Acceptance and Giving Up

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acceptance, coronavirus, giving up, Meg Wheatley, perseverance, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Once again yesterday afternoon I found myself in a conversation about upcoming plans that may or may not come to fruition. Events of greater or lesser import are being cancelled daily. Event calendars seem to be useless sometimes unless accompanied by a pencil with a good eraser. Disappointment is becoming a more frequent fact of life. Weddings and workshops, retreats and long-awaited voyages are put on hold and depend on the spread of “the virus” (no need to name it) that is so much a part of our lives, even while being invisible. We do well to consider how all of this is affecting us.

One of my “go to” sources for help is Meg Wheatley whose little book called Perseverance always provides useful perspectives. Here is—in part—what I read this morning.

Giving up is a moment either of acceptance or resignation, two very different states. Resignation has a beaten up, victim quality to it. We worked hard and we lost. We’ve been defeated.. Now it’s time to retreat, to move on, to put this experience behind us as quickly as possible.

Acceptance is radically different—we’re in touch with reality, we’ve learned that we’re not the savior of the situation, and we might feel humbled, but not beaten. We have a richer picture of what’s going on and, after a little rest, we’ll reenter the fray. (p. 97)

Although this reflection is a bit tangential to the point, the main words work for me as I think about life. While facing a pandemic is not something we just “put behind us as quickly as possible,” our prior plans in such a situation can be dealt with in that way. Learning to let go is, for me, a life-long practice. I still struggle sometimes with giving up possessions that “I might need someday” or recognizing that a trip to connect with someone in Australia “just might not be in the cards.” The value comes, as usual, in my motivation and willingness to respond to “what is.”

So today I will try to slip both acceptance and giving up in my pocket to take with me as I travel the uncharted road of pandemic-land.

Transformation

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acceptance, adversity, COVID19, Franklin Roosevelt, Holy Week, self-discipline, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, transformation

For the past three days, my housemates and I have chosen to watch the PBS series, The Roosevelts, together as sort of a “dinner theater” event. Although it is a departure from our normal Holy Week schedule, we have found the practice worthwhile for the study of both our national history and human behavior in the relatively recent past. Most compelling was last night’s segment which chronicled the rise of Franklin Roosevelt from the beginning of his participation in the political sphere to his election as President of the United States. It was during this period that he was stricken with polio.

FDR went swiftly from being a rich, strong, entitled man to whom all things came without struggle to becoming a helpless invalid who could do virtually nothing for himself. It was fascinating to see the transformation from a proud, independent, self-assured person who refused to allow anyone to see evidence of his disability to a man who became a champion of others like himself who not only survived but thrived. The transformation began when he opened his home in Warm Springs to polio victims of all ages and found possibility in sharing his lot with them. He came to a deeper understanding of people and grew in a new openness, born of his own struggles and the sharing with those dealing with all manner of distress. It was the era of the Great Depression in our country.

Acceptance of self and others is writ large throughout this series, both by those in this dynasty who learned the life lessons and those who did not. Adversity was a teacher for those who stepped up to the challenges they faced for their own good and the benefit of others. (Franklin’s wife, Eleanor, has already begun to shine by episode three and is clearly one of the winners in the willingness to go out of herself for others.)

Perhaps it is a stretch to compare our time to theirs but there are moments when the connection seems clear to me and it is the consciousness of what is possible and acceptance of what is not that will determine the outcome of this crisis of COVID-19 that we are now experiencing. And in what may seem a huge leap, may I quote St. Paul who reminds us that Jesus “did not deem equality with God something to be grasped at but rather emptied himself…”

May we contemplate the power and possibility of transformation during these next three days in a way that will open us to deeper understanding, stronger self-discipline and the great love of God in light.

Unconditional Acceptance

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acceptance, enemies, forgiveness, Jesus, Lent, love your enemies, Matthew, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Beginning with yesterday’s readings, the Lenten path grows more challenging. Not only are we to “make for ourselves a new heart and a new spirit” (yesterday’s challenge). Today calls us to reach out even further when we encounter others — especially those others whom we would never wish to meet. Here it is from the mouth of Jesus:

You have heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for He makes the sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. (MT 5: 43 –>)

Who are your enemies? Even if it is likely that there may be little chance of you ever meeting an enemy face to face, can you really say there is no one on earth that you could not welcome into the circle of your embrace? How might you move toward acceptance? And, with steadfast love of God, might you hope to come someday to the forgiveness that bespeaks the love of God for all creatures?

Choose Life

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acceptance, complain, grateful, love, positive, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Everything I have seen this morning has reminded me to choose to be positive rather than finding fault with anything. I could lament the fact that my busy mind kept me awake until after midnight so that I might be tired today. The alternative seems a better decision, however, and any other choice would be embarrassing. For example, how could I complain after reading Alex Trebek’s latest report about the recurrence of his stage 4 recurrence of pancreatic cancer? Or, on the other hand, after looking at glorious photos of some of the most beautiful places to visit in “leaf peeking” season, how could I not be grateful for the abundance of natural beauty and the cycle of seasons. “Tired” is not a good response when I am asked how I feel. Better to respond with one of the messages in my Affirmations Coloring Book, like “I choose to dwell in a world of love and acceptance.'” or “I am a magnet for miracles.” (How can you not smile at that one?)

