A Contemplative Space

Retreat

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Fri, 13 Jan 2017 23:45:00 +0000

There are times when I need to step out of things to de-stress or refocus, I need a change of pace or just a break from the everyday stuff.

We moved recently. When our house went on the market we anticipated that it could take well over a year to sell. Other large, old homes in the neighborhood like ours had sometimes taken two or three years to move. So when we had an offer that involved closing in three months we stepped up our downsizing to warp speed. It was a full-time job to sort our possessions for donating, selling and tossing, and then getting the kids to come home from grad school to do the same. Then there was the packing - actually, that's one of my favorite parts of moving! But it was a lot of hard work.

Finally we left a clean and sparkling home for our buyers and hit the road. Three days of driving across country helped to put a period on that part of our lives but then we had the job of unpacking everything in Arizona, in the heat of July! More hard work.

To say we were a little frazzled after everything was unpacked and in its place is an understatement! Then my husband revealed that he had booked us in at a local retreat center for a two-day retreat. What a lovely surprise! He had never been on a retreat before and neither of us had been to this particular retreat center so it was an adventure for both of us.

We spent time together praying and meditating, and walked the grounds of the Franciscan Renewal Center that sits at the base of Camel Back Mountain in Scottsdale. It was just what we needed to refresh ourselves.

No schedule, nothing to organize, no appointments just some well-needed peace and quiet.

It was a gift to ourselves. I highly recommend it.

Sue

Photo credit

The Maestro of the Lake

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Fri, 02 Oct 2015 02:54:00 +0000

In silver grey raiment,

He looms,
Poised and pedantic,

Overseeing the adagio lakeness.

Thrashing in shallows

Are former koi

Now dark, whiskered Pirates

Bereft of their gold.

Percussive plop of turtles and frogs,

Launched sideways

By twigs snapping.

Joyous melody of finch and fellows

Singing in their creation.

Stand in shadowed snail shallows

And am transfixed.

Drawn to heaven by

The transcending flight of hawk,

Lifted by the lake

But grounded

Back to where I need to be.

Finale

The Maestro soars on wide wings

Cutting the sky like an arrow.

Photo: William the Coroner

Everything stops for...

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Sat, 19 Sep 2015 22:02:00 +0000

Tea. Let's start with this Tea music which illustrates perfectly how we Brits look at our tea-time!

Born and raised in England, I grew up feeling that tea was just part of the fabric of society. When anyone visits, even if it's an official such as a police officer, you offer a cup of tea. If the dishwasher repairman is working in your kitchen, you offer a cup of tea. Part of First Aid training treatment for shock is a cup of strong, sweet tea. When someone has died, the first thing done is usually to put the kettle on for tea.

This ritual of making a drink has become a vehicle of comfort, a sustenance, a way to impart sympathy in those moments where words desert us. The panacea for every situation is ... a cup of tea.

Even in the workplace, tea serves a function. We had a 'tea lady' at work who would bring round tea and biscuits (cookies) for everyone in the afternoon. Her visit to our office was heralded by the sound of the tea trolley coming down the corridor, the rattle of cups and spoons. You could almost feel the collective sigh of relief from everyone as they realized it was 'that' time - time for a break.

Even if we didn't actually stop working for very long it was a welcome interruption in our day, a time to draw breath, a few minutes of regrouping that helped recharge us to carry on.

The ceremonial aspects of having tea with others, even in an informal setting, are something I have always found soothing. A large tea-pot, beautiful china tea-cups (or plain stoneware mugs), milk (not cream) and a fragrant tea blend like Jasmine - all the ingredients for a refreshing half-hour, preferably with friends. Someone has to be "mother," that is, the person who pours the tea out. The cups of tea are passed round and everyone relaxes.

There is no need for forced conversation. Sipping tea together in quiet reflection is as companionable as being in lively conversation.

Do you take a break in your day? What is your ritual?

Sue
Photo credits:http://www.keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk/

Imagine that!!

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Sun, 16 Aug 2015 01:03:00 +0000

I love workshops! Attending them and leading them. Learning stuff, teaching stuff, discussing the material, reporting back to the group, being collaborative ... Designing a program, researching material, writing hand-outs, making a Power Point presentation, organizing different methods of presenting material ... It lights my fire!

source

And at today's workshop I found out why.

The subject of today's workshop was "Strengths Finder" - an assessment tool designed by Gallup using extensive research from their polling, which helps you determine your strengths. Originally written for the business community, it's also applicable to churches or anywhere there are teams or groups working together.

