The Beauty of the Ordinary
The everyday is most wonderful. The ordinary is so lovely. Boredom doesn't happen to me anymore. It may be a characteristic of life for the young. I am so very grateful. Lack of urgency is so soothing. So, how to deal with the urgency of the pandemic, which is killing so many people and disrupting the entire world?
We are told in AA to accept the things we cannot change, to change the things we can, and to pry for the wisdom to know the difference. It's interesting to try to be the hero of your own life without having to be the hero of the world. No one else can save you, but you can't save anyone else. Nor are you responsible for saving anyone else.
Christ is the One to save us. My only responsibility is spending as much time as possible in conscious contact with Christ. That practice results in personal transformation over time. Most of us do not have the Paul on the road to Damascus type conversion. I have never seen a burning bush, I have never heard a disembodied voice I thought was God. I have, however, had meaningful dreams and the occasional conscious experience of the presence of God. I can see a large difference between the me that I was at 17 and the me that I am at 71. Most of that change has been of the so-called educational variety.
I am not trying to minimize the suffering in the world. Rather, I believe that only Christ can make this come out the way it should. The world has probably changed forever. When I consider how many times I have felt deep shame at the way my generation sold out, went home and had babies and forgot to change the world, it's down right embarrassing.
And yet, clearly, things are going to change. Things are changing. Things must and will change. And for me, the days go along in much the same way...slow, happy, sometimes in pain, sometimes full of joy, always interested to see who God will send me next. Whomever it is, that person will no doubt teach me more than I ever give them. God is so generous. So kind and gentle. Thank you, God. Thank you. Love,
Rev. Patti+
We are told in AA to accept the things we cannot change, to change the things we can, and to pry for the wisdom to know the difference. It's interesting to try to be the hero of your own life without having to be the hero of the world. No one else can save you, but you can't save anyone else. Nor are you responsible for saving anyone else.
Christ is the One to save us. My only responsibility is spending as much time as possible in conscious contact with Christ. That practice results in personal transformation over time. Most of us do not have the Paul on the road to Damascus type conversion. I have never seen a burning bush, I have never heard a disembodied voice I thought was God. I have, however, had meaningful dreams and the occasional conscious experience of the presence of God. I can see a large difference between the me that I was at 17 and the me that I am at 71. Most of that change has been of the so-called educational variety.
I am not trying to minimize the suffering in the world. Rather, I believe that only Christ can make this come out the way it should. The world has probably changed forever. When I consider how many times I have felt deep shame at the way my generation sold out, went home and had babies and forgot to change the world, it's down right embarrassing.
And yet, clearly, things are going to change. Things are changing. Things must and will change. And for me, the days go along in much the same way...slow, happy, sometimes in pain, sometimes full of joy, always interested to see who God will send me next. Whomever it is, that person will no doubt teach me more than I ever give them. God is so generous. So kind and gentle. Thank you, God. Thank you. Love,
Rev. Patti+
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