Palm Sunday

Our readings for Palm Sunday are:

1. Isaiah 50: 4-7
   
2. Psalms 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24
   
3. Philippians 2: 6-11
   
4. Mathew 26: 14-27:66
   

• Courage to hope
  
• The prophet lets those who will listen know that God is in their midst, and that He is their hope, their shield.  Hope demands courage.  Courage to see beyond today, past mere survival.  But hope needs a voice.
• Who are some of those voices for hope in our day?
• Do we have enough such people in our midst?
• Where will these prophets come from?
• Could you be one?
  

• Awesome God
  
• Awe is not something that we talk about in the everyday.  Maybe we should.
• What has God done in your life that was awesome?
• Did that surprise you in any way?
• How did that awesomeness of God change you?
  

• Giving it away
  
• Generosity, the giving of our very selves away, is a hallmark of the committed Christian.  Yet true generosity is never easy.
• What are some acts of generosity have you seen that inspire you?
• How do you know when you have given enough?
• Is there such a thing as "enough"?
  

• Resurrection improbable
  
• I should think that most of us could identify with Peter.  He loved Jesus, life no longer made any sense without Jesus.  At the same time, Peter had family, friends who depended on him, and survival instinct took over at a crucial moment and Peter caved, looking for safety.
• Have you ever sacrificed your principles in fear?
• How did you come back to God?
• How did you come back to and for yourself?
• Was God able to redeem that failure on your part?
• Is that redemption still ongoing?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Where is God calling me into greater hope in my life?
2. When was the last time that you spoke to God of his awesomeness?
   
3. Where might God be calling you to different/new ways of being generous?
   
4. Where is God offering me resurrection in my life?
   

Just Another Prisoner

My legion is the only real home that I have ever known.
My commander has been like a father to me for years.
My brothers in arms the family I never had.
I owe them everything.

This dirty rabble on the fringes of the empire is barely worth the effort.
They don't appreciate the benefits of peace and order,
Preferring instead to squabble among themselves
Over obscure cleanliness laws and where to worship.

And here comes the loser in the latest of their feuds.
He looks badly used, wrung out, a sorry specimen indeed.
The guard appears to have had their sport with him.
All will soon be over for this one.  He's half dead already.

And yet, his eyes, despite sweat, blood and tears -
Those eyes look 'round with compassion.
Compassion!?
That makes no sense, for he is about to find his end here, today.

For all I've heard about this rebel,
His screams of agony are just as loud as any other.
He thrashes on the cross as much as the next victim.
His blood spills just as much.

And yet, his eyes, despite sweat, blood and tears -
They sought me out, not to ask for mercy from me,
But to ask for mercy for me.
As if He saw in me more than I can see in myself.

Who then can this hopeless wreck of a man be?
His doom written in every inch of his tortured frame,
His end spoken in every ragged, heaving breath,
His vitality dripping from the wood to the earth.

And yet, his eyes, despite sweat, blood and tears -
Invite me into their depths,
Calling me to leave safety, security, plenty behind.
And follow His way of sorrows to freedom.

I look around, afraid that my brothers might see -
See my agony at His agony, see my doubts taking wing -
Catch me in this blasphemy against all I once held dear.
Catch me setting aside all sense and prudence.

And yet, his eyes, despite sweat, blood and tears -
Welcome me, fearful wretch that I am.
Calm my fears, give me courage, help me take a stand.
And I know what I must do.

First I lay down my sword and spear, then the helmet.
Everyone on that lonely hill pauses, and sees me for the first time.
My armor next, and finally my sandals.
And I walk away from the slaughter to find my new home, my new family.

With His eyes ever upon me.

Shalom!

Fifth Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 5th Sunday in Lent are:

1. Ezekiel 37: 12-14
   
2. Psalms 130: 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8
   
3. Romans 8: 8-11
   
4. John 1: 1-45
   

• Courage to hope
  
• The cynic oftentimes is one who has been hurt too often, been disappointed in their hope so many times that they can no longer muster the courage to hope.  So they retreat into a fortress of angry cynicism where they are miserable, but at least safe from the unexpected disappointment.
• Has anyone in your life ever disappointed you?
• How did you get through that disappointment?
• Did you ever learn to trust them again?
• Has God ever disappointed you?
  

