God comes to you disguised as your life.
–Paula D’Arcy
It wasn’t Jesus who thanked me for not to giving up on him. It was God in disguise. God in my neighbour, my body, my Christmas cactus. God invites me to open myself to this moment and love God who is incarnate in whatever and whoever is before me.
In this season, we typically hear the message to slow down, clear the clutter, and make room for God. Sigh. The “clutter” in my life needs my attention, and it seems to be breeding.
What if the clutter is God? What if making room for God is simply a choice, a choosing to welcome God in this task, in this feeling, in this person.
The other day I was rushing to get things done and irked by something Fred had done or not done. I can’t remember what, but I know I thought about bringing it to his attention. But for some reason, I had the capacity to let it go and chose to.
A few minutes later, I was filling a jar with sesame seeds and bumped my elbow. Sesame seeds spilt all over the floor. I decided to finish what I was doing and clean it up later. But before I could, Fred came into the kitchen and, without a word, swept the floor. I was grateful for him and the choice I’d made.
This week, I listened to an interview with David Steindl-Rast. He was talking with Krista Tippet in an On Being podcast about the practice of gratefulness. He said that first, we need to stop. It doesn’t take long, he says. Sometimes a split second is enough to look and see the unique opportunity the present moment gives.
I found that when I do, choosing to be grateful, doesn’t seem like a choice at all. It just happens and loving God, who is no longer disguised, seems to follow.
[Our daily existence] is an ever-unfolding trip through a day we’ve never been to, where we notice beauty, move with compassion, have grace revealed, and within a wide and expansive space–we get to choose.
–John Pavlovitz
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In BBC TWO’s Winterwatch, Chris Packham goes bird watching with Joe Harkness, author of Bird Therapy. In this video clip, they discuss mental health, suicide, birdwatching, nature in general and the five ways to wellbeing.
What love mischief are you and God doing for the world?
Let me know and I will include it in an upcoming post.
An Everyday Pilgrim 