… birthdays… and anniversaries!!

Posted on March 15, 2015 by Virginia

Today is Mama’s 80th Birthday(!!!) How appropriate it’s also Laetare Sunday when we take the opportunity to “rejoice” amidst the somberness of Lent.

Mama bday flowersWe have kicked rejoicing up a notch to full celebratory happiness as we thank God for the gift of Mama’s life. 80 years! This is getting serious, seriously serious. (For those Yes Minister fans out there : )

Seriously, life is a gift.  We treasure each day with Mama.  Missing Papa, sometimes we get kinda clingy to Mama (she doesn’t mind when we love on her – hugs  are always welcome.)

Papa always said Mama is a saint (but he added that the jury was still out on his status.) Mama’s faithfulness to God, to us, and to her husband, especially through 30+ years of his physical challenges as a quadriplegic: what a testimony of God’s grace and love!  Mama’s steadfast spirit manifested beautiful melodies of God’s kingdom in her tender care of Papa. Nurses were always amazed at the condition of Papa’s skin – usually quads have a tough time of it, but Papa was very well looked after!  extremely well!  all over!!

… but everyone was also amazed at the condition of Papa’s joy-filled spirits amidst his 24/7 pain.  He always said his blessings outweighed his challenges, so each day he started by thanking God for his blessings, the first (after faith) was MAMA.  The two of them were like glue – stuck together, but oh what fun they had together!

Last year on March 15th we held Papa’s Memorial Celebration. It was also Mama’s birthday but she didn’t want anyone to make any fuss. We were touched that a Sunday School class from the Va. Beach Community Chapel remembered and sent a huge stack of uplifting birthday cards.

… it’s also Mama & Papa’s anniversary on March 17th.  Last year when Papa died they had been married 58 years. Notice there’s only two days between Mama’s birthday & their anniversary?  The story goes like this… When Mama turned 21 Papa married her 2 days later so her father could not object.  Mama’s father didn’t like preachers or folks who worked for the city. In 1955 Papa was a preacher AND he drove a city car as a social worker. But the good news, as Papa brought in gifts from a shower the day before the wedding, Mama’s father welcomed him, “come in.. son.”   It was a happy wedding when Mama’s father walked her down the aisle…

mama-and-papa-50th1… 59 years later Mama & Papa’s marriage remains a testament to the agape love of Jesus Christ.  As Papa would say, looking back, “we didn’t, but God did..as we are in Him and He is in us…”

For some reason while thinking about Mama’s birthday & anniversary this week, a favorite poem emerged from the dusty recesses of one of my mind’s closets.

“How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
I love thee to the level of everyday’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for Right;
I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints – I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life! – and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.”

Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861)

Mama bday cakeThe birthday elf needs to get busy (altho we have been celebrating all week!) For today, just remember, Life is a GIFT.  Celebrate with your loved ones — each day is precious.   Don’t miss a chance to tell your family, friends & loved ones:  I LOVE YOU!

grace, peace & BIRTHDAYS

     Virginia : )

p.s. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAMA!!! WE LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE YOU!

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…. green pastures…

Posted on March 14, 2015 by Virginia

On our Lenten journey this week we managed mud puddles and trekked the desert, but hopefully we will also find a few green pastures along the way.  Psalm 23: “He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside still waters…He restores my soul…”

SA (299)This is not exactly ‘green pastures’ but a lovely green vineyard @ Groot Constantia, the oldest winery in South Africa.   Years ago we visited on a rainy, overcast day (like today)… but gloomy skies made the green pop.

Maybe there’s stuff in our lives that’s glooming us out a bit right now — let’s allow God to lead us into His green pastures. Hey, we might have to lay down for a little while… & sip from still waters… but all of that could be part of God’s restoring & renewing our spirits (& hearts & minds : )

South Africai know, i know — this pic already turned up once this week. But hey – it sure looks like still waters to me… (& maybe not all of you caught it the 1st time.)

grace, peace & green pastures

    Virginia  : )

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…managing Lenten deserts…

Posted on March 13, 2015 by Virginia

Yesterday we tackled mud puddle management, so today we’re looking at what happens when we splash out of our mud puddles but end up in a desert.  It happens.  Sometimes we go through dry spells when all the usual spiritual streams seem dry… we become a bit brittle inside, and water seems far way.

safari (130)

Sometimes we intentionally enter the desert. We started our Lenten journey with Fr. Herman Katongole challenging us that: “Lent is a time to be courageous to go into the desert, to let what’s hidden within ourselves be open to God… We must put all our trust in God, like Jesus in the desert.”

