Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time are:

1. Zephaniah 2:3; 3: 12-13
   
2. Psalms 146: 6-7, 8-9, 9-10
   
3. 1 Corinthians 1: 26-31
   
4. Matthew 5: 1-12a
   

• Speaking the truth in love
  
• Telling someone the truth can be difficult.  Ironically, it can be hardest when speaking to our friends.
• Has there been a time when you felt compelled to tell the truth, and you knew that it would make you unpopular?
• What made you decide to do the right thing?
• How did that turn out?
• Would you do it again?
  

• Blessed the stranger
  
• The Holy Family were refugees just after Jesus was born.  They had to flee to Egypt to escape the slaughter that king Herod initiated to remove a possible threat to his throne.  While they were in Egypt, they were strangers, without friends or family to help them.
• Who are some strangers that you have welcomed?
• Why did you welcome them?
• Do you think that welcome did any good?
• Would you do it again?
  

• Improvement plan
  
• Most of us have done many things to improve ourselves.  Getting a college degree, studying for a certificate, choosing to support a ministry in our parish.  If you were to compile a spiritual resume, you might be impressed by all that you have done, who you have become.
• In the end, how was it that you were able to achieve all of that?
• What does that tell you about your own character?
• What does that tell you about God's character?
  

• Rejoicing in persecution
  
• For most of us, all it takes is for one person to hate you, and you begin to second-guess yourself, see yourself from their vantage point, wonder whether you are as bad as all that.  Instead, Jesus calls us to gaze on Him in the face of opposition.
• Do you think that every true follower of Jesus is going to be misunderstood, mistreated, distrusted at some point in their lives?
• Have you ever been misunderstood for trying to do the right thing?
• Did that misunderstanding impact your prayer life?
• How did God answer your prayer?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Where is God calling me to be prophetic?
2. Who in my life might God be calling me to welcome?
   
3. How has God blessed me in my life.
   
4. Where is God offering me courage?
   

Humility Prayer

God of my ancestors,
Give me clarity of sight
That penetrates the smoke and haze
Of always getting more and more.

Help me to see past my deep rooted desire for security
And look for security in You alone.
Help me to thirst for your simplicity
That I might find freedom in just enough.

Give me the desire to be Your Presence
To the outcast, the voiceless, the powerless.
Fill me with Your empathy
That I might have the ears to hear their cries.

Give me courage to take the first step
On a journey toward a dimly viewed Promised Land
Even though all of the rest of the steps are hidden from sight
Let me see those who stand ready to lead me in Your way.

Grant me strength in my prayer
To extend my hand to others.
Even though I see how truly weak I am.
Let me find just enough strength in you to lift up another.

And if others don't understand me,
Give me strength to love them too.
So that they will someday see a spark of You in Me.
As I try to follow You.

Shalom!

Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time are:

1. Isaiah 8: 23 - 9:3
   
2. Psalms 27: 1, 4, 13-14
   
3. 1 Corinthians 1: 10 - 13, 17
   
4. Matthew 4: 12 - 23
   

• Forgiveness is not a reset button
  
• Forgiveness, at its root, is all about relationships.  To forgive is allow healing to start.  But forgiveness doesn't make the hurt go away as though it never happened.
• When was the last time that you truly forgave someone?
• How did that change the way that you looked at them?
• How did that forgiveness change you as a person?
• Was it worth it?
  

• Contemplation
  
• Most of us struggle to find time for contemplative prayer.  We always wonder whether we're "doing it right" or not.  And there is always the nagging question in your mind whether there is not something else that you really should be doing.
• How do you do contemplative prayer?
• How has that helped you?
• How much change in your life do you think it would take before someone would describe you as a contemplative?
• How would you start?
  

• Idolatry is so easy
  
• We all want a strong sense of identity.  But that seems to be harder and harder as divisions among us create more and more distinctions based on how we feel about various things within out culture, politics, and religion.
• If someone asked you for your "elevator speech" defining what you believe to be the most important truths in ten seconds, what would you say?
• If their elevator speech agreed with yours 100%, would you conclude that the two of you could share your faith with each other?
• How do you know whether it's "safe" to open yourself up to another, tell them what you really think and feel, and listen to what they have to say?
  

