Just as I am: R.I.P. Billy Graham

Posted on February 22, 2018 by Virginia

Billy Graham passed yesterday at the age of 99. With the support of his beloved wife, Ruth, he ministered as an evangelist to countless thousands all around the world. While he’d be the first to admit he wasn’t perfect, he served God faithfully for more than 60+ years of active preaching that proclaimed the love of Jesus for each and every person.

“Just as I am…” Just as we are, needing God’s transforming love to mend our brokenness.

My Papa & Mama loved Billy Graham. Papa once had the opportunity to meet him through family friends in Va. Beach who were from Billy’s neck of the woods in North Carolina. Papa recounted that encounter many times and always espoused Billy Graham’s leadership, faithfulness and integrity.

What a life for a farm boy from the mountains of North Carolina! Crisscrossing continents with the message of the Cross of Christ, speaking to royalty and ne’er-do-wells from the streets with equal equanimity & esteem. Using (what was then new) media like television to make the love of Christ known to even larger audiences.

Billy Graham also counted among his myriad friends Archbishop Fulton Sheen, the first to bring the Gospel to television in 1940. (Papa was also a Fulton Sheen groupie – we watched his shows often on DVD.) When Archbishop Fulton Sheen died in 1979, Billy Graham was seated with Catholic dignitaries in the very front of St. Patrick’s Cathedral at his funeral mass in New York. (Altho he tried to sneak in the back of the church!)

He also met with Pope John Paul II at the Vatican, whereupon the Pope clasped his hand, “we are brothers!” (It’s interesting that they both suffered from Parkinson’s disease in their later years.)

How do you measure a life like Billy Graham’s? From his autobiography, Just As I Am, here’s his take on that in his own words:

“As I look back over the years, I know my deepest feeling is overwhelming gratitude. I cannot take credit for whatever God has chosen to accomplish through us and our ministry; only God deserves the glory, and we can never thank Him enough for the great things He has done.”

As the world mourns the loss of one of the greatest statesmen of Jesus Christ in the 20th Century, may we take to heart the message of Billy Graham’s life:

Jesus loves me – just as I am.

“I don’t know the future, but I know this: the best is yet to be! Heaven awaits us… I know that soon my life will be over. I thank God for it… but I look forward to Heaven. I look forward to reunion with friends and loved ones who have gone before. I look forward to Heaven’s freedom from sorrow and pain. I also look forward to serving God in ways we can’t begin to imagine, for the Bible makes it clear that Heaven is not a place of idleness. And, most of all, I look forward to seeing Christ and bowing before Him in praise and gratitude for all He has done for us, and for using me on this earth by His grace – just as I am.”  (Billy Graham, Just As I Am, p. 730)

R.I.P. Billy Graham (07 November 1918- 21 February 2018)

grace, peace & faithfulness

Virginia

“You have made us for Yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds rest in Thee.” Saint Augustine of Hippo

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Snapshots & Whatnot: Thorny Roses

Posted on February 21, 2018 by Virginia

SNAPSHOT:

A rose in Kosovo (circa 1999)

& WHATNOT…

“Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns; I am thankful that thorns have roses.” Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr

Isn’t that like our lives, like our faith? Sometimes there’s hard spiky stuff on the way to making something beautiful, to realizing our dreams. Then there’s the thorny crown of suffering that allows Easter to blossom in our hearts.

There’s no Easter without the Cross.

Roses & thorns have each other, like suffering & the joy of resurrected Hope.

grace, peace & thorny roses

Virginia : )

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Our Father: A Prayer for Daily Help

Posted on February 20, 2018 by Virginia

Today’s Gospel reading from Matthew 6:7-15 encompasses what we call the Lord’s Prayer, how Jesus taught His disciples (& us) to pray. Sometimes we say this prayer so quickly the words barely register, but if we slow down it can become a ‘grid’ from which to pray – something I started doing years ago at the beginning of each day. Here’s a prayer snapshot of what that looks like.