• Forgive like God
  
• Forgiving another is, perhaps, the holiest thing that we can do.  It is the most precious gift that we can offer another, and even more a gift that we offer to ourselves.
  
• Who has been particularly hard for you to forgive?
• What made that forgiveness hard?
• Are you still glad that you forgave them?
• What benefit is there to not forgiving?
  

• Pleasing to God
  
• "Why am I here?" is a question that each of us ought to ask ourselves at least from time to time.
• What sort of a reception are you looking forward to when you die?
• What sort of an expression do you think God wears when He looks on you today?
• What sort of an expression do you wear when you gaze on God in your prayer?
• Would you rather a different exchange of glances between the two of you?
  

• Resurrection, here, now
  
• Each of these epic Gospel readings for the 3rd, 4th, & 5th Sunday of Lent are a journey of the out there, the theory, to where Jesus stands, here, now.
• How does hope of your resurrection change your life on an ongoing basis?
• How does hope of the resurrection of your family, community, God's people worldwide change your life on an ongoing basis?
• What is one grace that you would want to appropriate today?
• What's holding you back?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Where is God calling me into greater hope in my life?
2. Where would God call me to be more free, by being more forgiving?
   
3. When was the last time that I took time to gaze upon the Face of God?
   
4. Where is God offering me resurrection in my life?
   

The Smell of Lazarus

My brother left us suddenly.
It was an August like no other.
The hot dry winds raking the landscape.
Merciless as death itself.

When Jesus finally came to our village,
My sister and I were wrung out.
Our grief the only thing left to us.
All else seemed to have left us.

I ran out to greet Him,
Not knowing what I would say,
Needing to share my grief
With someone less bitter than I.

Jesus spoke of resurrection
And hope, and life, and all
All I knew was loss,
And emptiness.

Jesus told us to roll away the stone
Set there to protect all that was left of poor Lazarus.
I felt I could not take a desecration of his wasted remains,
But Jesus insisted.

We did what He said,
And got what we expected.
Gagging on the waves of fetid air
Rolling from the grave.

I don't know why we obeyed.
It seemed so futile at the time.
But Jesus had always been good to us.
So faithful, wise, and kind.

I felt as though He must have some purpose.
Jesus just stood there for a moment.
Then commanded my brother forth.
Inviting him back to his family here.

I helped him out of his burial bands.
Crying over him with tears of joy.
Forgetting all the mourners and guests,
In an outpouring of love.

Finally I turned to Jesus.
Stumbled over my words of thanks.
He, He just looked at me with eyes of tenderness.
And He reminded me that my brother still needed a bath.

Shalom!

Fourth Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 4th Sunday in Lent are:

1. Exodus 17: 3-71 Samuel 16: 1b, 6-7, 10-13a
   
2. Psalms 23: 1-3A, 3B-4, 5, 6
3. Ephesians 5: 8-14
   
4. John 9: 1-6, 13-17, 34-38
   

• Choose wisely
  
• We all have many choice to make in any given day.  The implications of some of those choices are not clear until long after we have made the choice.  That is particularly critical when we are choosing leaders for ourselves.
• Where do you go for leadership?
• How is that working out for you?
• What do you think God looks for in leaders of His people?
• Do you think that you have any of those qualities?
• What do you plan to do about the rest of leadership qualities that you don't have?
  

• Footprints in the sand
  
• Many of the great mystics have gone through dark nights of the soul - places in their lives where God seemed altogether absent, often when they most needed God.
• Have you ever been through a "dark night of the soul"
• Did that experience have an impact on your faith?
• What did you learn from it?
  

• Pleasing to God
  
• "Why am I here?" is a question that each of us ought to ask ourselves at least from time to time.
• Has the answer to that question changed at all through the years?
• Do you think that's because God's mission for you changed, you matured some along the way, the needs around you changed or a combination of all of the above?
• If you had to sum it up in one sentence, what would you say pleases God?
  

• Institutional blindness
  
• Institutions seem to have a stubbornness, an inertia of their own.  At some point, a fortress mentality develops in an effort to protect what is good and wholesome at the core, but soon the fortress needs a protection of its own in our minds, and so on, until it becomes easy to forget what we are protecting.  As individuals, its easy to feel totally incapable of making a difference in such a culture.
• Are there any fortresses in our church, community, families that we jealously guard that don't need guarding?
• How comfortable would we be if some of those walls were to come down?
  
