Do You See the Children?

Proposed Antiphon:  Use your gifts wisely.

Children move among the aisles;

I say children, but they are not that young;

Some are old;

Some are young adults;

Some are middle-aged.

Children move among the aisles;

Their job is to sort;

To adjust;

To make things neat;

To make it easy for things to sell.

Fancy clothes;

Fancy bags;

Fancy shoes;

Shoes that cost the earth;

Clothes that cost the sky;

Bags that cost the sun, the moon, and the stars.

The children work in their best clothes;

Which are sad and worn.

In their best shoes;

Which sometimes are worse than no shoes at all.

They carry no bags;

Bags are for leisure, for shopping, for preening.

Children move among the aisles;

Adjusting things they cannot own;

Wearing broken clothes;

And living broken lives.

Do you see the children in the aisles? 

I Help and Stand Back (Reprise)

I am reprising this post to honor Maple Leaf Lutheran Church of Seattle who voted overwhelmingly yesterday to host Tent City 3 against not insignificant opposition.

Proposed Antiphon: We are all one in God's great scheme, in God no lonely ways. ; But myriads of blessings over an infinity of days.

I help and stand back
I open the door and get out of the way
I show you those in need and you reach out to them
I whisper a question in your ear and you find a solution
I find you a little cash and you donate it
Some food, and you share it
A moment of peace...
An ounce of grace...
I am a silent helping presence while you work
You invoke me and credit me
But I was just a signpost and a prop
You pushed to your feet
You stepped in harm's way
You tangled with hardship
You struggled with need
You made do with little
You loved in the midst of carelessness and hate
You do not stand without help, it is true...
But you stand
And I love you

Bless you, each and every one

Original post here.

The Squirrel

The Squirrel
Wakes and leaves its nest
Searches the lawn for
Treats left by me
Or my family
Or acorns
Or seeds
Or anything
In a hard year
In a spare year
In a year of hardship
It will take what it can get
And if nothing can be found
On the lawn
It picks up a leaf
Crumples it in its mouth
And brings it back to its nest
As bedding and insulation
The practicality of this activity
Impresses me
And reminds me
To leave a little something
For those who have
Nothing

You Are Given Now

We have only a moment
Not an hour
Or a day
Or a week
Or a month
Or years, decades, centuries, millennia

We have only a moment to trust
A moment to love
A moment to care
A moment to believe

Who that was who came before
- you cannot know
And who comes after
- you cannot see

But you have now
Use it to believe the best
To do the best
And be as much
As fun
As awesome
As inspired
As you can

You are given now

Use it

Giving Thankfully

At some point in relationships
With individuals
With people in general
With the world
And with God
We find it is not enough to accept love, gifts, and support
We want to give back
And often we find that giving
Is the greatest gift of all

I see it in children who find it more important that they give something
A note,
A hug,
A gift,
Than that they receive something.

And with adults who find it affirms who they are and where they are going.

To receive requires only a desire or need, but giving puts you in relationship.

Ten for Life

In our dreams we oft can tell;
What from heaven, what from hell;

But in a cloud we have our days;
And oft should curse what garners praise;

Fair is foul and foul is fair;
Lies and half-truths cloud the air.

This world so fickle and so oft wrong;
Honors the glib, the fake, the strong;

Honors false over the true;
Honors words, not those who do.

If we find honors at our feet,
Perhaps we'd best be in retreat;

And seeing people raised up high;
On piles of honors, to the sky;

Hope not that they might fall this day;
But stand well clear and well away.

Tho' honor's given where it should not;
Yet we can judge by what is wrought:

And by their fruit do judge them still-
Doing wrong or naught, then find them ill.

Let God's commandments be your guide;
Mark them well -mark them inside:

Love the Lord and love your foe;
And often to your neighbors go:

And bring them gifts and help in need;
And be to them good friends indeed.

Worship not nor be obsessed
With this world; In God be blessed.