We might want to give up – it’s so #!@%! hot, but we’ve got to keep going.  Keep praying. Keep seeking.  Keep trying.  As we continue walking in this desert of Lent we need to keep opening our hearts wider to Jesus:  listening, learning, loving…

Maybe you’re not doing Lent, but you’re waiting on the Lord. Sometimes waiting can stretch out for a very long time …

“Waiting is a dry desert between where we are and where we want to be.”  Henri Nouwen

… but we need to keep putting our trust in God, like Jesus in the desert…

TRUST IN GOD… AND DO NOT BE AFRAID!!!

grace, peace & desert faith

Virginia : )

“Be strong & of good courage. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you, whithersoever you go.”  Joshua 1:9

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…managing mud puddles (in Lent)….

Posted on March 12, 2015 by Virginia

Muddling our way through Lent, we’re almost half way done. Easter is just 3 & 1/2 weeks away(!) …but yesterday (another dreary rainy day) i got stuck in a mud puddle funk.

SA (300)It happens. Mud happens (especially when it rains.) Sludgy mud that makes oozy mud puddles.  Like this duck, sometimes we want to waddle in our mud puddles.  It’s convenient.  Doesn’t require much movement or energy (like to get our minds & tushis in gear to find something better to wallow in?)

Ok, so sometimes maybe we don’t WANT to wallow in mud puddles, but we’re stuck. Can’t see our way out.  All those negative tapes in our heads keep hitting ‘replay’ – down, down, down we go into the depths of the mud, our minds pushing us into stickin’ thinkin’ of all that’s gone wrong with us, to us, in us.

Mud. Mud. Mud….

The thing about Lent, we need to nourish our hearts & minds & spirits with sparkling mercy & grace flowing from the wounds in Christ’s hands, His feet, the lashes on His back, the thorn marks on His head.  Jesus can lift us out of the mud… but we’ve got to do our part. We’ve got to stop splashing in the mud puddles where we are & let Christ lead us to the shores of new lakes, where His love will carry us through whatever waves may come.

Yes, it may be hard to leave our shallow mud puddles where it’s easy to paddle & there’s no risky depth to manage … but Jesus wants us to go deeper with Him, in Him, for Him.

“He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along.”  (Psalm 40:2)

grace, peace & mud puddle management

Virginia  : )

p.s. Isn’t it grand that God’s mercy is new every morning? That we are ‘Something Somebodies’ & not ‘nothing nobodies’ in His eyes?  Full on precious, like diamonds, in His sight?  And isn’t it grand, that diamonds are hard to crush?  Just ‘sayin, something to think about (2 Corinthians 4 –‘we may be hard pressed on every side, but not crushed...’)

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Faith, storms & love…

Posted on March 11, 2015 by Virginia

Once again here are a few quotes for our minds (& hearts) to munch on tonight.

stormy weather Newfoundland“In the bitter waves of woe, 
Beaten and tossed about 
By the sullen winds that blow 
From the desolate shores of doubt,­­ 

When the anchors that faith had cast 
Are dragging in the gale, 
I am quietly holding fast 
To the things that cannot fail…

William Gladden (1836-1918)

SA (79)

“Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel, 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 heaven and earth. He does not grow tired or weary and His understanding no one can fathom.  He gives strength to the weary and increases power to the weak.  Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall, but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength.  They shall mount up with wings as on eagles, they shall walk and not be weary, they shall run and not faint.”   Isaiah 40:27-31

safari tweet (2)“Jesus in  your heart!   Eternity in your mind!

The will of God in all your actions! 

But, above all, love, God’s love, entire love!”  

Saint Catherine of Genoa

May God strengthen our faith to hold on to His love & mercy when the waves of life’s challenges crush our spirits… may our hearts rise up with wings of grace & unquenchable joy as we wait on the Lord to blaze a path through our dark valleys.

God is with us.  Who are we to be afraid?

grace, peace & faith

   Virginia

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… Martha, Mary … & flexible trees??

Posted on March 10, 2015 by Virginia

Today while sifting through old emails (trying to find something for my Papa’s 4 Secrets blog – he sent loads of wisdom to his globetrotting daughter!)  i found one that i sent to him eons ago recapping a message that helped during a tough time.  Since i just spent 2 hours going through Papa’s booklets & written materials (i sense some Heavenly chuckling going on…) alas, Virginia the Blogger must get busy in the kitchen or Dwight & Mama might go out for pizza & leave me here!  This has nothing to do with our Gospel reading for today (about forgiveness) so my thoughts on that will have to wait. Martha & Mary are two of my favorite Gospel people, so take a Lenten lesson from them if you are going through a tough time right now.

South Africa …Then Niceta & I zipped to church. Wow, the message hit both of us over the head.  Jesus raising Lazarus  from the dead.  Mary sits at home grieving.  The priest said that could be us dwelling on our grief, losing sense of reality, when we can’t cope with our crisis, asking God ‘why me?’  The point is we are focusing on our grief.  Martha, on the other hand, is alert — she hears that Christ is nearby, so she runs to greet Him. ‘If you had been here, my brother would  not have died.’   We too ask, ‘where have You been, I am  in pain…’ Jesus responds in His time, but with miracles in His pockets.  That means changing our vision of reality, being alert & focusing on HIM, finding our hope in Him now – today – not sometime off  in the future. Then He can do a miraculous work in our hearts, and through us touch others..