• How can we contribute to bringing some of those walls down?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Am I a good leader at home, the office, my community?
2. Where/how can I take better advantage of desolation in my life??
   
3. Why did God bring me here, today, in this state?
   
4. Where is God calling me to to see where others do not?
   

My Lost Son

We thought it tragic once we realized,
That our baby boy Jacob had been born blind.
Ely, his father, and I, we were frantic,
Combing through our past, looking for the fault,
The flaw that bore this rotten fruit in our lives.

Eventually the old village rabbi taught us
To accept Jacob, both for what he could achieve,
And for what he would never achieve.
No matter what else happened, on thing we knew,
This poor baby was our son, and we his parents.

He had a hard life growing up.
The other boys in the village setting traps for him.
Tripping him, bumping him, reminding him
Over and over that he was different,
And if different, then unworthy of anything but their cruel sport.

Jacob eventually found a well-frequented spot to beg,
Settled in with a band of similarly crippled outcasts,
And seemed to have found his place in life.
Off to the side, squarely on the edges,
At least able to survive.

We had gotten used to the idea of never being in temple with Jacob,
Never getting to know one village girl after another
Who caught his eye -
Never getting to hold grandchildren fathered by him.
At least able to survive.

And now this.

He came bursting into the house
Full of news of this miraculous healing
From a traveling rabbi who bears watching.
Jacob praising his name without ceasing.
Leaving his father and I to wonder.

Wonder why God, in all His wisdom,
Would visit a blind son on our lives,
And now, out of nowhere,
Heal Jacob for no apparent reason,
After all that we have been through.

The local religious authorities interviewed us,
Looking for some deep insight into this happening.
We knew that they would cheerfully
Throw us out of the synagogue
If we breathed a word in favor of this Jesus.

Jacob no longer understands us.
He scoffs at our cowardice before the authorities.
He had nothing to lose, everything to gain
When he regained his sight.  For us,
We could easily lose the only family and friends we ever had.

We hear from Jacob from time to time.
He sends word home of where this Jesus of his has taken him.
We resign ourselves that Jacob has found happiness
Far from home, far from his roots.
At least able to survive.

Shalom!

Third Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 3rd Sunday in Lent are:

1. Exodus 17: 3-7
   
2. Psalms 95: 1-2, 6-7, 8-9
   
3. Romans 5: 1-2, 5-8
   
4. John 4: 5-42
   

• Up against the wall
  
• The Israelite people were watching their flocks and herds slowly die of thirst, they knew that they would be next.  Two questions doubtless came to mind: surely a loving God would not want His people to die needlessly, and where did we go wrong?  Or more deeply: what kind of God would let his "beloved" people suffer this way?  Moses was just a convenient whipping boy.
• Has God ever treated you badly?
• What sort of questions did that raise in your heart at the time?
• How did you pray through that?
• How did that experience change you?
  

• Give me a soft heart, and the courage to listen to it
  
• It's so easy to get attached to our own thinking.  The longer that we believe something, the more other beliefs come to be based on that core set of beliefs, the less likely we are to think critically about why we feel the way that we do.
• How has God softened your heart through the years?
• What sort of reluctance/resistance did you have while that was going on?
• Was the process worth it?
  

• Peace with God
  
• I believe judgement day is going to be healing if we let it.  Instead of a stern magistrate seated high on a lofty bench, I imagine God sitting next to me as He shows me His Presence through all that I have experienced, where I missed the chance to live in that Presence, and to find healing and peace if I'm willing to accept it.
• How do you know when you are not at peace with God?
• How do you restore that peace?  What is your prayer practice?
• How do you think God responds to that work on your part?
  

• Drawing closer
  
• Jesus has a knack for moving from the here and now, and gradually leading to everywhere and eternity.  The here and the now, like Jacob's well and the heat of the day, become a starting point for conversion, a seed bed for relationship.
• How would you characterize some of your most important relationships?
• What makes those relationships special to you?
• What does God give you in those relationships?
• How do you nurture those relationships?
• How do you know when those relationships need more attention?
• How do you know when God needs more of your attention?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Do I resent God for anything going on in my life?
2. Where might God be calling me to listen more?
   