Our Father, who art in Heaven *** Hallowed be Thy Name…

Your name, O Lord, is greatly to be praised! How magnificent is Your name, the Name above ALL names: King of Kings, Lord of Lords, El Shaddai, Almighty All-Powerful God, Heavenly Father… Blessed is the name of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, Wonderful, Counselor, Prince of Peace, Rose of Sharon, our Bright Morning Star, Emmanuel, God-with-us… Blessed is the name of the Holy Spirit, Holy Comforter, Dew of Light, Flame of Heaven…

Our hearts bow before You, Heavenly Father, in adoration & praise – Holy Redeemer, Savior & Lord, Most Merciful & Compassionate God…

We thank You for Your faithfulness, Your forgiveness, Your mercy and Your miracles – for Your Heavenly paintbrush in the beauty of creation all around us, within us.

We worship You, O Lord. We praise You. We love You. We thank you for Your unfailing love that remains constant: the love of our divine “Abba”…

Thy Kingdom come *** Thy will be done *** On earth as it is in Heaven…

Please pour out Your Holy Spirit upon us, so that Your Kingdom may come within us – in our hearts and minds and spirits. Let Your light shine through the cracks of these earthen, clay pots to touch the lives of others. Help us reflect the Light from Your Kingdom, where love and joy and mercy reign supreme.

We ask that Your will be done. May Your will be done in our lives, in our families, in our churches, in our cities, in our countries, in our world. Where violence, despair, and apathy prevail – where there is conflict (Sudan, the Congo/DRC, Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel/ Palestine, Syria, Somalia…) – may Your will be done. Where diseases – HIV/AIDS, malaria, cancer – ravage lives, may Your healing love be touched and felt. May Your will be done on this earth, as it is in Heaven…

Please align our desires with Your desires. Transform our hearts and minds with Your wisdom and love so we may know You better. Let the eyes of our hearts be enlightened to grasp the hope for which You have called us, the riches of the saints who have gone before us, and Your incomparably great power for us who believe. Empower & empassion us, Lord God, to be Your hands and feet of love to all we encounter today.

Give us this day our daily bread…

Lord, please meet all the needs of this day. Anoint the work of our hands and affirm us in Your love. Please help us to be calmly content in all situations (especially the challenging ones) with extra doses of Your grace & peace. May You bless our loved ones with Your love & mercy throughout this day.

And forgive us our trespasses,

                                    as we forgive those who trespass against us…

Forgive us, O Lord, for our sins… for what we have done and what we have failed to do in our thoughts, words and deeds. We are sorry, so sorry, for sinning against You. Your forgiveness comes at a great price: the sacrifice of Your son, our Lord Jesus Christ, His blood running through thorns and nails down the side of the Cross.

Have mercy, Oh Lord, have mercy on us, on me.

Forgive us.    Forgive us.   Forgive us.

Help us, O Father, to forgive those who have hurt us. Fill us with Your supernatural grace, as You have forgiven us, to forgive others through the power of the Holy Spirit.

And lead us not into temptation *** but deliver us from evil…

Father God, our faith is so fickle when we fall with the darts of the enemy; too often and too easily he preys upon our weaknesses. Strengthen our faith, O God, to withstand temptation. Through the precious blood of Your Son, Jesus Christ, protect us from evil. Please set watch-guards on the gates of our minds, hearts and spirits to shield us from the lies and deceit of the evil one.

Let Your light blot out any darkness within us. Shine Your flashlight of holiness into the dark corners of our souls. Deliver us, O God, from evil, that we might be Your hands and feet to the hurting of this world, especially those decimated by evil. “But for the grace of God, there go I…”  Deliver us, O Lord, so we might bring them into the warmth of Your forgiving arms – as we place ourselves there.

Fill us with what pleases You — Your love, Your joy, Your peace, Your grace, Your mercy, Your compassion, but especially Your wisdom, O Lord, to follow Your path and resist temptation, as we place our hope in You.

For Thine is *** The Kingdom *** The Power *** and The Glory…

Yours is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory, O God. Please give us ‘Kingdom eyes’ to see what You’re about around us, within us. Equip us with Your power, especially when we think we can’t, we’re not & we don’t want to – O Lord, help us know what YOU want, who YOU are, and what YOU can do – even the impossible in us, through us, with us…  

…that You may be glorified–this day & always!