It was pointed out that from our earliest assessments (read 'school report cards') we are encouraged to take note of, and work on, those subjects where we got a C or D, or a U. We are supposed to work on our weaknesses and improve those grades. But strength psychology reverses this and encourages us to build on our strengths.

But, hey, first you have to know what your strengths are and for some of us that can be difficult.

Certainly there are an abundance of psychological tests out there -- tests to find your role in a team, whether you are an introvert or an extravert, or how your birth order affects your marriage. The Meyers-Briggs test comes to mind.

But Strengths Finder assesses your strengths, gives you input on where those strengths can be applied, and strategies for using them to help build whatever group or organization you are in, amongst other things.

The pastor leading our workshop also told us that they use this assessment in their premarital counseling and shared stories of how it had helped marriages, even one where the couple had been married for 60 years!

No, this isn't a paid endorsement!! But after doing my assessment and sitting in the workshop, I realized why I love workshops so much - it's one facet of my top strength, Learner. The description fits me like the proverbial glove. Looking at the 'ideas for action' for Learner will help me use and build on this strength, and know how I can more effectively serve at Church, in my community, and perhaps even in my marriage.

Do you know what your strengths are?

And does anyone need me to lead a workshop?!

Sue

As the End of Advent Approaches ...

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 02:41:00 +0000

An adaptation of this beautiful poem was part of the liturgy in our Longest Night Service this evening.

First Coming
by Madeleine L’Engle

He did not wait till the world was ready,
till men and nations were at peace.
He came when the Heavens were unsteady,
and prisoners cried out for release.

He did not wait for the perfect time.
He came when the need was deep and great.
He dined with sinners in all their grime,
turned water into wine.

He did not wait till hearts were pure.
In joy he cameto a tarnished world of sin and doubt.
To a world like ours, of anguished shame
he came, and his Light would not go out.

He came to a world which did not mesh,
to heal its tangles, shield its scorn.
In the mystery of the Word made Flesh
the Maker of the stars was born.

We cannot wait till the world is sane
to raise our songs with joyful voice,
for to share our grief, to touch our pain,
He came with Love: Rejoice! Rejoice!

Amen!

More Glass in the Garden

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Mon, 27 Jan 2014 05:30:00 +0000

Most days I'm

Wriggling upward,

Distracted, diverted, dithering.

Then,

A hidden diamond of a day finds me

where I

Directed.

What's My Job?

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Sat, 25 Jan 2014 15:37:00 +0000

commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Licht_god.jpg

How do we live in the light?

How do we share Jesus?

I learned a lesson from a Moravian artifact from the 1600's ... Come over to Jewels and join me :-)

Sometimes ...

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Wed, 22 Jan 2014 05:02:00 +0000

Sometimes I need a burst of fire in my ashy day,

A light to draw me in,

A prayer to pray.

Preparing for Baby!

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Tue, 17 Dec 2013 15:07:00 +0000

Nils Fretwurst via Wikimedia Commons

I'm preparing for baby over at the Devotional Blog, Jewels of Encouragement.
Come join me!

Finding God in All Things

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Thu, 28 Nov 2013 23:48:00 +0000

A lady I know, who is in her 40’s, had taken her husband back several times after he had been unfaithful in their marriage. One day she came home from work to discover that he was leaving her to be with the other woman. Oh, and by the way, he’d stopped making mortgage payments months ago, so their house was in foreclosure and about to be reclaimed by the bank. She was now suddenly single, and unexpectedly homeless.

Another woman and her husband had adopted a child from an orphanage overseas. It had been a long drawn-out process, with lots of screening, many trips abroad, and much red tape. When they brought their new daughter home she settled really well into American life and thrived.

A year ago, the husband took a new job in another state, so they sold their house and moved leaving their extended family behind. A few months after the move, the husband informed his wife that he was leaving her for another woman. My friend, with no family or support in their new location, eventually moved back to their old neighborhood and started over. The ex-husband is only in sporadic contact with his daughter and the mother's heart breaks as she sees her daughter experiencing yet another abandonment in her short life.

(I have changed some of the details in their stories to retain confidentiality.)

As a facilitator for three years of a support group for separated and divorced people, I have heard many heart-wrenching stories like these.How can people going through difficult times find God in all things, how can they even feel the love of Christ?