3. What am I doing today to become more peace filled?
   
4. Where is God calling me to deeper trust and obedience?
   

The Abandoned Water Jar

I had wanted to leave Sychar for years.
The knowing looks that friends and family gave me
The children who would point me out to their friends
The rabbi who looks the other way when I walk by,

All of these remind me of my past,
My failed relationships,
The wreckage of my heart
Mocks me in their eyes at every street corner.

Yet I cannot leave this place,
It has been home for all of my life.
What would I do in some foreign village?
At least here, I have a name.

I look forward to drawing the water.
It gives me a little rest from the others.
This simple task eases my heartache
And gives meaning to my life.

My young children are grateful when I return.
Looking at me with tenderness.
At least for now, until they, too, grow old enough
To take scandal from me, their own mother.

He startled me when He spoke.
Clearly He was a Jew.
Yet he did not despise me
Even though He knew me well.

He offered acceptance, respect,
And most of all, faithfulness and relationship.
And suddenly, I saw my village
The same way that He did.

We all thirsted for relationship,
Proud though we were
All of us more alike than different.
And suddenly, I knew to forgive.

Running through the town square, I was a sight.
This time, I didn't mind the stares, the pointing fingers.
As I told person after person to come to the well,
To meet He who before our father Jacob is I AM.

The walk to the well is just a long.
The sun is just as hot in the sky.
But I draw joy from that day,
And a new name -

They call me "Bringer of Jesus".

Shalom!

Second Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 2nd Sunday in Lent are:

1. Genesis 12: 1-4a
   
2. Psalms 33: 4-5, 18-19, 20, 22
   
3. 2 Timothy 1: 8b-10
   
4. Matthew 17: 1-9
   

• Leaving it all
  
• Abram likely had a pretty good life back in Ur of the Chaldees.  He likely had the warm embrace of family, familiar places, a community that supported him.  His wife Sarah was from there.  Journeys can take many forms, the difference between "here" and "there" can be vast in some ways, barely noticeable in others.
• What is a journey that you have been on, one which changed you profoundly?
• How did you get started on that journey?
• How much did you know about where you were going?
• Are you still glad that you went?
• What made you start?
  

• Earn my trust
  
• Trust is precious.  Without it, working with someone else becomes nearly impossible.  Trust  grows slowly, sometimes over years.  Yet if that trust is violated it is gone in a moment.  Sometimes that trust can never be recovered.
  
• Do you trust God?
• What has He done to earn that trust?
•  If you could dictate terms with God, what would you like to have Him do to prove to you that He can be trusted?
• Has God ever violated your trust?
• Have you forgiven Him?
  

• Our share of hardship
• Do you think that hardship can be rewarding?
• If you are totally "in the right place at the right time" with God, is it easy?  Does our following God in such circumstances "just flow", or is that too much to ask?
• How do you tell whether hardship in life isn't just because you "took a wrong turn" somewhere in your following God?
• How do you tell that you're where you're supposed to be?
  

• Rise and do not be afraid
  
• Human touch has been corrupted by violence so much of late.  We were meant to be healing for each other, a means of connection, our very bodies a living invitation into a larger community.  Instead, so many use their flesh to threaten and coerce.
• Think of a time when human touch meant a great deal to you.  It might have been a hug that you received during a tough time, the gentle embrace of a loved one, a blessing given you by a friend.
• Would that have been as meaningful without the actual contact?
• When was the last time that you healed anyone with your touch?
• Why do you think that the Gospels record so many instances of Jesus touching others?
• How can we be more like that?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. What is God calling me to journey toward this Lent?
2. Where do I need to talk about God about my lack of trust in Him?
   
3. Is God calling me to a new right place and time?
   
4. Where is God calling me to find courage to touch another?
   

One Last Star Rise

My father used to tell me that the stars are always there.
We just cannot see them during the day because their light
Is drowned out by the light of the Sun, so much nearer than they.

I watch the sun setting one last time over the familiar hills
Of my homeland, the burial place of my ancestors.
Turning the nearby lake into liquid gold with the last rays of day.

Then, one by one, some more boldly than the others,
The stars begin to show, as if summoned by the sun's quiet exit,
They take their places on the stage of the night, to say good bye.

