Dancing With God

There is a story a longtime Sonshine Friend emailed to me last week about meditating on the word “guidance.” In his mind’s eye, he kept seeing “dance” at the end of the word.

I believe that doing God's will is a lot like dancing. 
 When two people try to lead, nothing feels right. 
The movement doesn't flow with the music and everything is quite uncomfortable and awkward. However, when one person realizes that, and lets the other lead, both bodies begin to flow with the music. One gives gentle cues, perhaps with a nudge to the back or by pressing lightly in one direction or another. 
It's as if two become one body, moving beautifully with the music.

The dance takes surrender and a willingness to let the other lead. It requires each person to be mindful to the movement of one another. It needs gentle guidance and skill from the other. So my friend’s eyes and soul drew back to the word “guidance.”

When he saw the "G": he thought of God, followed by "u" and "I". This led to the revelation that "God, you, and I dance.” As he bowed his head in prayer, he became willing to trust in the silence that would lead to the guidance he was seeking about his life.

Using our imagination, it seems if we become willing to let God lead us in the “dance of life” our souls will find peace and harmony.

God dances with us as we pray: “Then maidens will dance and be glad, young men and old as well. I will turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow.” (Jeremiah 31:13).

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends that they learn the steps to dance closer to You. May we allow God to take us by the hand, and wrap a gentle arm around our back to lead and guide us during this season of Lent. And I Hope You Dance!

What Do You Want?

Once upon a time, two disciples were walking behind Jesus when he turned around on his heels and asked them: "What do you want?" A simple question, unless the one asking it is the Son of God, who is here to take away the sin of the world!

"What do you want?" You’d think these disciples would muster something profound like, "We want to know the meaning of life. What's it all about? We want to understand how to square a good God with the bad things that happen in this world. We want to know what the future holds." But these two disciples say no such things. "What do you want?" Jesus asks. Their reply? "We want to know where you're staying."

You've got the Son of the living God, giving you the chance of a lifetime to tell him what you want, and all you can come up with is, "So, where are you hanging your hat these days?" The fact is, these two disciples didn't give a bad answer. In a way their reply was, "We want you!" What's that line from that old African-American spiritual? "You can have all this world, but give me Jesus!" The same message Dr. Martin Luther King gave to the people of this nation.

Now for some folks who don’t come to church any longer because they got the impression from other church-goers that they don’t measure up listen to this reply by Jesus "Where are you staying?"

"Come and you will see," Jesus replies. He didn't issue a bunch of pre-requisites, didn't make them jump through some moral hoops before letting them take what were quite literally their first steps of discipleship. That's the way we sometimes frame it. Come and talk to us AFTER you have your act together. Come and join our church after we're sure you've got your spiritual and moral vision clear. Rather Jesus says, "Come, and then you will see."

What do you want? It’s always a TOUGH question. Well, we want success, a spot in the limelight, our fifteen minutes of fame, a piece of the good life, financial security, a healthy body, to be noticed--we want the kinds of things that someone described that Jesus is unlikely to lead us to. Still, maybe we don't know what we want until we come to Jesus and see who he is.

God prays for us as we reflect: “But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you.” (Psalm 5:11).

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who don’t know what they want. May your Spirit gently nudge us to a desire for nothing else but you. "What do you want?" We want you, Jesus. We want to stay where you're staying. Because somehow by being with you, we just know that we're going to find out just what it is we want. It's been Jesus we've been looking for all along, whether we knew it or not.

The Bucket List

Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman star in the movie “The Bucket List.” Without spoiling the plot, I’ll simply share that these two men met as patients in a hospital where they faced the grim reality of their mortality. One patient found comfort in his faith. His roommate thought the idea of faith was only an illusion or at best a myth to get people through difficult times. Despite their differences, they agreed to begin a final journey together. While hilariously entertaining, there are moments in this flick that make one think about our limited time on earth and our relationships with one another. Before these condemned men “kick the bucket,” our stars launched on a crazy journey to accomplish a list of things unfinished in life. Using your imagination, you would be right to assume that their list contained all the exotic places that you and I have yet to travel in our lifetime.

Overlooking the pyramids, our travelers were admiring the ancient pharoah’s tombs and peering into the endless star filled sky. The man of faith made the comment to his fellow traveler that the ancient Egyptians held the belief that before one could enter into the next kingdom that person had to answer two questions. Our cynical traveler took the bait and reluctantly asked what they were.

1. Have you been joyful in this life?
2. How have you shared your joy with others?

When are you joyful these days? I know behind the lens capturing the light of a stunning image brings me joy. Or, it might be a simple poinsettia bloom nestled with hundreds of other plants or at pre-dawn capturing the subtle light that veils the valley below. Sometimes, it might be arranging a Spring bouquet of flowers to give as a gift to family or friends or brushing Rhythm, a horse blind in one eye that I ride to relax and forget the troubles of the week.

Then there is that second profound question, how have I brought joy to others? How might you answer that before the throne of God? I can look back and think of a little green puppet that was given to me as a gift over 30 years ago. I called this stuffed toy “Spinach.” That was the name on the label and the name hundreds of kids remember to this day. Before Catholic schools were closed, I would go into the classroom and take Spinach with me and teach the stories about Jesus’ love to the children. That was pure joy!

So often in our Catholic teaching we hear the message that speaks of service and sacrifice and mercy that reflects the way of Christ as he walked with his children. We have been told for millennia to imitate that same love for others in caring for the sick, the poor, the imprisoned and the “little ones” which refer to those made to feel unworthy. But I like this Egyptian perspective that joy enters into our life and faith and becomes the guiding star in all our relationships. I believe that God wants us to be a people of joy and to bring that joy to others.

