You Left Me, Lord.
Had you never gone, I would have thought—
I overflowed with love,
Was possessed by generosity,
Rose above the simply worldly, not-yet-seeking crowd.

But you left.

And with you went every speck of my not-whole-but-holey “holiness.”
Pretty clever, Lord—
How you teach your “chosen” they’re NOT chosen
By virtue of their virtue.
Pretty painful, too.

I worry off a prayer—
“The next time I have a bout of spiritual success, Lord,
Will I have another bout with pride?”
Amused, yet patient, you reply with gentle authority—
“If you stay close to me, child, you won’t have to worry about pride.
If you don’t, you won’t have to worry about success.”

Touche, Lord.
May I never again confuse GRACE with virtue!

EPILOGUE

Having been given this insight, I’d love to claim I never again confused Grace with virtue. But our patient God retaught this lesson as needed through the years that followed. His Grace is faithful, even when I’m not. And It’s Always Raining Grace!

Today, be aware.
God’s Life floods your heart.
It’s always Raining Grace.

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In the momentous and the mundane, in chaos or quiet, God’s there. For He’s incapable of abandoning you.

I was housesitting for my sister and noticed a book on her bookshelf with an intriguing title: Beginning to Pray. I wasn’t a beginner. Decades earlier, my Mom had routinely tucked me in at night with a prayer. Still, the book called to me. I began reading the story of an older woman who visited her priest with a sad story. She told him, “I have been praying all my life. I go to church regularly, but I have never felt the ‘presence of God’ that people talk about.”

The priest gave her what she thought were strange directions: “I’d like you to go to your bedroom and sit in your favorite chair. Don’t worry about praying. I want you to sit before the face of God and knit.”

When the woman returned to the priest, she told him, “After knitting for a while, I began to notice how quiet it was. How very, very quiet. I listened. Then I realized the Silence was a Presence.”

“The Silence was a Presence.” Sitting in my sister’s living room, I turned the book face down on my lap. The woman’s words surrounded me with truth. I sat before the face of God in the quiet of the room. And soon, I was enveloped in a sacred stillness.

Fast forward a decade. I’d read many more spiritual books and was hungry for the unique unconditional peace of God’s Presence as I sat in my own home, intent on praying. My seven-year-old wanted to show me how he’d memorized a limerick. Three minutes later, my five-year-old needed a band-aid, and soon, my one-year-old was howling because his walker was stuck on the edge of the coffee table. “God, if this chaos wasn’t in the way, I could meet you in the silence.” An inner wisdom—that wasn’t mine—spoke, “The chaos isn’t in the way. It is the way.” Our daily path, with all its obligations and twists and turns, is a sure route.

I still value silence as a vehicle to God, and I do my best to find it whenever and wherever possible. As Rumi said, “Silence is the language of God, all else is poor translation.” But when it comes to meeting God, you and I can trust God’s wisdom and intense desire to be with us. If you want a relationship with the Spirit, who is literally your Soulmate, God will provide. If you want to want it, that will be enough. God’s Grace is always enough. And it’s Raining Grace!

Today, be aware.
God’s Life floods your heart.
It’s always Raining Grace.

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The other day an 83-year-old living in the skilled nursing center where I minister was taunted by junior high school kids. They were kids who had taken up residence in her unkind mind.

By virtue of our noble birth as children of Divinity, we all should be free of put-downs by others (and ourselves.) Who were the humans who created your inner litany of abuse? Perhaps for you, it was the nasty kids in middle school, or the artificial friend who sabotaged you, or the parent who did their best yet was sorely lacking. Those voices probably belong to your past. Only you can give them time travel privileges. Our brain, not always super brainy, can and does bring those bullies’ voices or their ideas to life again.

If we want to reach our full potential for joy and contribute to the world—if we wish for the fulfillment of a truly meaningful life, we must learn to listen to our inner monologue or dialogue. We must be the gatekeeper of our thoughts, or we will be their victim. An unobserved mind will wander through the weeds. Living in an imperfect world, everyone has weeds, unless and until they undertake to prune them out.