Nor worship any man-made lie.
Worship not the earth or sky;

Don't worship spirits of the air;
They cannot save nor do they care.

Don't make God's name a joke or worse,
Don't use God's name within a curse.

Do six days work, take one day rest;
Give it to heaven- you will be blest.

And let your helpers all rest too;
It is the Godly thing to do.

To your parents give your care;
See they can eat, have clothes to wear;

And give some mind to what they say;
You may be just like them someday.

Do not kill your fellow man;
But seek to save; do what you can.

Don't want or take what is not yours;
But work for that your heart adores.

And as this sin causes so much pain,
Let me emphasize again:

Take not from others save what they share;
Lest you cause them pain and care;

God will hear their suffering call;
May judge you ill, may let you fall.

And if you have ill gotten gain;
Pay it back, and twice again.

God will bless you and forgive;
And in your house the Lord will live.

Do not take another's spouse;
You'll bring a curse down on your house.

Honor your spouse, treat with great care;
Those who love you, and with them share.

Say nothing false, but what is true;
And give your lips a rest or two.

Seek out the good things you can do;
Treating others as they were you.

Keep these precepts in your heart;
If you'd be blessed, they're a good start.

Peace
LE

Returning Evil for Good

Why do some;
Shun you when you try to share your plenty with them?
Exclude you when you try to include?
Hate you in your efforts to help?
Return evil for Good?

One reason is that they need you to hate them.
They need you to be evil, angry, to be against them.
Their worldview does not allow for someone like you to be;

Nice,
Friend,
Partner,
Helper,
Companion,
Good,
Pleasant...

And the nicer you are, the more painful the dissonance between how they must see you and reality.

You can't be nicer than their grandma, their family, their spouse, their circle of friends. Your 'goodness' must be a lie, a scam, to lull their alertness, dull their senses so you can take advantage of them. They want no part of that, and need to strike out at you, make you stop, put you back into a steriotype that they can understand.

Don't make it easy for them by hating and excluding them back. It is hard work, but keep them on the spot as much as you can: be nice, be vulnerable, be weak.

Maybe, just maybe, they might start asking questions and come to different conclusions. They might change.

It has happened before.

Let us pray for opened eyes all around.

P.S. I myself am pretty lousy at this

We Are Alike

We are alike
We love
We care
We love beauty
We care for others
We are alike

Our hearts beat
Our blood flows
We can be hurt
We can cry
We are alike

We make friends
We like to share
We like to talk
We like to take food together
We are alike

We can walk
We can walk together
We can help each other
We can help others
We get joy from helping
We are alike

We can give
We can give to the needy
We can share knowledge
We can see justice done
We can comfort the sorrowful
We are alike

Our love can flow
Can flow out from us
Together it can be
It can be a river
A cataract
A torrent
A flood
An ocean
Covering all the earth
Filling every hollow
Rushing into every closed room and cell
Washing out every dark hole and sewer
Flooding the caverns and canyons of the earth with liquid light
We are alike
And together we can do wonderous things

Let us begin

The Testing of Mother Teresa

I am, I think, still mulling the separation from God that Mother Teresa reportedly felt for much of her career, and spiritual dry spells in general. I have read that individuals often, even usually, experience very difficult spiritual dry spells as they advance in faith.

I sometimes wonder if this isn't because these adepts become so close to God, that they lose the sense of God as distinct from theirselves. Or maybe as they graduate from the primary school of faith they should need less direction and encouragement. Or are evil forces blinding them to the presence of God? Or maybe something else is going on... ...but what?

It is sure that these dry times exist for many, and that they are painful. But why do they exist? Are we just too needy, constantly demanding the full attention of our God-parent? Do we forget what brought us here in the first place? Do we lose contact with the love that should be charging us?

I am sorry Mother Teresa apparently felt so very lost for so long, but in the face of that lack of confirmation, that lack of consolation, she fought on in the faith, battling a lonely battle for and alongside us all. She had faith enough for this battle, and carried it to the end.