Well, there was lots more, but that really helped.  After mass it was as if a big cloud of despair lifted from the RHA’s heart. The other very special part was the entrance song —

“Come back to me with all your heart. Don’t let fear keep us apart.  TREES DO BEND, THOUGH STRAIGHT & TALL;  SO MUST WE TO OTHERS CALL…

Long have I waited for your coming home to Me and living deeply our new life.  The wilderness will lead you to your heart, where I will speak.  Integrity and justice with  tenderness you shall know. You shall sleep secure with peace;  faithfulness will be your joy. Long have I waited for  your coming home to me & living deeply our new life..”

SA (87)Kitchen duty calls!

grace, peace & flexible trees

            Virginia   : )

p.s. RHA =Red Head in Africa.  Both photos taken during a visit to South Africa while the RHA lived in Tanzania…

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rivers of suffering…. (quickie quote)

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Virginia

On this Lenten Monday, here’s a quickie (but deep) quote for our minds to munch on..

“And I saw a river over which every soul must pass to reach the Kingdom of Heaven, and the name of that river was suffering … and then I saw a boat which carries souls across the river, and the name of that boat was Love.”     Saint John of the Cross (1542-1591)

Niagra Falls grace, peace “love boats”

Virginia : )

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In Memoriam

Posted on March 8, 2015 by Virginia

dick woodward uva no borderDick Woodward , 25 October 1930 – 08 March 2014

This was always Papa’s favorite pic (he used it for years in his printed materials until we pointed out, “Daddy you don’t look like that anymore!”)  It was taken at my university graduation (many years ago.)  But there it is – Papa with a twinkle in his eyes.

Please pray for us today! I didn’t realize it would be this hard when it’s been a whole year since his passing.  Yesterday while attending a women’s conference at the Williamsburg Community Chapel, i looked up during lunch to see “Woodward Hall” emblazoned on the doorway next to us.  ‘Twas a wee bit hard keeping it together..

Can’t write anymore today, but here’s a challenge found in a devotional reading this week from one of my favorite saints.  As Saint Francis of Assisi lay dying, he challenged his friars with these words:

“I have done what was mine to do.   May Christ teach you what is yours.”

Papa certainly gave his all & all for Christ each day.  As we remember Papa’s example of faithfulness, may we continue to do what Christ has given us to do each day.

grace, peace & rememberings

Virginia

Papa close upp.s. this is my favorite (more recent) pic of Papa – still with a twinkle in his eyes!

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the cross & suffering … (quickie quote!)

Posted on March 7, 2015 by Virginia

Out all day at an amazing ICM Women’s Conference (more on that later) so here’s a quote for this Saturday in Lent to keep our minds focused on the Cross.

“What has the Cross given to those who have gazed upon it and to those who have touched it?  What has the Cross left in each one of us?  You see, it gives us a treasure that no one else can give:  the certainty of the faithful love which God has for us.  A love so great that it enters into our sin and forgives it, enters into our suffering and gives us the strength to bear it.  It is a love which enters into death to conquer it and save us.”    Pope Francis

san damiano crossgrace, peace & treasure

   Virginia

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words, words, words… and wisdom!

Posted on March 6, 2015 by Virginia

Have you ever wished you could take back something you’ve said? or written?

That has happened (more than once) to me.  Let’s be serious – more than, more than, more than once.  Like, too many times when Virginia just could not keep her (big) mouth shut.  (A bit opinionated & a wee bit vocal about her opinions.. & a juggernaut, to boot!)

Once released into the word-stratosphere, words are hard to take back.  “They had words.”  He said, she said.. it was said. Then there are written words, typed words, texts. With our nifty iGadgets & computers we can hit delete; but as a few (not very nice) Twitterers now know, after their violent derogatory words are released – they can be found by mad dads (& lose their jobs & opportunities to play sports..)

Words have consequences.  They can lift up or tear down.

“Mere silence is not wisdom, for wisdom is knowing when and how to speak and when and where to keep silent.”  St. Francis de Sales

We need God’s wisdom, lots of it!  Not that we should not speak (our silence could condone derogatory defamation of others) or get too paralyzed by fear of the status quo to communicate, but maybe sometimes we need to pray before we speak (or communicate in any way…)  A quickie prayer, but this one has helped juggernaut Virginia over the years tone it down:

“Lord, please transform my heart and mind with Your wisdom — may the words of my mouth & mind filter through the Light of Your love and Truth.  May i BE Your Truth. May i BE Your Light… may i BE Your Love …in all i do.   Amen.

Short & sweet … but a reminder to think (& pray a little) before we speak.

wordsgrace, peace & WORDS, WORDS

    Virginia : )

p.s. As we continue our Lenten journey, here’s a great quote from Henri Nouwen along these lines in a previous post.  Click here… Henri Nouwen-Bread for the Journey

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