Tomorrow I, my family, flocks, and herds will leave this place,
This gentle vale that has sheltered me all my life.
To make our way to a new home, in a distant land that I have never seen.

My wife has said her good byes already, for we start at dawn.
She looks to me with anguish and determination in her eyes -
Knowing that we will never return.  Determined to find what I'm looking for.

All that I really want is the peace of place -
Of being in the right place, doing what's needed, at the right time
Hitting just the right note at the right time in the orchestra of life.

Being totally at home, at peace, ineffably holy before God
Able to live totally His, all out, no holds barred.
I just never thought it would be so fearful, hurt so much.

The stars tell me that even if I travel so far away
That they will no longer rise above the curve of the horizon
That they are there for me, just as present as ever.

So I memorize their shapes, the pictures in the sky that they paint.
Knowing that my old friends will be ever faithful to me.
Even if I cannot see them.

The tell me that God is always faithful, always there.
Even when the immanent, the day to day blot out his face from view.
He is there, He is here, supporting me, just as surely as this staff in my hand.

All that I have to do is lift up my eyes to see Him,
Stretch out my hand to grasp His,
And let my trust run riot, my faith burn furious, and my feet -

Let my feet carry me over the next horizon, beyond imagination
Beyond all sight,
Into what only He can see.

Shalom!

First Sunday of Lent

Our readings for the 1st Sunday in Lent are:

1. Genesis 2: 7-9, 3: 1-7
   
2. Psalms 51: 3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 17
   
3. Romans 5: 12-19
   
4. Matthew 4: 1-11
   

• Avoiding sin
  
• Most of us know some of our weaknesses, and have the sense to avoid them.  The alcoholic avoids parties that they know will be swimming in alcohol.  The person who lashes out in anger will avoid those who perversely seek to arouse that anger.  Down through the ages, folks have wondered what Adam and Eve could have done to avoid bringing sin into the world.
• What is something that you do to avoid the occasion to sin?
• How did you come to that practice?
• Do you think that God would ever call you to set that avoidance aside for a greater good?

• Awareness of sin
• Sin in our lives is easy to miss.  Just the daily challenges of survival can occupy all of our available energy and concentration to the point that we miss our own yearnings for closeness to God, we settle for something less than what He has to offer us, and we die a little inside.
• How do you tell when you're straying from God's best for you?
• How much effort does it take to be sensitive to those messages?
• How might you be more sensitive to those warning signs?
• What can you do to make that increased sensitivity a part of your daily life?
  

• Receiving the abundance
  
• Presumption and despair are two sins that seem unrelated.  Presumption tells us that our sin is not that great, that it is not mortal, that God would never exclude us for what we have done.  Despair tells us that God's mercy is not wide enough to cover our sin, that God could never admit one such as us into heaven.  God offers hope.
• What is it in heaven that you hope for?
• How has that hope matured, deepened, evolved through the years in your life?
• Do you think that your hope is better founded now than it was in the past?
• What can you do to deepen that hope further?
  

• Temptation strategy
  
• The enemy of human nature (as Ignatius terms Satan) is nothing if not clever.  Tempting us with our basic needs, calling into question our identity before God are hard things to turn away from.  But the hardest temptation might be seize what we had once, and have given up for something even better.
• What are some things that you've given up in your walk with Jesus?  Maybe a promising job so that you could be close to your kids or to care for an aging relative, moving from one ministry to take up another, giving up the freshness of your youth that you might be more seasoned.
• How do you feel about that decision?
• If you had it to do over again, would you?
• How did you make that discernment?

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Am I putting myself in sin's way?
2. Where is God calling me to be more aware of myself and my sin??
   
3. How strong is my hope?
   
4. Am I too attached to anything in my life?
   

Where are you?

I looked for you in our garden today.
The one that we have tended together.
Hand in hand, heart to heart,
Gently coaxing the fruit of the field,
That you might live abundantly.

Through you, I could feel the soft, yielding loam
The eager soil, ever ripe for fertilization.
I felt the sun on your back,
The gentle coolness of spring water,
Refreshing you as you drink, and give thanks.

In your eyes, I could see the sun's abundant rays,
And know that it was all good,
All fertile, all life-giving,
All a celebration of my love poured out
To and for you, and all the cosmos.

And now, now you have banished me.
Your pride has severed our communion
You and I no longer able to touch,
To hold,
To listen, each to the other's heartbeat.

