Giving and Getting

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Acts of the Apostles, balance, Ephesians, getting, give, giving, receive, St. Paul, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

This morning, Paul was preparing to leave Ephesus, never to return after being with and teaching the people for three years. He is speaking to the presbyters into whose hands he is entrusting the whole people. (Acts 20: 28-38) It is their responsibility now to hold the Ephesians steady in the truth that he has imparted to them about the teachings of Jesus. And what is his last word to them? A simple sentence that may sound familiar to you: It is more blessed to give than to receive.

If I tried, perhaps I could spend the day with that adage in mind and at the end of the day, looking back, I might be able to see the balance of giving and getting in my actions, words and thoughts. A formidable task perhaps but one well worth the effort, it seems.

Easter People

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Easter season, fresh day, Joyce Rupp, Prayer Seeds, prepare, readiness, receive, shining love of God, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Today is a new day – an Easter Day. We have finished with the 40 days of Lent and now look forward to the 50 days of Easter. I always need to remind myself that the Easter season is that long – all the way to Pentecost – and that we are called to be “Easter people,’ shining the love of God through Christ each and every day. Joyce Rupp is a cheerleader, reminding us that every day can be the best one so far, if we choose it to be. Here’s what she says this morning with the gusto that I must choose to move into my day.

Unscripted. This day. My day. A fresh day. Waiting. Ready to be opened. Holding more than what is expected. No matter the lengthly list of have-to-do, don’t-want-to-do. Enter with a readiness to receive, to appreciate. Prepare for a full plunge instead of a toe-in-the-water. (Prayer Seeds, p. 154)

Now that sounds like someone who has embraced the Resurrection and willingness to move forward in life each day – one day at a time. “Count me in, Joyce,” I say, with a smile.

This New Day

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beautiful day, blessed, dawn, deep waters of life, gift, Joyce Rupp, Prayer Seeds, receive, spring, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

6:03AM: It’s impossible to stay asleep with all the different birds that are announcing morning outside! I suppose it’s my fault for leaving my bedroom window open all night, but how could I resist? Spring is finally bursting everywhere and it is glorious! It was definitely worth waiting for, although the delay throughout all of April made me wonder if it would ever happen! I celebrate May as the most beautiful month of the year because new life is visible everywhere outside and, as a result, is rising up inside as spontaneous hope. Listen to how Joyce Rupp describes it:

Unscripted. This day. My day. A fresh day. Waiting. Ready to be opened. Holding more than what is expected. No matter the lengthly list of have-to-do, don’t-want-to-do, enter with a readiness to receive, to appreciate. Prepare a full plunge instead of a toe-in-the-water.

Release the tight grip on a measured schedule. Stand on the threshold of dawn like a diver on a cliff eager to receive what awaits, ready for adventure. Aim for the deep waters of life where the day’s activity will surely bring an opportunity to connect with the Holy… (Prayer Seeds, p.154)

May we all be blessed by the gift of this beautiful day!

 

 

 

 

 

Fully Human

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call, generosity, human, Meg Wheatley, open-hearted, Paulo Freire, purpose, purpose-filled, receive, religious life, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Turning To One Another, vocation

The word “vocation” is sitting under many of my thoughts these days as I walk through this 50th year of religious life. It surfaces each time a gathering comes along where I am called to answer the question, “How are you?” asked by people who haven’t seen me in awhile. It comes from the Latin verb meaning to call and as a noun is used to define our work in life. Meg Wheatley quotes Paulo Freire, a Brazilian and world educator who often said that we have a “vocation to be fully human.” She goes on from there to give some thoughts worthy of pondering. See what you think.

We don’t decide what our vocation is, she says, we receive it. It always originates from outside us. Therefore, we can’t talk about vocation or a calling without acknowledging that there is something going on beyond our narrow sense of self. It helps remind us that there’s more than just me, that we’re part of a larger and purpose-filled place.

Even if we don’t use the word vocation, most of us want to experience a sense of purpose to our lives…I believe we become more fully human with any gesture of generosity, any time we reach out to another rather than withdraw into our individual suffering. To become fully human we need to keep opening our hearts, no matter what. At this time when suffering and anxiety continue to increase, when there is always reason to weep for some unbearable tragedy inflicted by one human on another, I try to remember to keep my heart open.

In my own experience, I notice I like myself better when I am generous and open-hearted. I don’t like myself when I’m afraid of others or angry at them…At those times, I don’t feel more human but less. I become more fully human only when I extend myself. This is how I define for myself what it means to have a vocation to be fully human. (Turning To One Another, pp. 58, 59)