Week Three, Day Five Love

I invite you into the prayer practice of Vision Divina noticing the mystery of each breath.

Breathe in to the count of three...exhale to the count of six or seven.

Breathe in the One whose loving wisdom day-by-day helps us navigate life...exhale that is cloudy, unsure, and uncertain.

Breathe in the beauty of not knowing everything...breathe out the perfectionism that says you have to be Super Spiritual woman or man.

Look at the image and let your eyes stay with the very first thing that you see. Keep your attention on that one part of the image that first catches your eye. Try to keep your eyes from wandering to other parts of the picture.

Next, imagine what would happen if the fog suddenly lifted and you could see behind what is hidden there just out of our sight?  What would happen if the curtain was lifted? Breathe deeply and let yourself gaze at that part of the image for a minute or so.

Ask yourself, where is there metaphorical fog in my life right now? 

Consider the following questions:

What emotions does this image evoke in you?

What does the image stir up in you, bring forth in you?

Does this image lead you into an attitude of prayer? If so, let these prayers take form in you. Write them down if you desire.

Reflection

Loving people can be like trying to steer a ship through the fog!  We get glimpses of where to go and what to say from our navigational equipment (usually called our mind, heart, soul, past experiences, and prayerful hopes).  But God knows that equipment can go on the fritz and isn't always dependable.  We sometimes think we are heading the right direction, only to suddenly realize that something was off, and we were heading north when we thought we were going south.  In those moments when the sailing is smooth and we can see for miles, there is unmistakable joy.  Then, there are the moments we wake up to cloudy conditions that cause us to feel cut off from others, even from ourselves.

Loving people can be like trying to steer a ship through the fog.  And a good place to start is to realize love wasn't any easier or simpler in the 'good ole days'.  It just seems that way because we are gazing at the past into the rearview mirror of our lives.  We look back to where we have been and what we have already come through, from that vantage point what we see looks different.  In the rearview mirror we can spot the obstacles we avoided.  But sometimes we forget the ways we navigated the past pitfalls of life.  There was a time when we were not fully sure what was waiting around the corner. At least we thought it was a corner.  We couldn’t see, because of all the fog!

So, inch-by-inch, we try to navigate forward seeing only a small part, pieces, of what is around us.  Or in the words of Thomas Merton's beloved prayer, "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."

The fog isn't only between us and another, Merton is saying, that is within us.  We are foggy to ourselves.  We are constantly discovering new things, growing, and learning.  Sometimes such insights come by doing it right, getting the "A", and soaring with the eagles.  But more often, at least for me, I gain insights by stumbling, bumbling, and basically just trying to get through the thick fog of life.

Jesus entered our world through the thick fog of militarism and authoritarian Roman government.  Jesus entered our world through the thick fog of fear that kept people apart.

Jesus entered our world through the fog of religion that said, "This is the right way and just ignore all other ways."

Jesus still enters our world because the above three sentences are as true now as they were two thousand years ago. We cling to might makes right and gravitate toward power. We cast fear of the other as the way to convince people that we alone can steer you through the fog of today.

We promote membership in the church so we can say we are growing, at least in numbers, maybe not in soul.

But to grow through love.

To grow in love.

To grow with love.

How do you do this?  The ways we get through the fog can be as unique as the person reading this sentence.  Too often we want someone to be proscriptive, tell us what to do, rather than descriptive, telling us how she got through the fog.  I know I get through the daily fog by taking one step at a time.  Also, the breathing we have been doing where we inhale to the count of three and exhale to the count of six or seven has been shown scientifically to reset and even re-wire our brainwaves.  I take time to pray, listening for God’s nudges.  I read authors whose words nourish and nurture my soul.  I admit when I stumble and try to learn from my fumbles.  I look for moments of love and joy that can be like a beam of light cutting through the fog.  Perhaps some of this is helpful for you as you try to move about your life.  You may need to talk to others if you are an external processor who needs to speak your truth out loud in order to hear it for yourself.  You may need to go on silent retreats.  You may need to close your eyes and listen to music.  You may need to have other prayer practices to open your heart to the traces of God’s grace. This is the faithful and foggy way Jesus' life responding to the nudges of the Spirit and the traces of God's grace.  But, for me, such love is the way that compels my heart and calls to my soul as I prepare the stable of my heart for God’s entry this year.

Blessings ~~