Plans for the Day

“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” (Matthew 6:33 NLT)

I once saw a video where a guy was trying to fill a jar with a certain amount of big rocks and sand. First, he put the sand in and tried to fit the rocks on top. He couldn’t get all of them in the jar. However, when he put the big rocks in first, the sand easily fit between the gaps of space.

Every morning, my husband and I go over our plans for the day. Some things cannot be moved around--like my husband’s work schedule. Other things are more flexible--exercise, meals, chores, social time, etc.  Since his schedule is less fluid than mine, I tend to work my schedule around his.

The purposes of God are unchangeable. If we try to fill our day with our plans and then try to squeeze God’s purposes into the gaps, they may not fit. However, when God’s intentions take precedence over our personal aspirations, everything finds its proper place.  

Lord, help me to seek You today, to watch what You are doing, and to align my values with Yours.

Steps with Purpose

“We are merely moving shadows, and all our busy rushing ends in nothing.” Psalm 39:8 NLT)

During our last family vacation, we got lost while walking the dog. We took a few wrong turns and ended up going away from our intended direction. Luckily, we discovered our mistake before too long and found our way back with the GPS on our phones. It wasn’t a total waste of time; at least we got some exercise. Since I wear a fitness tracker, I’m always eager to find ways to increase my step count--even if I’m just walking in circles. It makes me feel active and productive.

Every little choice throughout our day is like a step. Some of our choices are intentional; others are random. Some steps lead us in the right direction, some in the wrong direction, and some just take us in circles going nowhere. At the end of each day, we may have a high step count, but have accomplished nothing meaningful.

Obsessive ambition and worldliness can lead us into sin. Self-absorption and a lack of direction can lull us into pointless busy work. However, when we listen to the Spirit of God, we are guided in the right direction, blessed with motivation, and enlightened with clear purpose.

My Healer

“Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound.”(Isaiah 30:26 KJV)

The world is fractured. We broke it--not deliberately, of course.  We lost touch with the divine spirit within us that called us to love all of creation.  Instead, we followed our human instincts to look out for ourselves while neglecting everything else. This seismic shift away from what God intended created deep fissures. Although we broke it, we can’t fix it. We need Divine help to repair, reconcile, and restore this world. Thus, we take all our wounds to the Lord, our Healer, who makes us whole. God’s light brings complete clarity, renews our perspectives, and purifies our souls.

“O God of the poor,

help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth,

so precious in your eyes.

Bring healing to our lives,

that we may protect the world and not prey on it,

that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction.

Touch the hearts

of those who look only for gain

at the expense of the poor and the earth.

Teach us to discover the worth of each thing,

to be filled with awe and contemplation,

to recognize that we are profoundly united

with every creature

as we journey towards your infinite light.” (Pope Francis)

Birthday Prayer

Since today is my birthday, I'm feeling indulgent. Instead of posting my own thoughts, I would like to treat myself and everyone else to a prayer written by one of my favorite authors:

My Lord God,

I have no idea where I am going.

I do not see the road ahead of me.

I cannot know for certain where it will end.

nor do I really know myself,

and the fact that I think I am following your will

does not mean that I am actually doing so.

But I believe that the desire to please you

does in fact please you.

And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.

I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.

And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road,

though I may know nothing about it.

Therefore will I trust you always though

I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death

I will not fear, for you are ever with me,

and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.  

(Prayer by Thomas Merton)

Correcting Mistakes

“You can't whitewash your sins and get by with it; you find mercy by admitting and leaving them.” (Proverbs 28:13 MSG)

When I notice a pimple or under eye circles, I pull out some concealer from my makeup bag and cover it up. The blemish is still there, but it is less obvious when I look at myself in the mirror. I am hoping others don’t notice it either. Instead of camouflaging my flaws, I could try to change my diet, drink more water, or get more sleep. However, these changes would require a lot more effort; covering up is much easier.

As Christians, many of us strive to follow the teachings of Jesus. However, we stopped caring about people who seemed ‘different’ than us.  We classified them as threats to our way of life. We segregated humanity based on ethnicity, geography, and socio-economic class.   We concealed our prejudice. We whitewashed our sins rather than confronting them. We sense that this is not a solution, but we are too wrapped up in maintaining our image and justifying our attitudes to make any real changes. Somehow we lost our way. It is time to admit our mistakes, turn around, and find our way back to the path of compassion.

American Values

"Into the hovels of the poor,

Into the dark streets where the homeless groan, God speaks:

'I've had enough; I'm on my way

To heal the ache in the heart of the wretched." (Psalm 12:5 MSG)

For centuries, the United States of America was known as a melting pot of immigrants from all over the world who came in search of freedom and opportunity. The Statue of Liberty was the symbol for all that America represented. At the base of the statue is the following inscription:

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

We are a nation built on liberty--the freedom to practice any religion without being harassed; the freedom to assemble, to protest injustice, and to have a free press.

I am deeply saddened by what is happening in my country. American values are being trampled; freedom is being replaced with restrictions and bans. Christian values are adulterated to justify greed and racism.

This is NOT us! America is better than this!  

Human Regress

“If you are generous with the hungry and start giving yourselves to the down-and-out, your lives will begin to glow in the darkness, your shadowed lives will be bathed in sunlight.” (Isaiah 58:10 MSG)

Here are a few mind-blowing statistics:

-The world produces 17% more food per person today than thirty years ago, but close to a billion people go hungry every night. 98% of these people live in developing countries. (Oxfam)

-Americans eat 815 billion calories of food each day - that's roughly 200 billion more than needed - enough to feed 80 million people. Americans throw out 200,000 tons of edible food daily. (public.wsu.edu)

-83% of Americans identify themselves as Christian. (abcnews.com)

How can we call ourselves a Christian nation and continue to ignore those who hunger and thirst? How can we refuse to help those who are powerless and vulnerable?