"God is a God of surprises, so don't predict your own life. There might be some suffering ahead of you, but don't think about that too much. In fact, there maybe be a lot more joy and peace than you yourself can imagine at this moment . . . Really trust, trust, trust, and don't get entangled in the years to come. God really wants you to be alive and fully alive . . . You have a lot to give and you also have a lot of wonderful things to receive . . . It is good to be loved and it is good to love; that is what life is all about. Keep always listening to the words that Jesus heard that are also there for you: 'You are my beloved Son [Daughter] and on you my favour rests.'"
In the collection of letter Love, Henry, Henri Nouwen writes to a young man concerned about his future:
"God is a God of surprises, so don't predict your own life. There might be some suffering ahead of you, but don't think about that too much. In fact, there maybe be a lot more joy and peace than you yourself can imagine at this moment . . . Really trust, trust, trust, and don't get entangled in the years to come. God really wants you to be alive and fully alive . . . You have a lot to give and you also have a lot of wonderful things to receive . . . It is good to be loved and it is good to love; that is what life is all about. Keep always listening to the words that Jesus heard that are also there for you: 'You are my beloved Son [Daughter] and on you my favour rests.'"
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Iris Graville was a burnt out nurse, looking for a life of purpose and balance, when she moved to remote rural Washington community with her family. Toward the end of her two years there, she goes for a hike and has an insight.
"On Boris' bluff, I grasped that I have a part to play, but it's not up to me alone. The carving effect of melting snow and ice, the rush of the river, the new growth after the forest fire taught me that the smallest touch, the briefest contact, the quietest diligence, can make a difference - can change the course of a river. There, I embraced my smallness and my greatness." From the memoir Hiking Naked: A Quaker Woman's Search for Balance forthcoming in Fall of 2017. Today, imagine that Love has a magic wand and any issue that arises for you, Love touches with that wand: A place in your heart that feels broken. A place in your body that hurts. Questions for which you do not yet have answers. Imagine Love touching the wand to those places, and love, like a stream of sparking light, filling and transforming them.
Today, simplify. Whenever you feel you have a choice to make something more complex or to simplify, simplify. Take something off the schedule. Narrow the goals or focus of your project. Handle stresses and fears first with simple solutions such as sleep, healthy food, a hug, a break, some music, some movement, asking for help, saying what you need to say, or just beginng that thing you have been avoiding. Today, no matter what issues arrive for you, the first answer is always "I am deeply loved."
I am annoyed. "I am deeply loved." I am afraid. "I am deeply loved." I don't know what to do next. "I am deeply loved." I feel left out. "I am deeply loved." I failed. "I am deeply loved." I feel hopeless. "I am deeply loved." Feel the depth of Love's love for you wrapping you and permeating your being. Accept it. Let go of any resistance or arguments that you are not worthy or able. If feeling Love's love seems difficult, know that Love itself gives you the power and ability to feel its presence - not your personal effort. That is always the first step. Begin there. Clarity and wisdom will arise from that place. Likewise, when you feel concerned about someone else, before giving advice or taking actions to fix or correct, begin by knowing that you are the loved of Love and then know the same for that other person. Feel the other embraced in Love before you take any steps. After Jesus has died, some of his discouraged disciples return to their original work, fishing. They toil all night, but don't catch anything. Just before dawn, they hear what they later discover to be the risen Jesus calling to them from the shore to "cast their nets on the right side." They do and pull up their nets, heavy with fish.
These are expert fisherman, who most likely have been casting their nets, on both sides of their ship, fruitlessly for hours. But the awareness of the presence of Spirit, Love, more powerful than their sense of hopelessness, pulses through them and makes them effective. After they return to shore and have a morning breakfast with Jesus, they will return to their work as "fishers of men." But not before they have felt the power of Love and Spirit working in their fisherman lives, countering their despair and meeting their immediate needs. Today, feel the presence of Love and Spirit with you, meeting your needs, challenging any sense of ineffectiveness, bringing a sense of a humility, power, effectiveness, and abundance. In a letter to a friend, Henri Nouwen writes, "That power that comes from our deep connectedness to God is life-giving and healing; whereas the power that comes from our need for affirmation and success in the human community leads easily to manipulative and destructive behaviors."
Today, acknowledge and claim and stand in your Love-bestowed power. Don't be afraid of it. Don't reject it. It belongs to you. Love's power has integrity: it is principled, generous, and healthy. Today, accept yourself unconditionally. This does not mean we excuse destructive behavior, but we will only make transformative change by beginning with great compassion and gentleness for ourselves, rooting out aggressive judgment, and recognizing our great beauty. Love gives us the power and ability to see ourselves through divine eyes.
Today, Love is the world's best bodyguard. Love wraps us in affection and safety and protection. Love is an active power, defending our bodies, hearts, and minds. Love gives us the tool of intuition. Love gives us discernment to recognize other's motives. Love give us the wisdom to recognize when we working against our own best interest and the strength to change.
Today, on this first day of the new year, instead of focusing on all the categories of our life in which we feel we need to make progress, instead of a human accounting of all the ways in which we fear we are falling short, instead of planning for the future, focus instead on the awareness of Love right here. Feel the presence of a Love Thomas Merton defines as "mercy within mercy within mercy." Feel Love embracing your weaknesses, forgiving you, delighting in you. Feel Love teaching you who you are. Be still and feel Love--mercy within mercy--defining your relationships and goals--and as the impulse for your actions.
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AuthorTarn Wilson is the author of the memoir The Slow Farm and numerous essays. You may read more of her work at tarnwilson.com. Archives
September 2020
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