What is your joy in this life? How have you brought your joy to others?

God prays for us as we reflect: “You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand." (Psalm 16:11).

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends that they may be filled with many moments of joy like hugging their grandkids, seeing beautiful vistas, and sharing moments at table with family and friends. May your grace help us all to bring that same joy to others.

Rise and Shine

And what about that star? Astronomers, theologians and historians for hundreds of years have been trying to determine exactly which star might have led the Magi to the stable.

A more recent conjecture has come from a Notre Dame astrophysicist, Dr. Grant Mathews. The professor says that he had hoped the answer would be something spectacular like a supernova. But two years of research led him to a more ordinary conclusion - the heavenly sign around the time of the birth of Jesus Christ was likely an unusual alignment of planets, the sun and the moon.

He believes the Christmas star is probably an alignment of planets, the most likely of which would have occurred on April 17, 6 B.C., when the sun, Jupiter, the moon and Saturn aligned in the constellation Aries while Venus and Mars were in neighboring constellations. He makes that conclusion because he believes the Magi were Zoroastrian astrologers who would have recognized the planetary alignment in Aries as a sign that a powerful leader was born. In fact it would have even meant that the leader was destined to die at an appointed time.

I believe that the star in the sky over Bethlehem is the flare for us that God does and will continue to rescue us as His children. That star is our hope in this world of darkness and despair. The star in Bethlehem is our search for acceptance and understanding and peace. On Friday, I was visiting a patient afraid of surgery that she is having this morning to replace her pacemaker.

She said, "My whole body is bothering me. But the body isn't the worst part. It's my soul that has me worried. All this talk of side effects like dying from the surgery really scares me. I haven't been able to sleep very well the past few nights. I just lay awake like I'm watching a replay of my whole life as it passes before my eyes. I don't like what I see. I could have done a lot better with my life. I've been a religious person, I've been pretty regular at church and all, but I don't know.... something is just not right. I don't have any peace about it all. Actually, I think I'm afraid to die. I'm afraid to meet God. What will God think about a person like me? Does God's love include me? Am I included in God's eternal plans?"

The Epiphany answer to the question: “Am I included in God's eternal plans is a resounding YES!” Epiphany shows that Jesus came for all people, no matter what!

Life can be overwhelmingly dark, especially at some special moments of our history. Today I am happy and tomorrow I have a stroke. Today I am smiling and tomorrow a car hits my child. Today I am rich and tomorrow I am poor when my plant closes and I am laid off. Today I am a success and tomorrow a failure. Life’s little candles of happiness are so fragile and easily snuffed out.

But there is one light that is never snuffed out. There is one light that always shines in the darkness. There is one light that darkness cannot overcome, and that is Jesus Christ.

God prays for us as we reflect: "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.” (Isaiah 60:1).

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends and new online friends who are searching for your light. Christ is our Star. As we try to navigate our ways through life, there is only one star that can guide us, and that star is Jesus Christ. Never lose sight of that star.

Letting Things Settle

It was Christmas 1978, and I was set on a mission to find the toy of the year—the infamous Cabbage Patch doll. They had sold out quickly, but I was asked to help a mother find the only remaining Cabbage Patch doll in the nation for her little girl. It was the week before Christmas and all the stores were sold out. But I made a few calls to JC Penny’s Worldwide Headquarters who put me in touch with their West Coast warehouse. Two days before Christmas, the Cabbage Patch doll arrived at this mother’s door.

Now it’s Christmas 2007, and the “next impossible gift” request turns out to be a snow globe with the statue of a reindeer inside. Mind you not some silly Rudolph prancing around the North Pole but an image worthy of National Geographic. This family loved “reindeer” decorations. Thirty years later, I can go online to “shop the world” to search for this unique gift. But, my quest came up empty except for a few poor, plastic images of Rudolph dancing around Santa’s sleigh. Not quite the quality reindeer I had hoped to find.

Snow globes have a certain wonder and fascination for me. A scene encased in water, you pick up the globe, shake it and watch the "snow" magically rise up in a swirl and cover the scene. Set it down and gradually things settled and became clear.

In some ways the days after Christmas can offer such clarity. The Christmas stories represent a very special intervention of God in the human condition, they reveal to us just how much God loves us, one that, as G.K. Chesterton said, turned the world upside down and, astonishingly, when viewed from that perspective the world made sense.

God, in the words of the Irish Dominican poet, Paul Murray, loves us so much that if we should cease to exist, he would die of sadness. The Christmas stories reveal to us that God loved Her human children so much that He took on human form so that he could show us how to live and how to die, even walking with us down to the valley of death itself.

Like the colorful glitter in a snow globe –we can easily get caught up in the swirl of busyness that can be a tempting distraction to get lost in. Yet – how often do we feel lost? We don't know who we are. We lose our sense of clarity. Everything seems confused. New Year's resolutions are about spending time more with special friends, exercise, and dieting. Instead, we get distracted by more meetings to attend, e-mails to answer, crisis to resolve, credit card debt and we lose sight of our number one goal to simply be a more happy person.

I like to suggest that these first days of this New Year can be days of grace, to be still and let the activity drop away. To adapt a phrase: Don't just do something – sit there and pray. Before you toss away those Christmas cards in the recycling bin—read again slowly and pray in gratitude for your friends, which is the way God, reveals how much she truly loves you.

God prays for us as we reflect: “The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace.” (Psalm 29:11).

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who in this New Year have mountains that need to be conquered, temptations to overcome; feelings to be mastered and problems to be solved. In you are found the answers and in you are found the strength to carry on. Bless my friends as they climb and overcome the swirl of life with you their Heavenly Guide.