• Restoration
  
• These passages in which Jesus calls His disciples always strike me as pretty stark.  He expects immediate obedience, regardless of the cost to them, their families, their communities.
• What are some occasions when Jesus called you to follow him?
• How did that happen in your life?
• What made you willing and able to respond to that call?
• Do you think that we are always going to be ready for God's call in our lives?
• What can we do to help us to listen better?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Where is God calling me to forgive someone that I'm having trouble forgiving?
2. How can I be more contemplative?
   
3. Where can I reach out to others who believe differently than I do, who still serve God none the less.
   
4. Where is God calling me today?
   

There they go

When I was young, fishing with my father, I hated mending the nets.
They were smelly, often stiff and tangled.
The mending process had to be methodical, and thorough.
Else, the next time that we strained those nets,
They might burst, and we lose our precious catch.

Then I learned to appreciate the peace of it all.
Until the mending was done, there was nothing else.
I did not have to worry about my younger siblings.
Chores around the house would have to wait.
My company were other fishermen, and the waves lapping at the boat.

Later still, mending those nets became a form of prayer.
I learned to let that peace soak into me,
And I found God himself in each knot that had to be replaced,
Each strand that needed to be carefully restored.
The mending process my small contribution to ongoing Creation.

And I learned to say a prayer with each knot.
Asking God to watch over my family,
My village,
My synagogue.
Keep them safe, and most of all, close to Him.

I had hoped that my sons, James and John
Would follow in my footsteps, and become fishermen.
Continue unbroken the family business
That has been our sustenance for generations,
Our contribution to our village.  Our identity.

Instead, they took off after Jesus without a backward glance.
None of us knowing when we would meet again.
None of us knowing where this chapter in their lives would take them.
I opened my mouth to recall them to their duty.
And realized that their duty, and mine, was to God alone.

I think about them while I'm mending my nets.
Wondering where following Jesus is taking them.
Wondering what they will tell their children one day
About how they were called to this adventure,
And how it changed their lives.

And I sit here and wonder:
If this new life of theirs is so important,
What does that say about the life that I still lead?
Does God still need me as a simple fisherman?
Will I ever receive a call from the blue?

Shalom!

2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time are:

1. Isaiah 49:3, 5-6
   
2. Psalms 40: 2, 4, 7-8, 8-9, 10
   
3. 1 Corinthians 1: 1-3
   
4. John 1: 29-34
   

• Be the glory
  
• In some circles, it is believed that God shows His favor on His elect by showering them with clear blessings such as long life, prosperity, teenagers who actually listen to them and other amazing things.  Another perspective might be that God's intervention consists largely of helping us get through whatever challenges we have before us, one day at a time.  But what if there's more.  What if the glory of God is for His children to thrive and flourish?
• What are some things that you do that make you feel most alive, most "on"?
• Do you think that God called you to that?
• Do you think that God would ever ask you to do something that did not make you grow, mature, thrive?
• What about your life shows the glory of God lately?
  

• Being attentive
  
• Obedience to God goes beyond merely avoiding sin.  Yet it seems that we don't often get an opportunity to explore ways in which God's call comes to us.
• How does God make His will for you known to you?
• Do you think that we get second chances to do God's will if we are slow to obey?
• Do you think that any of us can really tell anyone else what God's will might be for them?
• Does discernment have to be hard?
  

• Father make me holy
  
• Fr. Peter used to declare that to be happy, we needed to be holy.  Holiness comes of dedication to God.  Dedication simply means that our lives in their entirety have just one purpose.
• How would you describe that purpose in your case?
• Do we all have the same purpose to one extent or another?
• If that is your purpose, how are you living that out?
• Where do you need help living out God's purpose for you?
  

• Pointing the way
  
• Ignatian spiritual direction seeks to help the one seeking direction to hear the voice of the Spirit in their lives, and to follow that direction.  The director does not give advice, nor tell the directee what they should do.  In a sense, we should all seek to do that for each other as friends and companions along the way.
• Who are some of the people in the vast armada of folks who have passed through your life who have pointed you towards God?
• How did they accomplish that?
• Who would you like to point to God?
• How do you see that happening?
• What help would you need?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Where is God calling me towards more, deeper, vibrant life?
   
