Pastor Annette's Blog
"OF ALL THE THINGS GOD HAS SHOWN ME, I CAN SPEAK BUT A LITTLE WORD NOT MORE THAN A HONEYBEE CAN CARRY AWAY ON ITS FOOT FROM AN OVERFLOWING JAR."
~ MECHTHILD OF MAGDEBURG, 13TH CENTURY MYSTIC |
"OF ALL THE THINGS GOD HAS SHOWN ME, I CAN SPEAK BUT A LITTLE WORD NOT MORE THAN A HONEYBEE CAN CARRY AWAY ON ITS FOOT FROM AN OVERFLOWING JAR."
~ MECHTHILD OF MAGDEBURG, 13TH CENTURY MYSTIC |
November 5, 2019
Beloved: During my few days at an ashram in India, I attended teaching sessions of a guru named Sadhvi Bhagawati Sarawatiji, or Sadhvi. Not to weird you out too much, but this Baptist preacher enjoyed her immensely. She’s really smart, deeply wise, funny, kind, and practical in ways I appreciate. “It is not selfish to desire a peaceful home,” and “if someone consistently spills tea on your best sofa and never apologizes or helps clean it up, maybe they aren’t the person you want to keep having over for tea." And my favorite, “all the mystical practices of all the religions in the world send us inward to the place of spiritual abundance.” She is prayed up, as the Baptists who raised me would have said, though maybe not about a Hindu leader. But I have no doubt at all. As my heart, mind, body, and soul continue to settle down from my trip to India, I am all the more grateful for the ways I shall never be the same – in a dozen tiny ways for sure, but most of all as it has to do with prayer. With worship. And with language for the One who made and loves us all. In every people group in every time and place, language has kindled a cacophony of words and names for God while unknowingly agreeing on the message of the Divine’s unyielding love. Friends have asked, how was India? Mostly I answer, hot. To one person however I did say, if I traveled to the moon I don’t think I would have felt more like a foreigner. Which is altogether true save one thing: those sunset Hindu worship services alongside the Ganges River – Mother Ganges they call it, because all of India is fed by her waters. Weird as it is to say so, those sunset services felt like Baptist church camp to me – folks getting closer to God by getting closer to nature. The words were different, but the connection among people singing together was exactly the same; the night air was exactly the same; the sound of lapping water was exactly the same. So was the shine of the stars and the smell of the fire and the deep peace of praying with other praying people. All those people together at the ashram for Navratri are now back home at their everyday routines, where spiritual practice is always more tricky than when at camp, on retreat, or on pilgrimage. Duty so easily crowds out the things we do for pleasure, prayer especially. However you are able, try to make the time and then keep in mind that a world of folks are praying too. ~ peace & prayers, pastor annette
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I write a Tuesday morning devotional to members and friends of UBC. It is also posted here.
Enjoy! Pastor Annette Copyright
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