Still Moving

This past Saturday, someone told me that they were inspired by what I wrote and wondered why it was taking me so long to post something new. I didn't have a good answer besides saying that I didn't think anyone was reading. I was wrong. So much has happened since my last post that it is just crazy to try and cover it now. I can say that I am still on the move towards peace in Christ. As the first full week of Lent passes, I have found that I am in a great place. I'm happy with my life. I'm broke, and not worried. I give where I can and keep moving in the direction God is calling me. Though happy, what God asks is not always easy and sometimes just downright difficult. Do you feel like me? Do you struggle with what God asks? Do you find yourself wondering what happens when you move away from God's call? Let's talk about it.

Movement of Life

It's funny how things change. We swear we'll never do something then find ourselves smack in the middle of doing it and having fun, or not. After finishing my Master of Divinity, I remember saying that I wasn't going back to school. Yet here I am pursuing a Doctor of Ministry degree and loving it. I'm surprised by my energy. I haven't enjoyed school this much since elementary school. Funny how God moves us through life, orchestrated a fine piece of music. If we let Him. I have fought with God on so many issues. I have argued my point, I thought with the finesse of an attorney. I have resisted change and growth almost at every turn. Yet God has continued to move me through life. Bestowing upon me Her Grace. And I haven't been happier. Sure I'm challenged by some things. Of course I don't move as fast as I used to, but I'm so peaceful. I'm eager to work for God now. I look forward to it each day. Let's have fun with the movement of life.

Affecting Your Movement

It never ceases to amaze me how my movement affects others. I've begun this quest toward Christ's Peace and it's affecting others in strange ways. Some have gotten downright angry while others have begun their own journey or clarified their route. What is it about setting out toward your destiny that others are threatened? If my movement towards peace is affecting your movement, are you willing to admit that we are connected to one another in ways that that challenge us? Why can't my movement affect your movement in a positive way?

Does Marching Work Anymore?

12 Jun 07 I celebrated my birthday in a uniquely different way. I joined a march on Chicago's Southside to protest the violence perpetrated against children. The march particularly focused on the 32 children who died as a result of some sort of violence this past school year. The march was organized by St Sabina's pastor Fr. Michael Pfleger. We marched from the church to 79th and Racine where we proceed west to Halsted, south to 76th, west back to Racine where we ended in King Park. We walked behind 31 caskets (the 32nd child had just been killed the night before) made by teenagers. I walked with mixed emotions as some people in the community just stared at us while others shouted out support and thanks. I kept thinking, what could this possibly mean to the people in this community -- especially since they are just staring at us: from porches, windows, bus stops, parked cars. Then I realized that perhaps we gave them hope. Perhaps we gave them the strength to press on. As we moved through the community, we stopped everything. People who had been interrupted from whatever they were doing, trying to get home, trying to get to work, etc. were stopped by us for just a moment and something beautiful happened. People applauded and others joined us. Children stopped playing to watch us and I wondered, "What does this mean to them?" One child even came up and asked, "When did all these children die?" Does marching work anymore? I know that I was changed. My participation in the march solidified for me the fact that together we can effect change.

God Does ANSWER

We pray and we pray and we pray. We ask God for this and that. We want Him to get us out of trouble. We want a miracle. And when He does we aren't satisfied. So often we are so focused on what we want that we fail to realize that God answered. The problem? He doesn't always give us what we ask for. And since He doesn't, we say She hasn't answered. Little do we know. Really, little do we know -- God's answer is better than what we asked for. She knows what to do better than we do. Little do we know. The challenge is whether or not we're going to do what God ASKS us. The easiest thing to do? Ask God to reveal to you what you should be asking for.