2. Where do I need to be discerning today?
   
3. How dedicated am I?
   
4. Where can I be the Beauty of God to someone else?
   

I Come to Do Your Will

 The old man walked with a limp, but he didn't seem to mind.
His worn out body somehow keeping him good company
Even though he always walked with purpose.
He always seemed to be in the right town when needed the most.

He answered to many names, but the one he treasured most
Was simply "paz", short for hombre de paz, man of peace.
Wherever he went word soon got around the village,
Care worn and harried, they would seek him out.

Some, often the older ones, just wanted to be near him.
The younger ones would seek to discuss, and debate with him,
And no matter how excited they became with their own speech
Hombre de paz would listen, patiently, and lovingly.

"Paz", one old man said.  "All my life, I have sought to do good.
To be good, to serve a higher purpose.
But I look back at my life, and all I see are dust and ashes.
Nothing that I have put my hand to has prospered.  And now I am all but dead."

Paz looked on his brother with eyes of compassion, and he asked
"But why did you give yourself away like that?
Surely you must have had some goal in mind, some grand outcome?"
The old man answered "Nothing like that.  Not at all.

In fact, looking back, I realize that any act of kindness,
Any outreach of generosity that I poured myself into,
Was just doing what needed to be done at the time,
Serving those who needed a hand.  Nothing grand, nothing great."

Paz closed his eyes, breathed deeply and sighed
"Your giving without looking for a return,
Your willingness to let circumstances and needs teach you,
Your generosity are all accomplishment enough.  All that you lack is trust."

Scarcely had he finished when a young woman, full of life and purpose asked
"What must I do, what must I be, to be great, to be radiant, to be an inspiration?
I am willing to give my all, without reservation or fear."
Paz looked her in the eye, and found great love simmering there.

He returned that love in kind and said
"Seek first and always the gift of humility
That ambition may not blind you to the little things all around you
The whispers of God calling you to lift up His forgotten ones.

Know that you are precious, lovely, loved, and adored.
That you are, and have been from eternity worth dying for.
Learn to treat yourself with the care and tenderness of God.
And the way before you will become clearer one step at a time."

Shalom!

Epiphany Sunday

Our readings for Epiphany Sunday are:

1. Isaiah 60: 1-6
   
2. Psalms 72: 1-2, 7-8, 10-11, 12-13
   
3. Ephesians 2: 2-3a, 5-6
   
4. Matthew 2: 1-2
   

• A city on a hill
  
• We, both corporately and individually, should be attractive to others.  Not so much in a physical sense (thank God!) but that we should draw people to our community by our example.  Most of us are not comfortable with selling ourselves or our values, but maybe we should think about getting a better Yelp presence.
• If someone came up to you and asked "why should I join your church?" what would you say to them?
• If someone came up to you and asked "why should I join your parish?" what would you say?
• Is there anything that we can/should be doing to make our faith community more of a light to the larger community?
• When we were raising funds for the new parish center, Carol Glavonich made the observation that "we get the best responses to requests for money from the dead."  By that she meant that their relatives would at least give us a response, outraged though it may be.  What do you think of that?
  

• What manner of king have we?
  
• Traditionally, the might of kings was measured in the number of men in their standing army, the amount of gold in their treasury ...  Jesus' kingship and His kingdom are very different.  How much of His kingship can we expect on earth?
• How likely is it that any level of government here or anywhere would be described as "beautiful"?
• How about within the Church?
• What can/should we do to bring beauty to the organizations that we inhabit?
  

• They will let anyone in here!
  
• It feels good to be part of an exclusive club or organization.  You know where you belong, it makes you feel special.  And maybe that's OK anywhere but the Kingdom of God.
• What would you think if God could not save people below a particular income level?
• How about people above some income level (particularly if it's near the one that you have)?
• Or if God could not save people without an education, or a home, or ...
• Have you ever seen someone excluded from our community, either overtly, or not?
• How can we be more inclusive?
  

• Seeking Jesus
  
• One theme in Jesuit theology is that God is in everything.  So we must be bumping into God all day long.  And yet, we are called to actively seek God.  How is that possible, and why is it needed?
• Think of somewhere that you found God in an unexpected place/time - maybe an angry coworker, a sorrowing family member, utter silence, a manger on a cold winter's night.
• What/who were you looking for?
• How did that encounter change you?
• Do you think that God is still there?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Where might I need to be more inviting/inclusive?
   