This all started with Jesus saying to Martha in the gospel this morning, “Martha, Martha, you are worried about many things when only one thing is necessary…” (i.e. sitting at the feet of the Lord and listening to him). Perhaps if we did that a little more often or consciously we would more easily forget the non-essentials and wake up to a better day. So let me start over and tell you that I am feeling just fine today. Thank you very much!

Choice

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acceptance, choice, interpretation, judgment, Meg Wheatley, perseverance, react, respond, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Life sometimes seems to be offering us little choice. When we’re young we have to go to school, we eat what our parents put before us, we do what we’re told, etc. When older, sometimes it feels the same when our patterns are established and we go to work, we spend our money on necessities (or not) and sometimes life seems to winnow the list of choices we have to fit into how much time we have in our busy schedules (but who makes the schedule?).

I am considering the topic of choice today not because I feel constrained by the number of hours in the day (although as I get older that sometimes rankles) but because of Margaret Wheatley’s book, Perseverance, that I chose for my morning reflection. Here’s a little of what she said – which you might choose to consider as I did, whether you are making judgments about time constraints, other people or anything in your life.

We need first to notice that we’ve made choices about everything in our lives. How we react and respond, every single feeling, is a choice. Every situation has infinite possibilities for interpretation and reaction. But we collapse all those possibilities the second we assign a feeling or judgment to the situation. (Page 103)

So, really, it’s more about how we feel about our choices and/or how we judge them that makes the difference in our acceptance of them. I will be spending some time with this thought today. Will you?

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Monday

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acceptance, change, opportunities, seasons, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, time passing, trust

Here come the geese flying south. They make quite a racket, even if there are only a few of them heading for the river at the border of our property. Soon I will know again – if I’m driving north on Interstate Route 81 for some reason – the thrill and danger of seeing hundreds (yes, literally hundreds of them) and trying to count as I drive. It is a fruitless activity of course; I usually give up quickly and just let the amazement of their “V” formation take my attention and gratitude as they cross the vast expanse of sky over the cornfields. It’s one of those late August signals of seasonal change – some would all it delight – like waking up to a temperature of 48 degrees F. and waiting for the sun to take us to 75 by mid-afternoon.

I remember hearing when I was much younger about the phenomenon of swifter time passage as we age. Now I know the truth of that feeling. “How did we get to the end of August?” I ask myself as I contemplate the date and the fact of facing another Monday upon awakening. There’s no sense in lamenting the days already gone; they won’t ever be back! Accepting what is and moving on, grateful for what is still to come, is the only way to travel this highway. There may be miracles hidden in the morning mist. We have only to trust until the sun breaks through and sets a clear course of opportunity for the gifts that this Monday holds.

The Human Jesus

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acceptance, Brother Curtis Almquist, developmental issues, gratitude, growth, human, humanity, imagination, Jesus, limitations, Messiah, mission, reflection, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, understanding, visualizing

Like many people, I receive a few “thought for the day” quotes in my e-mail each morning. Most often I delete them without too much reflection but occasionally there is something that makes me sit up and take notice. Perhaps because of the Wednesday and Friday gospels this week that focused on the miraculous feeding and healing powers of Jesus, I was led to reflect on his humanity today by Brother Curtis Almquist of the Episcopal Society of St. John the Evangelist in a short post entitled Growth. Here’s what he wrote.

I don’t think Jesus asked to be the Messiah any more than any of us asked for the deck of cards that was handed to us in our birth. But Jesus grew into the acceptance of his humanity, his gifts, his limitations, his mission, and his unfinished business, facing the same developmental issues that we all do in growing up.

Even though in theory I totally buy into Paul’s declaration to the Philippians that Jesus “emptied himself of godliness” and “became like us in all things but sin,” it’s rather stunning to think of Jesus having limitations, let alone “developmental issues.” I must admit, however, to a tiny sensation of relief and gratitude somewhere inside me as I begin to conjecture just what that might mean. I think it will take some time because there are no words that will clarify the sensation. It will take imagination, visualizing Jesus in life situations – in his youth, as a young adult and during his ministry – asking him questions about what he is experiencing in the situations in which he finds himself and then listening for answers.

Trusting that this process is not just a “flight of fancy” but rather a journey into the “imaginal” world may lead to a deepening of understanding and appreciation of Jesus as “fully human.” Why not give it a try?

Election Day

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acceptance, election, Election Day, justice, Luke, messages, Philippians, privilege, psalm 22, responsibility, St. Paul, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, vote, vows

I’m getting really good (at least in my own eyes) at finding  synchronistic meaning in the morning Scripture readings with the events of life. Today is Election Day in the United States and although it is a mid-term election year, it could be historic even though we are not electing a President this time. The balance of power in the Congress is at stake and there is also a huge increase in the number of women standing for election this year. Taking the readings in reverse order, I see clear messages for us today.