 Forever and ever, AMEN.

grace, peace & daily prayers

Virginia : )

p.s. LoL! Scurrying about this morning I rushed through the Our Father – then read the Gospel for today. Sat down & prayed it again, this time reverently & slowly (with all the worship bits included.) A better way to start even the busiest of days. 🙂

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High-Flying Courage : )

Posted on February 19, 2018 by Virginia

The past week my brother & I have been getting lots of virtual exercise as armchair kibitzers cheering on athletes from all over the globe competing at the Winter Olympics in South Korea. (How ’bout those dashingly domineering Norwegians!?!)

After watching various snow-cross skiing, aerials & snowboarding events (yaaaay Chloe Kim, Jamie Anderson, Shaun White & Red Gerard!), it’s amazing how these athletes fly up so high to do their ‘tricks.’ Especially doing them under pressure, like Shaun White’s third run where he laid down something truly phenomenal to win gold medal in the half pipe. (Why do they say they ‘put down a run’ when they’re leaping & flipping up so high over the pipe course?) hmmn. Virginia, a snowboarder is not, but she likes to watch them (a bit more exciting than curling, not to offend avid curling fans out there, but what’s up with that?)

Methinks these ‘high-flying’ athletes need extra strong courage muscles to fly hundreds of feet above what is essentially a large block of ice covered with snow. Or flying up into multiple aerial flips over a snowy mountainside. Many rebounding after injuries to compete again = really strong courage muscles = inspiring.

And this relates to Lent, how? Maybe our courage muscles need a bit of spiritual encouragement to open the wings of our hearts to fly a bit higher (at least take a few flippety-flaps, however wobbly, more than 2 feet away from our comfortable nests?)

“Why do you complain…’My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God?’  Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:27-31)

“What good are wings without the courage to fly?” Atticus

grace, peace & high-flying courage

Virginia : )

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A Prayer: Too Many Things

Posted on February 18, 2018 by Virginia

Sorting through old files, I found this prayer letter from my time in Tanzania. May it bless any & all of us today overwhelmed with ‘too many things.’

Dear God:

Too many things overwhelm me: too many goals to accomplish, too many piles to sort, too many issues to grapple, too many people to call, too many projects to finish, too many overdue tasks, too many priorities to re-prioritize, too many things left undone, too many things crushing my heart.

Too many, too many, too many…my feet are sinking in the mire of too many things. Glimpses of joy seem fleeting. Hope is a distant dream vs. the reality of today.

Yet, joy is a choice, and I can choose hope, too. Hope in Your love, Your joy, Your peace, Your wisdom, Your grace, Your mercy: Your Presence all around me and within me.

But, my heart sometimes forgets, distracted by tasks (even if enacted for You.) Too many distractions to sit quietly before You for more than a minute.

Please, Lord God, let the power of the Holy Spirit flow through this clay pot. Let the Light of Your Son, Jesus Christ, shine through the cracks. I’ve been trying to use my own glue that is not holding up so well in the rain of too many challenges. Forgive me. Please reapply Your superglue to keep the disparate parts of this cracked clay pot together.

  • I can’t. I can’t deal with the piles, missed opportunities, disappointments.
  • I can’t. I can’t seem to get a grip on my inadequacies.
  • I can’t. I can’t let go (of control, my ways, selfish me-me-me-itis.)

You, however, CAN. You can take all these burdens off my shoulders, or at least re-arrange them so I can look up to see the Light of love reflected in Your mercy & grace.

  • You can. You can take the controls and guide my heart.
  • You can. You can transform me with wisdom to discern Your priorities.
  • You can. You can fill this clay pot with Your joy, Your peace, Your grace, Your love.
  • You can. You can provide a reason to hope, even when everything seems dark & gray.
  • You can. You can shine Your light through the cracks of this broken clay pot.

Thank You, God for hearing this prayer.  Please help (& please hurry – I’m sinking in too many things!)