2. How might I bring more submission, and less rule/domination into my life?
   
3. Who are the gentiles in my life?
   
4. Where might God be waiting to encounter me that I'm not looking for Him?
   

Alone With God and the Cosmos

We met as strangers, along the way,
Joining our caravans for company and safety.

It was only lately that we found
That we had common destination, common destiny.

By unspoken agreement, we are each a distance from each other,
The better to pray at the end of a day of travel.

Travel that is swiftly turning into a pilgrimage
To find God as we have never found Him before.

A gentle wind whispers through the sand.
The star that we have been following stands as witness.

I pray for my family back home, that they are safe and warm.
I pray that I will bring back some blessing from my travels.

I pray that all of us might learn humility,
And from humility, learn how to live with each other.

I pray for my village, with its vying tribes,
Squabbling for dominance out of fear.

Fear that if they do not advance in our village,
They, their descendants will never amount to anything.

I pray for openness, eyes to see, ears to hear
That I will be able to see where this star is taking me.

I pray for courage to be challenged by this new King.
Courage to enter a kingdom that I cannot see, touch, or feel.

I pray for mercy, for the times when I have been close-minded,
Clinging to old ways rather than open myself to epiphany.

And I hear, faintly in that gentle breeze, an answer to all my prayers -
Be still and know that I am God.  I am exalted in all the earth.

Be still and know that I am.
Be still.

Be.

I bow low, remember that I am but dust and ashes,
And find peace in that.

Shalom!

Solemnity of Mary, Holy Mother of God

Our readings for Solemnity of Mary, Holy Mother of God are:

1. Numbers 6: 22-27
   
2. Psalms 67: 2-3, 5, 6, 8
   
3. Galatians 4: 4-7
   
4. Luke 2: 16-21
   

• The face of God
  
• In our post-COVID 19 world, we crave now more than ever for face to face conversation.  We yearn for dialog that is honest, dynamic, intimate, and above all, authentic.  How honest are you in your prayers to God?
• Think of a time when you were pretty sure that you were not feeling what you should be feeling.
• How did that affect your prayer?
• Have you ever been afraid to tell God what you really think because you're afraid of offending Him?
• Or maybe you don't tell Him how you really feel because you are sure that you will eventually mature beyond that?
• What do you think God wants from you/us in such situations?
  

• God's name is mercy
  
• We have a merciful God, one who could punish us, but who chooses not to out of the essence of who He is.
• Think of something that really challenged you in your faith.  Maybe it was the death of a loved one, a business deal gone totally bad, a betrayal.
• Where was God's mercy in that?
• Do you think that God could ever redeem that in your life?
• Do you think that God might be redeeming that in your life right now?
  

• Can you call God Abba?
  
• Sadly, there are plenty of seemingly accidental fathers, men who became parents with little in the way of preparation or character to help them, maybe even less motivation to be a good parent.  They give fathers a bad name.
• What sort of presence was your father in your life?
• How do you think that God the father resembles your father?
• Do you ever talk to God about that image that you have of Him?
• If we are truly made in the image and likeness of God, how does that make you feel about your image of God?
  

• What are you pondering lately?
  
• Life seems to move at supersonic speeds.  We never seem to have the time to ponder what happens to us, deep down we suspect that we could learn a great deal from our experiences if we would only let them teach us.
• What have you pondered lately?
• Is pondering a process, or an event?
• If you were organized enough to keep a list of all of the things that you'd like to ponder, what are some of the things that you'd have on that list?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Where might I be hiding my face from God?
   
2. How might I be missing God's mercy in my life?
3. Where is God waiting to break through/beyond the image that I have of Him?
   
4. Where might God be speaking to me in the events, people, emotions of my life?
   

Smelling of Sheep

The stars look so close, I feel as though I could reach up and touch them.
The quiet is peaceful, inviting me into prayer.

The day's work is done, my flock is safe in its fold, I sit at the entrance
Looking into the distance, seeing beyond sight.

Thanking God for His hand in my life, for the abundance of life
For the beauty of the hills and valleys, rocks and streams.

All of them sustain and support me and my flock.
All of them delight and remind me of God's permeating Presence.

