Discovering the Gift of Presence

“May today there be peace within.

May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.

May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.

May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.

May you be content knowing you are a child of God.

Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love.

It is there for each and every one of us.”

― St. Thérèse de Lisieux

Mary Mother of the Body of Christ

   “For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior” (Ephesians 5:23). I think many of us are familiar with this concept, the Church being the Body of Christ. This passage from St. Paul unveils a reality which is beyond our own perception.  We can perceive the visible Church, but her spiritual reality is something relatively hidden from us. This spiritual reality links the Church with her source, Christ. Christ guides his Church as the head guides the body, and just as all the parts of the body are in service and exist for the sake of the head, so too does each member of the Body of Christ exist for the sake of Christ and for Christ. But how does this idea relate to the person of Jesus?

The Magic of Music

I've recently been spending a lot more time listening to my favorite style of music. That style of course is Folk music. I listen to a podcast that is produced by a lovely gentleman in UK named Mike Harding. Each week Mike shares some of the best of folk music present and past. It has become a staple part of my week. Many of these songs are filled with emotion and stories, mind you there are also a good number of them that are filled with humor as well. Well this week I was trying to figure out why it is that I enjoy folk music so much. I've come to the conclusion that it's because much of the music comes from people's own experiences. Sometimes it is not their own experiences but the experiences of their ancestors or the people around them. It is a music style as Mike says that has two requirements, "four chords and the truth".

The Mountains Are Calling...

As I rest in these summer months, with a schedule that temporarily allows for some healthy boredom and quiet reflection, I find myself looking back to where I was exactly one year ago: Montana. Dubbed as “the last best place” for its unexpected and quiet beauty, Montana is a place one could explore mountains, discover hidden lakes, ride rivers, and take distant hikes among the trees. How I miss “getting lost” in such a place, for in the midst of such nature I found a deeper connection to the divine. Prayers of thanksgiving and gratitude of the immense loveliness around me seemed to more easily leave my lips and my soul could feel the love of God enveloping me. Now living in San Diego, I can appreciate the nature around me, especially not being land locked (aka access to the ocean); however, a part of me senses this longing, this call to be in the mountains once again. I feel this longing reverberating in my bones, inviting me to step away from the noise and “get lost” in the quietness of the mountains once again. Upon hearing such an invitation, I immediately thought of John Muir’s wildly popular quote:

“The mountains are calling and I must go.”

But Your Grief Will Become Joy

Anyone who has lived out their faith for a while will tell you, life isn’t always sunshine and daisies. Just because you believe in Jesus and have chosen to follow Him doesn’t mean life becomes easier. The truth is we have trials just like everybody else and being a Christian doesn’t change that. Hard times fall on everyone at one point or another, it is simply a part of life. That being said, through the midst of hard times we can continue to have joy in our lives regardless of the trials life throws our way. Before His death, Jesus told His disciples,

“Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.”

John 16:20

Inclined to be Good

With elections coming up we often hear the terms, "corrupt governments," "corrupt politicians" or "corrupt business men." These are all titles and descriptions that are thrown about on television and social media, especially in the current political race. What does corrupt really mean though? Does it mean that these people are inherently bad. Do we think that these people have always been bad and we just never realized it? "Corruption" is thrown in our face so often that people tend to think that we as humans are inherently bad. Personally, I have always been a supporter of the belief that we as humans are inherently good. I remember being in High School and my teacher once asked us to write an essay on this exact topic. I was astonished to find that many of my classmates felt that humans are naturally inclined to do do bad things. Mind you this was after reading books like Lord of the Flies and similar novels. So I can see why they might have argued for the later. However, I can't help but believe that we are naturally inclined to be good people.

Remind Me Who I Am

"When I lose my way and I forget my name, remind me who I am. In the mirror all I see is who I don't wanna be, remind me who I am. In the loneliest places, when I can't remember what grace is."

I heard these lyrics recently playing from my phone as I washed the dishes one day. It had been over a year since I last heard this once beloved song. While it may seem like a random probability this song would pop up among the hundreds of other songs on my playlist, I oftentimes find that God has a way of intervening, whether through a song, person, or book, at exactly the right time with exactly the right message. And so He did.