God Bless Mother Teresa and those who follow in her footsteps. May it be that from now on they find God always at their side.

Peace,
LE

A Remarkable Accounting

How much do I owe you?
Someone asked me today;
I said not to worry
And sent them away

I am glad that they asked
I'm glad I can share
I am glad that I'm able
To be more than fair

And maybe I'll find
When I'm called to account
That my debts are reduced
By an equal amount

Or even forgiven
Of me, every one
By a remarkable accountant
That we call God's Son

And so in good faith
Let us each forgive
Following our God's example
Of how we should live

Peace,
LE

SB responded in verse:

Nothing for something
A holy exchange
The commerce of kindness
Beautifully strange

Very nice, thanks.

About You

You are goodness
And you do great things

You turn your hands to healing
You turn your heart to helping

You feel for others
You see their pain

You find their needs
And think of solutions

You do not sit and wait to be called
But think to go and do

You are the spirit of the arisen world
And God is with you everywhere

Blessed Be!

The Business of Love

Are you awake?
And if you are awake, do you see?
And seeing, do you speak?
And what manner of speech?
Are you welcoming or hard?
Available or distant?
Helpful or not helpful?

Do you note those around you who are hurt?
Those who are regularly put down, insulted, excluded, assaulted? The ones you see being harmed?

And if you did notice, would you offer them a word of comfort? Some direction? A hand of assistance? Or do you stand coldly with those who do the harm?

Remove your steel gauntlets.
Take off your armor.
Put up your barbed helmet.
Pull off your hob-nailed boots.

Wash yourself, cleanse your face, your eyes, your ears, your skin, and be clean;
Annoint yourself with scented oils;
Don soft garments for gentle interactions;
Silken slippers and gloves.

We are about the business of love,
And steel will not serve you today.

No More Barns

With reference to last week's lectionary lesson;

To be sung to a country, sprightly melody.

There ain't no barns in heaven,
Lest maybe you are a cow;

And you won't need a big bank vault-
For treasure anyhow;

So don't go building storage,
For things that you don't need;

If you give away what you can share,
You'll find you're rich indeed!

May your kindness and generosity build you mansions in the hereafter...

Love to all!

-LE

I help and stand back

I help and stand back
I open the door and get out of the way
I show you those in need and you reach out to them
I whisper a question in your ear and you find a solution
I find you a little cash and you donate it
Some food, and you share it
A moment of peace...
An ounce of grace...
I am a silent helping presence while you work
You invoke me and credit me
But I was just a signpost and a prop
You pushed to your feet
You stepped in harm's way
You tangled with hardship
You struggled with need
You made do with little
You loved in the midst of carelessness and hate
You do not stand without help, it is true...
But you stand
And I love you
Bless you, each and every one

Heavenly Accounting

The other day
I found myself parking
In a pay lot
With numbered spaces
Where you put money in a slot

But I didn't have exact change
So I had to pay too much

In the evening
I found exact change
Left for me
By the honest parking attendant
Who had carefully accounted for what I had paid

Even so
Maybe in the end
We will find our efforts tallied up
With every good deed accounted for
And learn the true value of goodness

The way things compound
And children grow
And one good deed can lead to another
Our final heavenly net worth may be
Inestimable

* * * * * * *

Dear Lord,

Help us to place something
On deposit with you
Every single day
And may our investments
Grow in love
Benefiting many

Amen

A Penny for a Stranger

A penny for a stranger
A child so far away
A morsel for a stranger
So she can run and play
A little bit of sharing
A very tiny bit
A little bit of sharing
And love along with it

Provisioning For Charity

Carry a little extra
To share with those you meet

A bit of cash, a bit of oil
A few sticks of jerked meat.

You can use it in extremis
Or share with those who need.

It is good if in the cupboard
There's enough a guest to feed.

And it's no good unless you spend it,
Don't account for where it went.

Just pull it out and give it,
Your healthy soul investment.