That hallowed Presence speaks to me, tells me that Presence has a face,
Bone and sinew, feet and hands all here, now, beside all of us.

I always knew that the world was shot through with the Light of God.
But now, now my eyes are opened, I see His messengers excited beyond all telling.

Telling us on this isolated hillside, that God is here for us, for us.
His cosmos, always charged with love and peace, has a heartbeat, and breaths.

A heartbeat, breath pulsing through His lungs, just like mine.
Just like me, that Presence is all but overlooked, all but missed.

And I see the Light of Life shining around me, and suddenly I realize
That I, we, everyone of us, are all part of this incarnation, this revelation.

All of us, now and always, but especially now are light-bearers,
The skin and bone and sinew of God Himself, consummated in this crowning arrival.

We gather to see this miracle with our own eyes,
And know each other as shepherds in the smell of our flocks.

And see this incarnation among sheep and goats, pigs and chickens,
Peasants and shepherds, and we know that He has come for us for us.

He has come to show us how to touch the Light to others,
How to reveal the heavenly Shepherd by how we shepherd.

I will never look at my sheep, the hills and valleys, the streams made sacred the same.
All of them made sacred by this arrival, this quiet, joyful miracle in, and through our midst.

Shalom!

Christmas Day

Our readings for Christmas Day are:

1. Isaiah 52: 7-10
   
2. Psalms 98: 1, 2-3, 3-4, 5-6
   
3. Hebrews 1: 1-6
   
4. John 1: 1-18
   

• Your God is king!
  
• Whenever a lot of chaos is in evidence, the first question to come up is "who's in charge here" be it a crime scene or a commercial loading dock.  We want to know whether there's a plan in place, whether all of this frenzied activity has any direction.
• What are some events in your life that make you think that God is in charge in your life?
• What was your role in those events?
• How might you have been more open to God at that time?
• What did you learn?
  

• What are you praising God for lately?
  
• Organized praise is a tricky matter.  On the one hand, you don't want to be so structured that it becomes nothing more than a formality.  On the other hand, (at least for those of us in the OCD ranks) too much freedom in a large group can lead to liturgical mayhem.
• What would you like to praise God for in a large gathering?
• How would you go about expressing that praise?
• Do you think that it matters to God whether you express that privately or in a large setting?
• Do you think anyone else is interested in hearing why you think that God is great?
  

• The physicality of sacrament
  
• Presence comes to us in many ways.  A warm hug, a sunrise that takes your breath away, the sight of a soaring hawk, the baptism of a close friend, that close friend themselves.
• What are some ways that Jesus is present to you?
• How are they the same?
• How are they different?
• Why do you think that God comes to us in so many ways?
• What do we lose if we miss one or more of those Presences?
  

• Have you incarnated today?
  
• The incarnation is not an event, it's a process.  Bringing God's Presence to the earth is not limited to Jesus.  How could it be?  He told us to follow Him.
• How have you been that Presence to others in your life?
• How has that gift that you give changed you?
• How do you know when you have given enough?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Where might God be looking for my participation in His kingship?
   
2. How might I express my appreciation for/to God more deeply?
3. Where is God Present to me that I may not have noticed?
   
4. Where might God be calling me to give of myself in new ways?  What might he want me to leave behind?
   

Arrival

I can't hear the angels singing anymore.

At least not the way that I used to.

But I hear the sound

Of my mother's blood

Washing back and forth

In a responsorial chorus to her great heart.

I feel my heart too.

Different it is, from hers.

The to and fro, not as stately.

The rhythms not as slow.

Separate, yet not alone here.

Her blood keeps gentle company with mine.

While we wait together

For the day when we will part.

I belong.

Here, with her, right now.

Finding my way in the world through her.

Shaking with her laughter, mourning in her tears.

All is arrival, all is sacrament.

This season of togetherness and oneness.

Makes all birth holy, all blood sacred.

All water a baptism, a doorway.

My hands feel each other in the dark.

My fingers interlock.

Separate, yet one none the less.

I stretch out my hand and feel -

Feel the walls of my new home.

Feel the tidal rhythm of my mother's breathing.

Know our oneness, and separateness

In our flesh, shared, yet distinct.

This place I tabernacle in is holy.

Holy as it has been since the beginning.