Often when we talk about finding God in all things a lot of us think about beautiful experiences we’ve had where we feel close to Jesus – seeing a newborn baby, taking Holy Communion on Christmas Eve, finding God in an art work or an aria. I trained as a geologist and am an avid gardener so I find God very easily in nature and all aspects of creation. The expanses of the Sonoran Desert, and the dark and heat of a coal-mine are places where I have sensed God with me. Even weeding and trimming bushes are activities where I experience His presence in a meaningful way.

William Barry calls these our “thin places”, those moments where we find God, and Barry encourages us to name them.

Some people, like the writer Kathleen Norris, find God in the mundane tasks of life that we repeat every day. One of her thin places was hanging out the laundry in her back yard on the windy plains of South Dakota. She writes,

“During the unspeakably brutal winter of 1996-1997, with nearly thirty inches of snow on the ground by Thanksgiving, I had had enough by the time the spring blizzards came – another three feet of snow and high winds on the eighth of April – that I set out one morning, ablaze with the warmth of an angry determination, to shovel a path to the clothesline in order to hang something colorful there. As I began to handle the wet clothes, my hands quickly reddened, stung with cold, but it seemed worth doing nonetheless, simply to break the hold of winter on my spirit – and to disrupt the monotony of the white moonscape that our backyard had become. And even though the clothes freeze-dried stiffly, and had to be thawed in the house, they had the sky-scent of summer on them.”

Norris was eager to be doing something that brought her into a spiritual place. Hanging laundry took on the form of liturgy for her – the repetition of a mundane act being a means of communing with God. Even Saint Therese of Lisieux admitted that Christ was more present to her not “during my hours of prayer... but rather in the midst of daily occupations.”

When I became a Christian at age 14, the only people I knew that went to church were the people in my best friend’s youth group. Their church wason the opposite side of Sheffield from where I lived, an hour’s bus ride away. All the teens went to the Evensong service, and the Youth Group was on Monday nights.

My parents were not really convinced about my newfound faith. But they allowed me to go to church and youth group with my friends on condition that I was on the 9:30 bus each night, which got me home at 10:30pm. The driving age in England is 17, and it would be a few years before I could drive myself there.

So for two hours on Sunday nights, and two hours on Monday nights I rode the bus. Often I was the only passenger on the ride home, so I made sure that I sat downstairs where the driver could see me. Half of the journey was through the industrial part of the city, where the steel factories were. It had few street lamps and there was not much traffic. Traveling through this dark and gloomy area at night, especially in winter, I felt like I was in a ship, the only light voyaging through the dark and dangerous unknown.

The wonderful thing about those bus rides was the time it gave me to think and ponder. As well as all the usual teenage stuff – who liked who, what so-and-so said - I would muse on the sermon, or what we’d read in the youth group’s Bible study. The prayers of Evensong would ring in my mind.

One especially, gave me great comfort on the bus:

“Lighten our darkness,

Lord, we pray,

And in your great mercy

Defend us from all perils and dangers of this night,

For the love of your only Son,

Our Saviour Jesus Christ.

Amen”

I prayed for God to be with me on the bus, and I think that those long, solitary journeys in the dark were my first “thin places.”

So, all of us have had experience of finding God in beautiful things. Some of us find God in doing the mundane, repetitious activities of daily life, the events of the every-day, the tasks that are necessary to civilized living.

Back to the ladies I mentioned at the beginning. How do they find God in all things? How do we find God in turbulent times, when our life is in crisis, when the unspeakable happens?

In the divorce support group people come to the first meeting, hesitant, hurting deeply, wounded emotionally and spiritually, and not taking care of themselves physically. As they share their stories with each other, their load lightens slightly with the realization that other people are also going through this trauma - they are not on their own. They meet people who have just gone through a similar situation, and are now doing better – they gain hope. The counselors on the DVDs inform them that what they are feeling is normal, and gradually things will change and improve. Most importantly, they are reminded of God’s promises that He is with them, and they are precious to Him. We pray for their situations, and ask God to be with them.

In the following weeks, invariably one of them has an experience of light shining in their dark situation. They sensed God with them, even thoughpreviously they had doubted it. Perhaps a friend, who hasn’t been in contact for years, suddenly calls and reestablishes a connection, providing a listening ear just when it was needed. An offer is made out of the blue for garage space for someone who was worried about digging her car out of the snow to go to work. Little things to you and me, but very important things to these folks.