In the name of the Father, Son & Holy Spirit. Amen.

Your humble servant,

Virginia

Maybe one day I’ll be able to manage many things like this precious lady in Morogoro, TZ, juggling a case of bottled water, office supplies & her baby with such grace & verve!

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A Song for Saturday

Posted on February 17, 2018 by Virginia

As Lent jumped us a bit this year (with Ash Wednesday on Valentine’s Day), Virginia was still on the fence about doing another post-a-day Lent gig. Posted somethings the last 3 days to keep her options open, ‘ya know? But, here’s to giving it an ongoing whirl with a song she’s grooving to on this gloomy Saturday.

A bit bleary-eyed after seeing the late viewing of the Black Panther movie last night (INCREDIBLY INSIGHTFUL, AMAZINGLY AWESOME, FANTABULOUSLY FANTASTIC MOVIE!) this song perked my lethargic blues right up this morning. My brother downloaded it awhile back with other songs after we watched ‘The Big Year’ movie (you can read all about it in this previous Blackbird Grooves post.)

From Canadian songwriter Jeremy Fisher’s Let It Shine compilation, here’s a YouTube of the title track, Let It Shine.

(You can check out more of his music via his home page: Jeremy Fisher Music.)

Shine, let it shine
Even if it burns your eyes
This light of mine is mighty
And I’m gonna let it shine…

grace, peace & shining Light

Virginia : )

p.s. As during Advent, I realize many readers & friends on FB follow other faith traditions (or none at all) but I hope these posts might increase understanding & bless those following Lenten traditions as we prepare for Easter (the big Holy Day for Christians.)

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Touching the Wounds of Christ

Posted on February 16, 2018 by Virginia

On this first Friday of Lent, here’s a thought to consider: are we opening our hearts and lives to touch the wounds of Christ? What wounds His heart?

“‘Thomas, put your finger in My hands. Put it in My side. Now, believe.’ (John 20:27) I don’t think you can begin to believe until you put your finger in your own wounds, the wounds of one another, and the wounds of Christ.”

Richard Rohr, OFM, from Breathing Under Water

Thomas always gets a bad rap because he doubted Christ, but when Jesus asked him to touch His wounds – Thomas reached out and touched them. That took a bit of faith. Just like it takes faith for us to offer our wounded hearts & lives to Jesus, to let His love touch the hurting bits with healing balm so we may have courage to reach out and touch the wounds of others.

Hey, we’re all wounded works of divine art in process. But, by sharing a compassionate touch (even when we don’t have it all together) we can change pain’s stark paint into a lighter shade with love.

When we touch the wounds of others with love, we’re touching the wounds of Christ.

grace, peace & compassionate courage

Virginia : )

p.s. Here’s a song I stumbled upon whilst setting up new computer links to “Roses in the Rubble” – the name of this blog, but also the name of British folk singer David Jay Moore’s new compilation.  Have a listen (via this YouTube video – email readers, you know the drill!)

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The Cross of Love

Posted on February 15, 2018 by Virginia

My heart breaks for the families of students & faculty senselessly killed & injured yesterday at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this horrific violence. Drenched with sadness, it’s overwhelming to hear how a well-loved football coach shielded others with himself – sacrificing his life in the process – & how other quick-thinking teachers & staff saved lives in a school of 3,000 students.

When will this reckless violence & hate stop?

My planned Lenten post today seems a bit trivial, so here’s something else to hold on to. As events unfolded yesterday one of the images pictured a mother, crying, holding another mother for support as they waited to see if their children survived. Her head adorned with ashes in the form of a cross from Ash Wednesday, she wore a heart necklace (since yesterday also was Valentine’s?) I hope (& pray) her child survived, but in those darkest of moments, she represented what our faith is all about: the love of Jesus for us & with us in the deepest crosses of our lives.