1. In the gospel of Luke (14:15-24) we hear of a man who gave a great dinner to which many were invited. When the time came and the dinner was ready, those who had been invited made excuses for their inability to come. As a result, the poor, the blind and the lame ate well that day. I often think of the shameful statistics of our participation in the election process in the United States. We have a privilege denied to citizens of many countries in the world and we often fail to exercise it. We complain about our “leaders” but do nothing to change the election results. We stay home from the polls in great numbers because we are lazy or frustrated with the government when the way to change things is simply to show up! One bright spot this year is that the largest number of citizens voting in this election cycle is purported to be the youngest citizens eligible (18-30 year olds). If true, that could be a sign of change to come. The message to us for today: GET OUT AND VOTE!
2. Psalm 22 calls us to praise the Lord in the Assembly of the people. It’s about doing justice and fulfilling “the vows we have made” – one might say, as citizens of this country, to educate ourselves about what is going on politically and how we can effect changes in what not longer works. It seems from events of this past year that we should be listening to the youngest cohort of eligible voters so that the words of Scripture may be true of us. Let the coming generation…proclaim to a people yet to be born the justice that [God] has shown.
3. When all is said and done today, our hope is for acceptance of the result without rancor. That is the beauty of a democratic process. Whether or not our preferred candidates are elected, we travel on together, remembering the urging of Paul’s letter to the Philippians (2:5-11) to: [H]ave among yourselves the same attitude that is also yours in Christ Jesus who..emptied himself.. Our elections are not about winning our argument or making sure that our agenda is pushed through but rather seeking those who will do their best for the country and letting go of our own egoic choices.

You may find my interpretations far-fetched and I would perhaps agree but the messages are clear to me this morning as I have stated them. We are called to take responsibility for the privilege of voting as informed citizens and to accept the result whether or not it is our desired outcome, having done our part to participate in the democratic process.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Reunion of Spirit

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acceptance, age, divine grace, imprint, inner landscape, life, presence, reunion, spiritual deepening, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, unity, women's circle

Yesterday I spent the afternoon at a reunion. I’m looking at the word now: re-union, and I know it to be a true description of what happened in the gathering. These eight women (one of whom was only able to be with us yesterday in spirit) had spent over ten years gathering once a month to share life in a most meaningful way. We couldn’t remember exactly when it began although with some digging I may be able to reconstruct the timeline. What we knew was the indelible imprint we had left on each other’s hearts. So yesterday – older and most likely wiser after nearly a decade apart because of other commitments – we found each other again with our love for one another intact and our willingness to share ourselves even more deeply than before.

Life has sculpted us in ways we didn’t have time to share fully as the afternoon flew by but what we did not have to remind each other was that we have come into this new moment maybe even more desirous of spiritual deepening than when we last met. What shape this effort will take is still in seed. It is clear that we will not just repeat the pattern of our first incarnation together. What is obvious to me as I sit here this morning is the truth that we are all one, living in a unity that allows us to be more than we are alone for the good of the world. Our circle is not closed but open to others who call to us while giving us the strength we need to become our best selves.

What I describe is perhaps one of those “you had to be there” events, comprehensible only to the participants. I speak of it only to suggest that regardless of advancing age that includes physical diminishment and loss there is a beautiful inner landscape in each of us that we can mirror to each other if we meet in a space of acceptance and grateful presence. May we be that presence for one another and a model for other seekers as we go forward in divine grace!

 

 

 

 

 

Of Work and Workers

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acceptance, attitude, character, dignity, fulfillment, Good Shepherd, happiness, John, love, pay, rich inner life, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, work, workers

There’s a passage in the “Good Shepherd” gospel from today’s lectionary (JN 10: 12-13) that has me thinking about the power of intention. It says the following: “A hired man, who is not a shepherd and whose sheep are not his own, sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away and the wolf catches and scatters them. This is because he works for pay and has no concern for the sheep.”

I have always been blessed with fulfilling work that I have, therefore, done motivated by love – of the people I encounter and the work itself. In that way, I understand the shepherd who “knows” his sheep, able to tell one from another and willing to do whatever it takes to keep them safe. But I am thinking this morning about people who work in jobs that are onerous, yet necessary to allow even a subsistence lifestyle. I presume it would take a very strong will to be able to be happy in such a situation. It would necessitate digging deep to find a purpose for getting up in the morning. It has been said that “Happiness is an inside job.” Thus, there must be something deeper than the work itself to motivate the worker.

As I write, I recognize that this truth is universal and is definitely an aspect of one’s character and attitude. Think about the clerks in a store that you frequent. Two people who are paid the same salary may be quite different in the way they greet you or work the checkout counter. It’s the same for heads of large corporations. So while I would like to see a more equitable pay scale and better conditions for workers, I come to the conclusion that if one has a rich inner life anything can be a blessing if it moves us toward acceptance and even love.

Let us pray today for an appreciation of the dignity of work and all workers as we examine our own attitudes toward what is our own work in the world. Let our intention be the building up of community in whatever we do and what we achieve, not for our own glory but for the good of all and the praise of God.