises, three short noises, and finally three more short noises for the Morse code for SOS.

Listen, and respond, with care to keep from passing contagions between people, households, or neighbours.

Be Respectful. Remember how everyone is challenged.

Be Heard. No one is alone, really.

Provide Help. We are in this together.

Also

Take a minute at 07:00 hours, or the beginning of your day, as at 19:00 hours, to say a prayer or keep silence or remember others.

Colour the beginning of each of your days with Courage, with Compassion, with Creativity, and with Hope.

Know that you are not alone as you do this.

Invite others to keep these minutes as well.

Let our paths virtually cross.

Covid 19 – Invitation to Be Together

But safely apart at home,

If you have one.

19:00 hours: One Minute to Be Silent, Then One Minute to Be Connected –
Separate yet Together

Covid-19 has separated us physically from one another, or rather
we have separated ourselves in order to protect ourselves from SARS-Cov2.

But we need not be socially or spiritually separated from one another.

Take a minute at 19:00 hours (7 pm) to say a prayer or keep silence or remember others.

None of us are in this alone. Most all of us can reach out to others. Do what you can, for yourselves and for others. Be careful, respectful, and courageously hopeful.

Take a minute at 19:01 hours (7:01 pm) to say, by making noise, creative and loud noise (so that others know), you are there and well.

If you are in a car, honk!

If you are at home, set up music to play loudly!

Or set off your smoke alarm (test button only, not smoke- be smart!)

Or have the children join you in loud singing their favourite song, or hooping and hollering!

Be creative, coordinate your noise making with neighbours, so that there’s cooperation in the music or noise.

Then at 19:15 listen in quiet, unless …

At 19:15 if you need help now it’s your turn to make some noise.

If you need help urgently, if it is an emergency, make the three long noises, three short noises, and finally three more short noises for the Morse code for SOS.

Listen, and respond, with care to keep from passing contagions between people, households, or neighbours.

Consider that every day we are inundated with Covid-19 news, most of it alarming. To keep this in perspective, perhaps limit one’s news gathering/listening to the news to shorter periods at most 2 to 3 times each day.

And

Take a minute at 07:00 hours, or the beginning of your day, as at 19:00 hours, to say a prayer or keep silence or remember others.

Colour the beginning of each of your days with Courage, with Compassion, with Creativity, and with Hope.

Know that you are not alone as you do this.

Invite others to keep these minutes as well.

Let our paths virtually cross.

End of Many Concerns

Ahh, Great Light, Great Night to Come, Easy Walk.

Nice Day on the Ice

End of

A good day fishing

Fishing season

Drinking on the lake

Lots of Tracks

SarsCov2 in that fishing hut

Risk management with a wood stove

Warm days at the lake

‘Burning your playhouse down’

Looking for the Light

Sharing one’s feelings

Hauling, Cutting, Hauling, Splitting, Hauling, Smoke, Ash

Hot Times on the Ice

The Butt End of it All

…

….

Start of:

Living alone

Fishing in the cold air

More bad luck

Catching the Last Rays of the Day

Looking for SarsCov2 elsewhere

Being able to stand up straight without hitting ones head

Karma – (But, Karma, this was not on the list! Karma, what you doing!)

That’s it! Schluß! Fire’s Gone Cold.

Monday, August 10, 2020

Wednesday, July 29, 2020

Friday, July 24, 2020

Monday, May 11, 2020

But safely apart at home,

19:00 hours: One Minute to Be Silent, Then One Minute to Be Connected – Separate yet Together

Take a minute at 19:00 hours (7 pm) to say a prayer or keep silence or remember others.

Take a minute at 19:01 hours (7:01 pm) to say, by making noise, creative and loud noise (so that others know), you are there and well.

At 19:15 (or later when the noise stops) if you need help now it’s your turn to make some noise.

Take a minute at 07:00 hours, or the beginning of your day, as at 19:00 hours, to say a prayer or keep silence or remember others.

But safely apart at home,

19:00 hours: One Minute to Be Silent, Then One Minute to Be Connected – Separate yet Together

Take a minute at 19:00 hours (7 pm) to say a prayer or keep silence or remember others.

Take a minute at 19:01 hours (7:01 pm) to say, by making noise, creative and loud noise (so that others know), you are there and well.

At 19:15 if you need help now it’s your turn to make some noise.

Take a minute at 07:00 hours, or the beginning of your day, as at 19:00 hours, to say a prayer or keep silence or remember others.

Nice Day on the Ice

End of

Start of:

19:00 hours: One Minute to Be Silent, Then One Minute to Be Connected –
Separate yet Together

19:00 hours: One Minute to Be Silent, Then One Minute to Be Connected –
Separate yet Together