We cannot solve our problems with
the same thinking we used when we created them.
–Albert Einstein
What if I start with “we”?
I didn’t create the problems the world faces,
not on my own.
But I do have an impact, good or bad;
we all do.
Thinking I don’t is part of the problem.
So let’s agree.
We have ways of thinking
that create problems,
and we need new ways of thinking.
We need the mind of Christ
opening us to new understandings,
new possibilities,
transformative action.
So I asked for it,
waited for it
in the silence.
And God gave me what I asked for.
I recalled a situation
where I missed seeing another person’s pain
because I focused on an issue.
I missed an opportunity to be compassionate first
and address the issue later.
I see it now–
without a sense of blame or judgment
from God or myself.
My quick mind misses important details.
Recognizing this helps me slow down
and remember:
What I think I know
isn’t all there is to know.
I used to think
I needed to make a change like this
because I was ashamed of imperfection,
afraid of being judged
and rejected.
But God’s compassion changed me.
I’m not so ashamed, not so afraid now
and that has shifted my thinking.
Now, I want to change
because I care about the person I’m with
and that, in some small way,
changes the world.
I wonder what else God will show me
as I continue to ask
for new ways of thinking.
Scripture says, “We have the mind of Christ.”
God, please help us use it.
God be in my head, and in my understanding:
God be in mine eyes, and in my looking;
God be in my mouth, and in my speaking;
God be in my heart, and in my thinking:
God be at mine end, and at my departing.
–Book of Hours, 1514
An Everyday Pilgrim 