This embrace of flesh surrounding

Surrounding and sustaining.

This flesh is not a wall, but a door to an ancient love.

An old old love with a new expression.

An intimacy unimaginable,

Yet one imagined so long ago.

Rhythmic spasms pulse through us,

My limbs are squeezed through the narrow door.

My lungs emptied of the familiar fluid.

My eyes open for the first time.

I get my first glimpse of creation through these eyes.

I smell the warm moistness of the cattle, sheep, chickens,

I feel the rough cloth upon my tender skin,

And I am comforted by the sound of angels singing once again.

Shalom!

Fourth Sunday in Advent

Our readings for the Fourth Sunday in Advent are:

1. Isaiah 7: 10-14
   
2. Psalms 24: 1-2, 3-4, 5-6
   
3. Romans 1: 1-7
   
4. Matthew 1: 18-24
   

• God, are you there?
  
• Trusting in God can be a tricky matter.  There is always the question whether what we think is God's will really is God's will.  Particularly when the stakes are high.  Think of a time when you felt the call of God to go outside of your comfort zone.
  
• How did you tell whether or not this was God's leading?
• How did you find the courage to follow that leading?
• How did that turn out?
• Do you still think that was God's voice?
  

• Standing in a holy place
  
• Holy places are all around us.  Certainly there are shrines aplenty, but I believe that any place where love is found soon becomes holy, the love practiced there seeps into the fabric of that place, making it a doorway to the sacred.
• Where is a place that you find holy, where you go to find God?
• How did that place become holy for you?
• Is it possible to make your home, your place of work at all holy?
• What could you do to bring that about today?
  

• Set apart, but for what?
  
• It's a sacrilege to use something for anything other than it's divine purpose.  In a small way, washing your car with the priest's alb would be a sacrilege.  In a similar way, using our lives for anything other than God's purpose for us is a sacrilege.
• What is God's purpose in your life right now?
• How did you find that purpose?
• Do you think that it's ever going to change?
• Where would you like for your life to go next?
• Do you think God cares what you want (careful, this is a trick question)?
  

• What makes a family holy
  
• Joseph and Mary were doubtless both trained from their youth up in what made for good parenting, what the responsibilities they were going to shoulder as adults, and how that would look.  Only some of the training prepared them for what lay ahead.
• All of us are in a family in some role or another, many of us play several roles.  I am still son to my mother (I get reminders from time to time) and still father to my children (fortunately, I don't seem to need to remind them), husband to my wife.  Which of your family roles brings you the most joy?
• Was that joy always there, or did you have to grow into that?
• How has being in your family changed you through the years?
• How would you like for it to change you?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Where might God be calling me out of my comfort zone?
   
2. Where can I bring some holiness today?
3. Am I at all sacrilegious in how I spend my time, talent, and treasure?
   
4. Where is God inviting me closer to Him with, in, and through the crazy messy gaggle of folks that I call family?

Casting out Fear

Some of my fears are old friends that are so familiar, they all but define me.

Fear of failing, of being a failure, of being seen as a failure.

Fear of going to my grave without a commendable list of accomplishments.

Fear of not seeing where God has worked through me until I am gone.

Fear of being paralyzed by my own fears, sidelining myself,

Until the last play is over, and the lights go out on the stadium of my life.

I used to strive to slay my fears.

Wrestle with them, beat them into submission.

Banish them for good, score a solid triumph.

Then I realized that they were a lot more resilient than I was,

For they kept coming back like stray dogs that I had once fed.

Just as strong as ever.

 

I tried giving them up to God.

I wasn't sure quite how to do that, 

My prayer was one of "here, I don't need this, you take it"

And I was disappointed in God that he didn't take me up on my offer.

And I began to fear failing at dealing with my fears.

Getting on some fear treadmill.

Then I learned, slowly, 

That my fears were going to be my companions for good,

And I needed to let them be my companions for good, and not evil.

Acknowledge them, pray about them,

Listen carefully to the various voices in my life,

And find that one still small voice that called forth the best in me.

It's not easy, or quick.

I have need of a lot more humility and trust.

But somehow, I feel that the process, messy though it is,

Is a form of devotion in its own right.

And I look forward to hearing less and less from my fears,

As all of those voices within learn what's truly important.

Shalom!