When I was in a terribly difficult period of my life with a family member’s health problems, I couldn’t even open my Bible to read it, prayers would die unspoken on my lips, and each day loomed large and despairing. It was my friends who made sure they kept pointing me to Jesus, and lifting the curtain so I could see Him. They were willing to say the same words of encouragement to me repeatedly, until I was able to grasp them instead of letting them slip away. Eventually, I got to the point where I spiritually turned around and was able to see Jesus, who had been at my side the whole time. I found God in my friends. I found God in offers of practical help. I found God in the worship at church going on around me, even when I couldn’t worship.

Sometimes when we don't feel that God is with us, we have to look back. Then we see that He was there, He was there with us in those wondrous moments; He was with us while we were doing the ironing, and He definitely was close while we were in pain.

Chipmunks and a Lesson for Life

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Thu, 17 Oct 2013 13:55:00 +0000

Today I'm writing about what my buddy in the photo helped show me. Please come and join me over at Jewels of Encouragement. I'd love to know if this is a lesson you are still learning, like me, or if this is something that you find easy to do.

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Tue, 17 Sep 2013 14:58:00 +0000

Today I'm over at Jewels of Encouragement writing about finding God in less than perfect situations. I'd love to have you join me and share your own experiences.

Growing Patience

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Tue, 10 Sep 2013 20:53:00 +0000

I remember sitting in church as a teenager and hearing 1 Corinthians 13 for the first time.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:4-13

When the person read, "Love is patient," I don't think I heard anything else he said after that.

"Uh oh," was my first thought.

Patience was not something I had a lot of. As the oldest of two girls I was always waiting for my sister to catch up or grow up. My attitude to her was one of tolerance with a good dose of impatience thrown in.

Hearing that patience was included in this wonderful definition of love made me feel like a failure before I'd even started! I was a new Christian, feeling my way in this new life that had opened up, and still thought that it was all up to me.

Thankfully I had some wonderful teachers and mentors in that small church family I became a part of. They introduced me to the gifts of the Holy Spirit, God's grace, and prayer. When you have these in your life, stuff gets accomplished, and exercised, and blossoms, and you are sometimes blown away by the sheer audacity of God!

But it's still a journey.

God's grace doesn't gift us with the entirety of what we need at the beginning of our journey.

We learn and grow.

Letting Go ...

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Tue, 03 Sep 2013 18:11:00 +0000

Letting go. It’s a hard thing to do, and unfortunately we usually have to experience it cold turkey without any practice sessions or dummy runs. As adults we’ve experienced it in relationships or job situations. But the hardest time is when you’re a parent.

It’s that time of year for many parents all over the world. Our child goes off to college, or boot camp, or that year abroad, or that new job in another state.

We have to cheerfully let them go, trusting that they will make good decisions when they meet with obstacles and learn from their mistakes. And the one thing we can depend on is that they WILL make mistakes. Skills are usually learned through trial and error so perhaps we should be hoping that our child will make mistakes.

Okay, that may be hard to get our mind around!

Obviously we don’t want anything horrendous or serious to happen, but I think we as parents overlook the powerful benefits of letting our kids have negative experiences without us rescuing them. And I’m talking to myself, too! There’s nothing worse than hearing that your child, who lives an eight hour drive away, is going through something difficult. Your heart skips a beat and you want to step in and save them; especially if they that’s what they want you to do.

Our daughter just spent a year in the South Pacific – she really couldn’t have been further away from us if she’d tried! She was a recent college graduate with a fairly sensible, and definitely independent, personality. Her stay there included some difficult situations, most notably with cars! And even if we heard about them in real time there was nothing we could do to help, even if she wanted us to.

When she came home and I met her at the airport, the first thing I noticed was how she held herself. She was no longer a dependent of ours, a student, or even a young adult. She was an adult. I could see it in her bearing, and in her face. She had been truly independent for the first time, in control of every part of her day-to-day life. It hadn't always been wonderful, things didn’t always work out how she wanted, but she had survived.

She’d done more than that though, she’d grown.

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Sat, 17 Aug 2013 14:07:00 +0000

Today I'm over at another contemplative space with some wonderful folks. Please come join me and let me know what you think about Beep Baseball and living a risky life. I've got my cup of coffee, so just click on the button below to visit!

Fireflies and Super Moons!

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 12:31:00 +0000

Last night I saw my first firefly of the season. I still get a thrill watching the little flashes of light dance through our flowers and shrubs. There's that itch to go grab a jar to catch them in so that we can watch them for ever.

