"That's how it is."

When I first saw the following Corporate Confession in my morning bulletin, I laughed. I'm really going to say, "That's how it is" to God?!

Leader:  In our confession today, we are acknowledging what life is often like in an imperfect world. We are confessing those places where we, as the human family, are broken and need the light of God’s love and grace to break in and bring new life.  Our confession this morning is a responsive one.  I will make a statement, and then you will respond with “That’s how it is.”

Leader:  We find ourselves separated from our sisters and brothers.

Response:  That’s how it is.

Leader:  There are lines drawn between us that are racial, that are economic.  (Response)

Leader: We live cut off from many sources of strength and power, and often feel that we cannot act. (Response) 

Leader: So many things call to us, grab for our attention, that we find ourselves stretched to a fine, thin line.  (Response)

Leader: Our time is fragmented, our lives are fragmented.  We are broken.  (Response)

Leader: Yet, in the face of all this, we seek out the joy of the resurrection.  We ask again for new life given to us in Jesus Christ!  (Response)

Leader: O God, giver of grace and new life, that’s how it is with our lives.  We seek the power of your Spirit, that we may live in fuller union with you and with our sisters and brothers, and that we may gain courage to love and to act.  Through Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.

However, as we read it, I realized that the words really spoke to me. What was most amazing was how each, "That's how it is," from the group reflected the previously spoken words. Some responses were sad and desperate, others were joyful and thankful. My favorite section was, "We live cut off from many sources of strength and power, and often feel that we cannot act. So many things call to us, grab for our attention, that we find ourselves stretched to a fine, thin line. Our time is fragmented, our lives are fragmented.  We are broken."

I constantly feel like there are some many issues in the world that I alone can't work to stop every one of them. But I also feel guilty for not trying. I know I'm not expected to, but I just wish I could do more. I felt touched when when we lamented as a group how we felt cut off from sources from power, but at the same time there are things that we can do to work for justice. Again, I don't really know what my call is in this area of my life, but I try to keep expanding my knowledge of issues around the world because I feel like they really are all interrelated.

Prayer. That's my call. To pray so that I may be reminded of my blessings and others' trials.

Devotional

This is a devotional that I wrote for my university's Campus Ministry. I'm not putting it here because I think it's that amazing; more to keep a record of it...

Exodus 24:1-18 (New International Version)

Exodus 24:2, 4, 8-9:

"...but Moses alone is to approach the LORD; the others must not come near. And the people may not come up with him... Moses then wrote down everything the LORD had said... Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, 'This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.' Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel went up."

When I first read this passage, it bothered me that God only allowed Moses to come up and worship him. But in the end, all the elders that were present were able to go up and worship God. It just took time and patience. So what did God accomplish by only allowing Moses to climb the mountain the first time? He gave him a message for others.

I was a part of a conversation last night where we talked about other people's, especially our peer's, roles in our relationship with God. This passage enforces the idea that God often speaks to us through others. Sometimes it is other children of God that ask us the difficult questions and help us to ponder what God is trying to communicate to us. What is important is how we respond. The first step is to listen, which, I will readily admit, is sometimes a personal struggle for me. Two years ago I was really searching for God's voice and will in a particular area in my life and looking back, I can see how many people He spoke through, to me. Whether it was, friends, pastors, family, co-workers, they all had a role.

Try to remember that God wants us to listen to each other to discern His voice. Also, be open to the fact that God could be using you to speak to others.

Prayer: Loving God, thank you for caring enough to play a role in each of our lives. Please help us to be open and patient with one another's voices and to seek your voice through them all. In Christ's name we pray, Amen.

My Spirit's Sigh

I have a friend who, bless their heart, seems to be convinced that everyone wants to know everything about their life, day, hour, etc. This person does not hold back; they tell their stories with great detail and vigor just knowing their audience is enthralled. Honestly, this is one of this person's defining qualities and I really do like it about them. However, I am just not the same way. 

I rarely feel inclined to just give someone a run down of my day; not even my closest friends. I just don't think it's that interesting and I don't want people to be bored with me. What all of this made me realize today is that this blog is my substitute for rambling to "real" people. I can write a long post here and not feel like I'm pressuring anyone to feel like they care. People can stop by and when they realize just how boring I am they can exit their browsers. They won't feel guilty, because I won't know. It really is a win-win situation and I plan on exploiting it further!

Speaking of work, I had a really good time today at HEB. The word has gotten around that I've put in my two weeks notice and a lot of people have shared that they are sad that I'll be leaving,  etc. It really made me feel good and I realized that I do have a real talent with connecting with people in a short amount of time (I've only worked there since the end of Jan.). I will really miss some of these people too but at the same time, I'm really excited about moving on from Kerrville. I feel that I've really grown here and accomplished a lot, but feel like graduation has come at a healthy time for me. I'm about to close this chapter and am at peace about it.

Wow, I love life... and Leona Lewis' debut album, Spirit.