“I fall on my knees before God the Father… and I pray that Christ may live in your hearts by your faith. And I pray that you, firmly fixed in love yourselves, may be able to grasp how wide and deep and long and high is the love of Christ—and to know for yourselves that love so far beyond our comprehension.”  (Ephesians 3:14-19. J.B. Phillips)

I drew that simple picture years ago during a tough time in my life. May the deep, deep love of Jesus heal & comfort hurting hearts & lives in Florida & all around our whacked out world.

grace, peace & hurting hearts

Virginia

“There is no cross, big or small, in our lives which the Lord does not share with us.” Pope Francis

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Mindlessness vs. Mindfulness

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Virginia

Lent is here, aaaaack! As Ash Wednesday begins the 40-day Lenten journey to Easter, we forage into fasting & abstinence (all the things we mean to give up, must give up, try to give up?) But Lent is about more than just giving up chocolate and chips, it’s about drawing closer to God in a deeper way, opening up the closets of our lives to a cleaning out of the rubble & a bit of Heavenly restoration.

May hurt, a bit, but some stuff’s gotta’ go, ‘ya know?

My Lenten fast actually began last week. Noticing several pairs of pants seemingly shrank (!!) I stepped onto the scales. Ooops. Back to the virtuous vegan path (winter munchies now patrolled with stringent intent.)

Which brings me to this mantra: mindful or mindless? A good question, not just about Lenten food intake but something to consider in other parts of our lives. Are we mindful of what we’re eating, or just mindlessly eating more? (‘Til the bag is gone.) Are we mindful of what we’re putting into our heads (& hearts), or just mindlessly letting the next Netflix episode binge-us-over?

“So, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (I Corinthians 10:31)

Just ‘saying. Mindful vs. Mindless. I can mindlessly take a whole bag of chips (or tin of ‘healthy nuts’) in with me whilst watching something exciting, or I can mindfully measure out a few into a small bowl to savor one at a time.

Are we making choices mindfully – thinking about them, a bit? (Not obsessing, but at least taking a sec to reflect?) Or, are we mindlessly allowing our next whatevers to be, whatever? (As in, unduly influenced by others, just doing whatever it is unthinkingly?)

“Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple.”  (I Corinthians 3:16-17)

Before the onset of his quadriplegia, my Papa loved to jog miles and miles. When we were little, my brother & I counted his laps up & down the boardwalk in Va. Beach. Papa called his jogging Temple Maintenance: he had that emblazoned on the back of his bright 1970s yellow jogging suit.

Lent is an opportunity for us to engage in a little Temple Maintenance: outside & inside. To discipline external muscles & strengthen internal faith muscles. Maybe clean out our musty mind closets? Let our spiritual lives get a new paint job? (The sanding may hurt a bit, but what fun to see what new colors God can swirl in us?)

And so, it begins. Will our Lenten journeys include mindful Temple Maintenance, or will we mindlessly keep munching (whole bags) of chips?

grace, peace & mindfulness

Virginia : )

p.s. It’s Ash Wednesday AND Valentine’s Day! Here’s a favorite quote that combines the two in an amazing way.

“Nothing is more practical than finding God, that is, in falling in love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything.  It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you will do with your evenings, how you will spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. 

Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything.”   Pedro Arrupe, S.J.

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Snapshot & Weekend Whatnots: Cheers!

Posted on February 9, 2018 by Virginia

SNAPSHOT:

& WHATNOT: 

“A fine beer may be judged with one sip, but it’s better to be thoroughly sure.” A Czech proverb proffering weekend wisdom as sighted in downtown Williamsburg @ DOG Street Pub on Duke of Gloucester Street (that everyone in the ‘Burg calls ‘D.O.G. Street.’)

In my estimable opinion, I say this sentiment holds true for fine tea (of which I drink loads more than beer) and decadently rich hot chocolate, or whatever fine beverage you prefer (or measurement, like spoonfuls of gelato?)

Here’s to being thoroughly sure.

Cheers!

grace, peace & weekend whatnots

Virginia : )

“In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count: it’s the life in your years.” Abraham Lincoln

p.s. If you ever visit Williamsburg, VA, the DOG Street Pub is a fun place with yummy food (their mashed peas are especially good) & lots of beer!

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