Flying fire, or Lightning Bugs ..? I think Lightning Bugs said in a beautiful southern drawl is definitely my favorite name for them.

T.Kiya さん http://www.flickr.com/photos/cq-biker/

My continued wonderment with the little things stems, I think, from the fact that I was 25 years old the first time I saw one. So I have that childish enthusiasm for them now that I missed out on when I was young.

Then tonight I'm hoping to see the super moon, one of three in 2013. Apparently this one will be the closest to earth of the three, so is the most special. When I was a child, great emphasis was always placed on the thing that was the 'most special.' And to be a 'most special' super moon just seems to be a superlative event!

Tim McCord via space.com

So this week I watch light - sparkling flashes of light produced by an amorous winged beetle, and the reflected light of the sun beamed down to earth through the dark by the large rocky satellite that we call the moon.

And this light reminds me of God.

Sometimes I experience Him in small glimpses, almost out of the corner of my eye. He seems to delight in surprising me with His presence when I least expect it, when I'm focused on other things. He gifts me with a flash of knowledge of His presence with me, a comforting touch, or a word that heals.

But at other times He is unmistakably present, and glorious! He is not on the periphery, but I feel Him as fully present, and can bask in His love. I often experience God in this way when I'm in community, at church, both in times in times of heartfelt need when my church family comes together to pray, and to tug at the hem of his robe, and say "Please ..." and in times of celebration when we say "Thank you."

Nature's Glory

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 18:24:00 +0000

This week, I escaped the cold, brownness of Cleveland's weather by visiting the Orchid Show at the Botanical Gardens with a friend. What a glorious feast of colour!

Whimsical flowers in luscious shades stood tall or dangled from above.

The colour combinations and patterns were beautiful.

I think Orchids are some of the best-dressed flowers in Nature!

Five Minute Friday - Home

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 20:02:00 +0000

Home is one of those emotive words that has 50 shades of meaning depending on who is speaking it.

When I am speaking it, I think of a place where I am loved and allowed to be myself. Loved unconditionally, and accepted for all my idiosyncrasies. Hmmm, writing that has given me pause. I need to remember that when our young adult daughter is home. I have realized that, unconsciously, I have been trying to make her in my mold, and she is not. She is a unique creation.

Anyway, back to the topic ... home for me is all about who I am with and the community I am planted in. In the last 25 years my husband and I have lived in 9 different houses in 4 states, and oh yes, we emigrated here from England 25 years ago.

So, needless to say, that I have fond memories of us being in those very different homes. But the thread running through them all, that makes them each a home for that time, is love.

Just recently I went on Google Earth and traveled down every street that I have lived on. I took a virtual tour of my life and looked at every place I have called 'home.' It was so interesting to see how the various houses had stayed the same, or changed, or the area had grown. Fleeting glimpses of my life flickered in my mind as I 'stood' outside each place.

It made me feel like a nomad, a hermit crab, a wanderer.

But I realized that everything I need to feel at home is in the people around me: love, acceptance, laughter, church, and hope.

Stop.

Click on the button to see other blogs in the link up!

Leaving My Comfort Zone

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 22:03:00 +0000

Lent is not an easy journey to take. If we've been fasting, whether from food or from Face Book, then we've experienced a self-denial in some form. So practicing Lent gives us pause, and takes us out of our comfort zone.

Joshua Davis

Wikipedia defines 'comfort zone' as, "a behavioural state within which a person operates in an anxiety-neutral condition, using a limited set of behaviours to deliver a steady level of performance, usually without a sense of risk."

Well, according to that definition, who would want to leave an 'anxiety-neutral' state? Who would want to choose 'risk' over 'no risk'? Who would want to step out of a culture that encourages self-absorption, concern with the frivolous, and avoidance of the needs of others?

In a very interesting article Pau Vidal, a new priest working with the Jesuit Refugee Service in Kenya, talks about the three people Pope Benedict mentioned in his Ash Wednesday remarks. All three people were folks who stepped out of their comfort zones: Pavel Florensky, a brilliant Russian scientist who became an Orthodox priest and was eventually executed by the Russian State, Etty Hillesum, a Dutch Jew who was killed in Auschwitz, and Dorothy Day, founder of the Catholic Worker Movement. Vidal states, "these three provide a radical testimony of what it means to leave our comfort zones and let ourselves be transformed by the Spirit."

