Count down for vacation begins... yesterday!

So in 8 days we leave for jolie Montreal - both of us vowed last night not to carp (much) during the next busy week because we are soooooo ready - and the anticipation is growing. Before we go, however, there are pastoral calls to share, worship times to lead, prayer, Eucharist, classes to teach and church administration (for me) and inventory, mailings, art works and more (for Di) to finish.  That is, the quotidian mysteries continue.

And it is funny how when you're not looking and busy getting ready for something else, some beautiful things sometimes pop up and invite your quiet attention.  They speak to your heart and soul and remind you that even in the midst of preparation and anticipation, God is still speaking.

Two unexpected blessings showed up yesterday and they are worth sharing.  The first is this quote from Brian McLaren.  Often he captures what I am experiencing in this ministry of renewal - the challenge and invitation to live in new ways - not simply new ideas.  This is rough going for everyone - myself included - but is so much more satisfying than just rehashing the same old same old over again and expecting different results.

What we need is not simply a new way of thinking, although our quest leads deep into and through the mind. We also need a new way of 'being', a new inner ecology, a new spirituality that does more than make us opinionated and fastidious, but that renders our souls an orchard of trees bearing good fruit, rooted in who we are before God and who we are becoming in God. (p. 29 A New Kind of Christianity)

As I try to work through various petty annoyances and problems, I find that McLaren speaks to what is most important to me: not hassles rooted in opinions and fastidiousness but rather grace and creativity.  Time and again I run into the truth that I can't change anybody else - I can barely change myself - so the more I rest in God's grace the better everything turns out.  This washed over me again last night after meditating on these words and leaving them in God's hands.

The second is this sculpture that showed up on Facebook and captures what is so important about art:  here is a visual portrayal of a deep spiritual truth that has been given shape and form.  As a created work of art it continues to challenge and inspire long after the words have evaporated.  It, too, was an unexpected answer to prayer... blessings abound even in the hassles and pain.