My grief is as great as my love.
My heart is consumed in an ache,
That I can find no cure for -
As I longingly watch you stumble
In the darkness that you have chosen over me.

In your confusion,
All that you can think of is who to blame.
You don't even miss what you've thrown away.
You don't even know where your nakedness comes from,
Just that you no longer know where home has vanished to.

Down, down, down through the centuries,
I call your children telling them:
Come back to me, with all you heart,
I am merciful, merciful is your God.
I offer you light and wholeness.

Just tear down the walls of indifference,
Pride, greed, fear.
And trust that I Am who, what you have always needed.
Come to your true home
That's been there for you from eternity to eternity.

Shalom!

Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time are:

1. Leviticus 19: 1-2, 17-18
   
2. Psalms 103: 1-2, 3-4, 8, 10, 12-13
   
3. 1 Corinthians 3: 16-23
   
4. Matthew 5: 38-48
   

• Reproving each other
  
• None of us likes to be corrected.  Even if we 100% agree with the correction, we hate to hear (or see) that correction.  We get defensive, and often say things that we regret later.  By then it is very difficult to ask forgiveness and start the healing process in that damaged relationship.
• If someone you love is not living up to their potential, is it more loving to keep silent, or to let them know that you are concerned?
• Is there any solid way to make sure that your correction will be taken in the way that you mean it?
• Is there any solid way to make sure that you mean that correction the way that you like to think that you do?
• How might be the best way to "remove the beam from your own eye before removing the splinter from your brother's eye?"
  

• Finding the kindness in God
  
• In the first reading, God calls us to be holy, for He is holy.  That holiness has many facets, one of them is kindness.  But God's kindness can sometimes be hard to find, or recognize.
• How has God been kind to you during your life?
• How did that kindness of God change you?
• Is that kindness still changing you?
• Have you become more kind because of that?
  

• Tabernacles or tabernacle?
  
• Looking at ourselves and seeing that we are temples of the Holy Spirit is a sobering reflection.  But what if it doesn't end there?  What if we as a community, with all of our hurts, warts, and weaknesses are also a temple of the Holy Spirit?
• What do you think a temple of the Holy Spirit is supposed to accomplish?
• Is that possible if the temple has been through trauma?
• Is there a communal healing needed in our church, and beyond?
• Where do we start?
  

• The secret of happiness
  
• Fr. Peter was often heard to say that to be happy, we needed to seek holiness.  Those around us have different priorities.  We are taught in a thousand examples that security, fame, plentiful liquid assets, and a well-appointed summer home in the Hamptons are all ways to happiness.  Jesus leads in other directions.
• What makes you truly happy?
• How do you tell true happiness from something less than what God has for you?
• Have you ever been disappointed by something/someone that you thought was going to make you happy, but did not?
• Is it necessarily the case that greater happiness comes with greater freedom?
  

• Preparation for Reconciliation
  

1. Is there any hatred or anger that God is calling me to set aside?
2. Am I known for my kindness?
   
3. How is God calling me to build a stronger, more centered us?
   
4. Where is God offering me happiness that I might be afraid to venture?
   

It's All Holy

I try to remember to bless myself when I pass a Church.
Catholic or not.  God's Presence is probably there.
And I'm not taking any chances.

In the blessing I salute the acts of generosity,
The hands that have reached out to touch the weak,
The absorbent shoulder that others can cry on.

I touch the kindness and mercy that has been celebrated there,
The healing that has restored hope to the despondent,
The warmth of hugs given and received.

I hear words of comfort borne of love and courage.
Love that bears the hurt of another,
Courage that opens a heart in tender empathy.

I smell the aromas of a thousand community potlucks,
Gallons of coffee brewed and consumed at AA meetings,
Fellowship rejoiced in over bread generously given and received.

All of it sacramental,
All of it conveying Christ intimately and immanently,
All of it present through all time.

And if present through all time,
That Presence is Present through all space.
And I know that, to honor that Presence, 

To honor that Presence will take more than a gesture on my part.
It requires that I open myself to the knitting together
Of God's children wherever I find them.

Every place, every time, every circumstance
Is charged with the Presence of God if I let it.
It's All Holy if I can just open up to that Holiness.

Shalom!