And, as Methodists, who better a role model of leaving our comfort zone than John Wesley himself. Wesley, an Anglican priest, had a good friend from college, George Whitfield. Whitfield was an evangelist who preached to the poor in England and America. After some persuasion, Wesley decided to join Whitfield preaching to coal miners, in the open, in Bristol.

Wesley recounts,"I could scarce reconcile myself to this strange way of preaching in the fields, of which he [Whitefield] set me an example on Sunday; having been all my life till very lately so tenacious of every point relating to decency and order, that I should have thought the saving of souls almost a sin if it had not been done in a church." (James M. Buckley, A History of Methodism in the United States, vol. 1 (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1898), 88-89.)

It has to be noted that, "coal mining was the most undesirable job available to anybody in 18th century England. They and their families lived in abject poverty. They were considered dirty and dishonest and violent. They were not welcomed in respectable Anglican churches.
George Whitfield preached to the coal miners in an open field in Bristol. Good respectable Anglicans considered this an embarrassingly tacky thing to do" (http://www.foundryumc.org/sermons/9_21_2003.pdf.)

http://tinyurl.com/a6axkk5

But from this point on Wesley's spiritual life takes a sharp turn. Once he stepped out of his comfort zone (preaching to the clean, decorous congregants in beautiful churches) and took to open fields to bring God to the unchurched, outcast, dirty coal-miners, things changed for him. “Up to this point (in his spiritual life) the story is full of anxiety, insecurity, futility. Hereafter, the instances of spiritual disturbances drop off sharply and rarely recur, even in the full records of a very candid man” (Albert Outler, Editor, “John Wesley” (Oxford University Press), p. 17.) Preaching as he did to the miners led to the demise of his career as an Anglican priest, but it led to a spiritual awakening for him and he began to experience what salvation, forgiveness, grace and peace truly mean.

So, again, why would we want to leave our comfort zone? It seems that when we do, the Holy Spirit can work in us, transform us, and great things happen in the Kingdom of God. Wesley found himself preaching to groups as large as 3,000, made up of people who would never have been welcomed in a church. He brought God, education and hope to many who had been overlooked and discounted as unworthy by the ruling classes, and even the church.

Certainly there are risks to this. Wesley was considered a traitor to his class, Anglican priests reviled and resisted him, violent mobs broke up meetings and attacked the preachers.

Will fasting this Lent bring risks for us? Will turning to God and opening up ourselves to the Holy Spirit by leaving our comfort zone change us?

What would leaving your comfort zone look like?

This post is linked to Spiritual Sundays.

This Lent - Fasting in My Christian Community

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 21:29:00 +0000

At Church of the Saviour in Cleveland Heights where our family worships, the theme for the church year is Hunger. So for Lent we are reading as a community, "A Place at the Table" by Chris Seay.

In this book Chris teaches about fasting, not only as a prayer practice or an act of sacrifice, but also as a sign of solidarity with the poor. He suggests living for 40 days as the poor do. It may be through eating rice and beans every day as many people who live in Central and South America do. It may be by living on the equivalent of Food Stamps, as many single parent families do. It may be by cutting down the amount of food we eat and stopping snacking. It may be by forgoing a meal once a week.

Chris suggests that whatever money we save by our method of fasting, we donate it to a charity serving the poor. At our church we will be packing meals through Feed My Starving Children and hope to pack enough for 100,000 meals!

We are 10 days into Lent and it has been interesting to hear people talk about their experience thus far. A few of my friends in our Bible study group commented on how they had been feeling hungry some days, and how that had been something they hadn't felt in a long while.

One friend, whose family is eating rice and beans for their main meal, shared that her teenage son jumped into the car after school and said, "What are we having for... oh, I guess I know already!"

Another friend told how she wasn't having to buy as much food because she had cut down on portions, and noticed not only how much money she was saving, but also how much better she felt physically.

What we are all noticing is the ABUNDANCE most of us have, and how we take it for GRANTED. We have access to so much variety, we use in excess, and we are wasteful in many of our eating habits.

This is aside from the spiritual effect that living sacrificially has on our soul and our walk with God.

Our church is using a blog COTS Fasts and Feasts to share experiences, recipes (lots of rice and beans!), resources and prayers in order to encourage each other on this journey. Feel free to join us and comment on fasting experiences that you have had. Today's prayer is by Sir Francis Drake and sums up for me what God might be doing in our lives this Lenten season.

Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves,

When our dreams have come true

Because we have dreamed too little,

When we arrived safely

Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, when

With the abundance of things we possess

We have lost our thirst

For the waters of life;

Having fallen in love with life,

We have ceased to dream of eternity

And in our efforts to build a new earth,

We have allowed our vision

Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,

To venture on wider seas

Where storms will show your mastery;

Where losing sight of land,

We shall find the stars.

We ask You to push back

The horizons of our hopes;

And to push into the future

In strength, courage, hope, and love.

Sir Francis Drake

God Didn't Wait

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 22:15:00 +0000

The last couple of weeks have been filled with senseless loss. Thank goodness God didn't wait until

we were ready to receive Him, until we were perfectly behaved, until there was no violence and

conflict. This beautiful poem by Madeleine L'Engle says it all.

First Coming

He did not wait till the world was ready,
till men and nations were at peace
He came when the Heavens were unsteady
and prisoners cried out for release.

He did not wait for the perfect time.
He came when the need was deep and great.
He died with sinners in all their grime,
turned water into wine. He did not wait

till hearts were pure. In joy he came
to a tarnished world of sin and doubt.
To a world like ours, of anguished shame
He came, and his Light would not go out.

He came to a world which did not mesh,
to heal its tangles, shield its scorn.
In the mystery of the Word made Flesh
the Maker of the stars was born.

We cannot wait till the world is sane
to raise our songs with joyful voice,
for to share our grief, to touch our pain,
He came with Love: Rejoice!

Snow on Snow ...

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 01:10:00 +0000


It's snowing in Cleveland with a winter storm warning, white-out conditions yesterday, and snow flurries forecast for Christmas Eve. Which brings to mind one of my favorite Christmas Carols. The beautiful words are a poem by Christina Rossetti.


In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan, 



earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone; 



snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow, 
In the bleak midwinter, long ago.

Our God, heaven cannot hold him, nor earth sustain;

heaven and earth shall flee away when he comes to reign.

In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed

the Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ.


Angels and archangels may have gathered there,


cherubim and seraphim thronged the air; 


but his mother only, in her maiden bliss, 


worshiped the beloved with a kiss.

What can I give him, poor as I am?.


If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb; 




if I were a Wise Man, I would do my part; 


yet what I can I give him:  give my heart.











Have a Blessed Christmas!

Giving it All Away

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 18:57:00 +0000

A young man came and asked Jesus about life, the universe and everything. They chatted and Jesus told him that if he followed what God said, the young man would obtain eternal life.

But, obviously this guy was a type A personality, and he persisted in quizzing Jesus, "I've kept all the commandments, so what else is there for me to do?"

"Well," said Jesus, "if you want to be perfect ...?" Yes, the young man eagerly nods his head.

"Then sell all you have, give the money to those who are in need, and follow me."

Now it turns out that this man was very wealthy, so not only would selling all he had be hard for him to do, but it would involve a complete change in his life. He would have to give up his life-style, give up any inheritance to pass on to children, indeed he may have to give up the chance to have a family.

Would his desire to be perfect be able to overcome the cost entailed? All we know is that when he left Jesus he was sad.

But we do know someone whose desire to know God in such a way caused him to part with his great wealth to the benefit of those in need. In fact we celebrate him today, on the anniversary of his death - December 6, 343 AD. His name is St. Nicholas. Born into a wealthy family, his parents died when he was young. However they had raised him to be a strong Christian, and he dedicated his life to serving the poor by providing for them.

I particularly love the story of how he saved three young sisters from slavery. Their father was very poor. In the those days for a girl to get married she had to have a dowry. The more money her family had for a dowry, the better the husband she could have. But a poor family with three daughters - no way they had any hopes of a dowry. But the family could not support them if they remained single, so their father would have to sell them into slavery.

However, they did not end up as slaves because a bag of gold was tossed through their window on three separate occasions, landing in socks that were drying by the fire. The mysterious giver of this money that meant they were able to marry was, of course, Nicholas.

St. Nicholas, known for his generosity to the poor, his love of children, and his concern for sailors and ships, is who we emulate at Christmas in our gift-giving. He, according to Jesus, was perfect - he sold all he had, gave to the poor, and followed Jesus.

The P-word - politics, peace and peeps.

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 01:43:00 +0000

The P word - politics: it's either totally off-putting, or a call to intense debate often leading to mud-slinging, even among friends. How have we come to this? How have we taken up such partisan positions with no thought for future compromise? Is it Washington setting the tone, or is it the TV ads, and the inevitable fact-checking that presupposes untruths will be bandied about?

