Window Poems #20
 by Wendell Berry

In the early morning dark
he dreamed of the spring woodsflowers
standing in the ground,
dark yet under the leaves and under the bare cold branches.
But in his dream he knew their way
was prepared, and in their time
they would rise up and be joyful.
And though he had dreamed earlier
of strife, his sleep became peaceful.
He said: If we, who have killed
our brothers and hated ourselves,
are made in the image of God,
then surely the bloodroot,
wild phlox, trillium, and mayapple
are more truly made
in God’s image,
for they have desired to be
no more than they are,
and they have spared each other.
Their future
is undiminished by their past.
Let me, he said in his dream,
become always less a soldier
and more a man,
for what is unopened in the ground
is pledged to peace.
When he woke and went out
a flock of wild ducks that had fed
on the river while he slept
flew off in fear of him.
And he walked, manly, into the new day.
He came to his window
where he sat and looked out,
the earth before him, blessed
by his dream of peace,
bad history behind him.


Prayer:  Lord, let me use the words of my heart to speak the poems of your love and grace. Amen.

"They will know you are with me by the way you love one another."    ~  John 13:35
 
A few years ago, I sat in the sanctuary and watched our church’s Joy Bell Choir practice for their big fundraiser. The ten members and the choir director went over the selected music, note by note; playing and stopping until they all were in sync with each other.
 
I would come to learn that each individual hand bell is not a separate instrument. It’s only when they are together do they make one instrument, in one octave?

​While each musician can play the different bells, in different notes, and sometimes even in different timings, what makes it work so perfectly is their willingness to all play in the same key. Because they shared a common ground, they actually make a joyful noise unto the Lord!
 
As I watched and listened I asked myself what might it look like if the world were orchestrated like this this group?  What if countries learned to play together in harmony? Sure we might play a sour note from time to time, and if that were to happen we could always stop, regroup, and then start over.
 
Now, the common assumption about Lent is that it’s an individual practice. This is true on many levels in that each one of us has to struggle and fast alone as Jesus did. But if hundreds of millions of individuals are fasting together, then doesn’t that suggest this is a communal struggle as well?  After all, aren’t we all struggling to do the will of God? 
 
Like the Joy Bell Choir we are separate people but one humanity. We may not always see eye-to-eye, or agree on who plays which instrument, but we are playing the same song called, “Life.”  Together we are lead by a Divine Conductor, whose love for us unites us all together as one great orchestra.
 
This is why love was the centerpiece of Jesus’ ethic. The challenge for us is not so much saying the words, “I love you,” but to live them in such a way that shows our love without ever uttering a word. As Jesus said, "They will know you are with me by the way you love one another."
 
Fun Fact: the Bible frequently replaces the word "love" for the word "forgiveness."  If we are to find real peace and joy in our life and in the world, then we need make forgiveness a top priority. The two are one in the same. Forgiveness needs love just as much as love needs forgiveness. Without either, there can be neither peace nor joy; in both the individual as well as in the world.  
 
Let’s use our time in Lent to read from the same sheet of music and share the love of God with the instruments that we’ve been given.  And may we never forget when we love as God loves us, we become one instrument of God's joy.  
 
Prayer:  Lord God, you love me so much that you will forgive me of all my wrong doing, no matter how big or small they might be. Show me ways to love and forgive others just as you have loved and forgive me. Amen.

“Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish’ - 2 Peter 3:14
 
Excerpt from a piece I wrote in 2016.

I am writing this on February 29th, an unexpected day that catches me by surprise roughly once every four years. 
 
Surprisingly, I am not fond of surprises. I remember going to work one morning only to find out, “Surprise, your job has been eliminated.” I also remember going to the doctor only to discover, “Surprise, that lump in your throat is cancer.” I’ve even gone to the bathroom to learn, “Surprise, a tree is growing in your sewer pipe; you’re out $23,000!”
 
On my 50th birthday this year, Kathleen and the kids had a few surprises up their sleeves, including fifty individually wrapped gifts, with the last being a surprise visitor! Birthday gifts are about the only surprises I still truly enjoy, but that doesn’t stop God from waking me up and shaking me from time-to-time. God is full of surprises, with many yet to come.
 
Jesus reminds us that we always need to be prepared for you never know when the master will return. Thus we are called to live each day and each moment doing the righteousness of God as a way to be prepared. This is a good way to embrace life and all that it will throw at you. By being always present in God’s grace and peace, you will be better prepared to handle both the good and the bad that might come your way – sometimes at the same time!
 
Jesus tells his disciples, “Take heed, keep on the alert; for you do not know when the appointed time will come” (Mark 13:33). The Greek words used in this passage mean things like ‘Beware! Be alert! Be awake! Keep watch! And for goodness sake, don’t be surprised!’
 
While we spend the remaining days of Lent reflecting on the power of God’s surprising love for us, we must also remain alert by keeping watch over the condition of our own lives. Peter says it like this, “Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish.’  
 
Our waiting, be it Lent or ordinary time, is a sacred time that invites us and moves us towards Christlikeness. By him and through him we are called to be peacemakers, caretakers, and servants to one another.  Surprise! God calls us to be God’s love to one another because it’s in the other we meet God face-to-face.
 
Hopefully by now this does not come as a surprise to any of you. If it does, then do not be alarmed or shocked. Just be ready to welcome it and embrace it, to always be ready so you want be too surprised to meet him whenever and wherever he comes.
 
Prayer:  God of life, you are always surprising your creation in new and creative ways. How will you surprise me today? As my heart awaits, send me your Spirit so I might be prepared to meet you again, be it today or tomorrow. Amen.

Watching highlights of the Olympic games while working out at the gym is not the same as watching on the couch in my sweats. In my house, I get to watch my kids pretend they are the athletes competing. But in the gym, I fool myself into believing that if I just run a little faster or lift a little more weight, I too could be an Olympian performing super human feats. Luckily my lungs and shins don’t always agree with me.
 
Someone once said, “A flower does not think about competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms.”  This wisdom is as true on a snowy mountain in Pyeongchang as it is in a steamy gym in Van Nuys.
 
Since the very beginning, Olympians have always competed on a much higher level. And to get there, these athletes have to live in a world where faith must stand above raw talent, bodily strength, or technical skill.  Faith is the one thing that pushes them off the platform in the first place.
 
While it might be passion that allows them to take the risk, it’s faith that motivates them to get up after a fall and do it again.  An athlete, or anyone, can look back to see where they made the mistake, but it is faith that moves us forward towards the joys and gold of life. Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard wisely said, “Life must be lived forwards, even though it can only be understood backwards.” That is faith – jumping towards the gold.
 
At times, Lent feels like an athletic competition. First, it requires hours of working out our spiritual muscles and conditioning our soul for the greater challenge. Second, no one truly succeeds right out of the gate so faith has to take the driver’s seat until you’re up to speed.
 
Most importantly, one must always jump! Lent calls us all to take the risks by leaping out with the One who can and will catch us and guide us to where we need to go. That takes faith more than it does anything else.

Faith assures us if we tumble to the ground, God is there to pick us up. If we hit a wall, God is there to show us a way around it. If we cross the finish line, God is there too – celebrating in our tears of joy.
 
Take this day to practice something you may have given up on or are having trouble overcoming. As you do, leap into the arms of God with faith and trust that you will one day be standing on the platform having earned the gold that await you.
 
“Start by doing what is necessary; then do what is possible. And suddenly you are doing the impossible.” St. Francis of Asissi
 
Prayer:  Lord, help me to live faithfully as I jump forward into your loving heart in all that I do. Amen. ​