The length of the whole Presidential election process is so protracted that to those of us that are not political animals these last weeks are as painful as fingernails scraping on a blackboard. Especially if you live in a swing state as I do. Constant robocalls, endless political flyers in the mail, and a barrage of talking heads on every local call-in program ... it's enough to make the most placid person crazy.

Even among friends I find it difficult to talk about my own position. I have friends on the right, and friends on the left, which of course is normal. But the tone of political discourse, even on social media, does not encourage a frank exchange of views. Rather I am made to feel 'uninformed', 'misguided', or even 'stupid' if I don't agree with 'your' chosen candidate - even among Christians. People assume because I live in a certain place, attend a particular church, or even because I am a Christian, that I will vote a certain way. Please don't assume!!

Many people I talk to confess that their views tend towards a more central position and find themselves without a candidate to vote for that they can confidently support. This leads inevitably to them not voting, and forsaking a part in the political process. Perhaps if all those folks voted for a third party that was a better fit, or wrote in a candidate, this polarized two party system would eventually morph into something that more clearly represents the people? I know, I know, lots of people will tell me that's 'wasting' our vote ... but how can a vote be wasted - it would show that I cared enough to vote, and, that the 2 main parties were not presenting policies that I could align myself with. But this is fodder for another post. Although, I do think that having more than two choices would make for calmer discussion because polarization would not be as much of a factor.

So how can we instill peace into the political process? By peace, I don't mean no disagreements, no debate, no discussion, but peace as in a calm, respectful, un-nasty tone.

Here's what John Wesley advised back in 1774.

"I met those of our society who had votes in the ensuing election, and advised them,

1. to vote, without fee or reward, for the person they judged most worthy;

2. to speak no evil of the person they voted against;

and 3. to take care their spirits were not sharpened against those that voted on the other side."

He is talking about how to act in, and after, the process of voting. If we also took his advice for how to conduct ourselves in the whole political landscape prior to voting I think we could put the 'civil' back into civilization.

Peace and Politics. We are lost without both, but both together seem lost. Let's listen. Let's pray. Let's be civil. Let's vote.

And Peeps? I had to add some sugar to sweeten this post :-)

A Day of Life ...

noreply@blogger.com (Sue Palmer) — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 15:07:00 +0000

Remember those old school pictures where the whole school/year/graduating class was seated in three rows and the photographer took a panoramic photo? He had to start at one end and slowly pan to the other while we all sat as still as we could. (Usually there was some bright spark who was seated at one end, then sneaked behind everyone to sit at the other, thus appearing in the same picture twice.)

Last Saturday felt a bit like I was looking at a panoramic photo of life. I saw friends at different stages of their journey, but added together it formed a whole picture, and could be seen as the complete scan of a human existence.

In the morning I went to the funeral of a writer friend. It was a lovely celebration of his life: full of family, friends, treasured memories, and funny stories. He was a true renaissance man who delighted in the gifts God had given him, and used them to give pleasure to all throughout his long life.

In the afternoon we attended a ceremony where two lives become one. The start of a covenant relationship, the melding together of two existences to create a wonderful whole. The promise of hope, and love, and the sign of faith.

At both services, in the quiet places we could hear the burbling and crying of infant voices. The cooing, as of doves or angels, was a constant reminder of the newness of life, fresh starts, creation, and the love that precedes and encompasses everything. The start of the whole panorama.

Then, in the evening, I learnt of the divorce of a friend, and felt the heartache that colored the words in her message. I heard the sigh and sadness of God at the tearing of a gift, the fracturing of a family, and the end of a beautiful promise. Sadly, every picture of a life has tears and shadows, mistake and regret. Just as a Navajo rug has tiny imperfections to show it is hand-crafted, so a well-lived life will always have scars and imperfections that being human brings.

So, when I looked at the day, a glimpse of the panorama of life, all I could do was echo David's words:

Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory
    in the heavens.
Through the praise of children and infants
    you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
    to silence the foe and the avenger.
When I consider your heavens,
    the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
    which you have set in place,
what is mankind that you are mindful of them,    human beings that you care for them?

You have made them a little lower than the angels
    and crowned them with glory and honor.
You made them rulers over the works of your hands;
    you put everything under their feet:
all flocks and herds,
    and the animals of the wild,
the birds in the sky,
    and the fish in the sea,
    all that swim the paths of the seas.

 Lord, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth! 

                                                                Psalm 8