Our emotional life will give us a wealth of information about our inner conversations. If we’re in the doldrums, being chased by invisible bears, or tormented by feelings of inferiority, it’s worth a listen to what’s going on in our minds. Does our thinking (usually judging) reflect our highest wisdom in our current stage of life? We might interrupt unworthy thoughts with an update. If we keep our minds well-pruned, we won’t get tangled up in the same old weeds.

Of course, pruning is a big job. Thank God it’s raining grace!

Today, be aware.
God’s Life floods your heart.
It’s always Raining Grace.

Books by Sally

| ​Embrace the Day |

Let me not in anguish say,

When tragedy knocks here,

“Oh my, ungrateful fool I was!

I missed the golden year.”

Life is glad and joy is mine,

But often pain reigns ‘round me.

Reduce my days to trite concerns?

Let mundane things confound me?

While time is sweet and love surrounds

May I grow and give and BE,

For never will this time return,

Unless it comes to haunt me.

Today, be aware.
God’s Life floods your heart.
It’s always Raining Grace.

Books by Sally

| ​The Power of Acceptance |

Few practices provide more spiritual growth, freedom, or inner peace than acceptance. When our boat has capsized and broken into pieces, there is little point in struggling against the rapids. Better to go with the flow until another option opens up. Acceptance means to stop fighting the flow of life and trust that God has plans for us downstream.

Acceptance is a potent form of prayer. It is honoring God not just with our holy words but with our attitude and actions. Acceptance involves letting go of the need to be in control—a need based on the illusion that if we don’t accept what is happening, it won’t keep happening. To be genuinely free of unrealistic demands on ourselves, others, God, and life, we must humbly admit that we’re not the center of the universe—with others, God, and life revolving around us and doing our bidding.

I started this piece with the words, “Few practices …” How appropriate—because acceptance takes practice. The next time someone cuts you off in traffic, notice your reaction. Can you accept that people aren’t perfect drivers, and they probably aren’t out to get you personally?

Life provides tons of frustrating opportunities to practice acceptance—to get good at it! We won’t be up to accepting the true heartaches that befall us with sanity and peace unless we practice acceptance daily. Frustration takes on a whole new meaning when seen as an opportunity to grow in freedom, trust, and relationship with our loving God. And, as always, our generous God provides the grace we need to do what is impossible on our own. Ask for the grace of acceptance.

Today, be aware.
God’s Life floods your heart.
It’s always Raining Grace.

Books by Sally

| ​Mind the Rocks and the Sky |

My husband and I often walk on a path where blue skies peek at us through the branches of gorgeous trees. Unfortunately, our trail is also laden with stumbling blocks called rocks. I’ve had to learn to mind both the rocks and the sky.

If I gaze too long at the sky and its lovely ever-shifting light, my foot will find the rock I didn’t see. Almost certainly, I’ll fall on my face or skin my hands protecting it. But if I don’t look up now and then and appreciate the changing view, I’ll miss the adventure altogether. If I don’t do some gazing, brief but appreciative, I’ll tire from walking very soon.

On the path of life, we need a balanced view. We need to mind where we are going and not trip up because of inattention. Having goals matching our talents and contributing to the world is good. But sometimes, we allow ourselves to be so busy, so hurried, that looking up is next to impossible. Simplifying life to the extent we can, and slowing down to the degree we can, makes the journey part of the fun. Feeling driven to get to the end of the path ensures that the destination won’t be enough when we get there. We’ll find our trail joins another and another. Endless walking. It seems our victorious destinations are but a mirage.

May we ask for the grace to mind both the rocks and the sky.

Today, be aware.
God’s Life floods your heart.
It’s always Raining Grace.

Books by Sally

Recently, it seemed my peace was surgically removed. Because of years of the repetitive motion of typing as a teacher and writer, I had an operation to cushion my thumb joint. I experienced the loss of the use of my dominant hand, pain, swelling, difficulty sleeping, and a host of other slings and arrows. But what stressed me was that the morning of the surgery, I received from a publisher an email I felt needed immediate attention. There I was, bandaged up, not in my right mind, and unable to respond as I wanted. Peace? I would have wrung my hands, but the cast made it impossible. Instead, I reminded myself of what I’ve learned through experience—when I think something is “bad,” it’s often a gift concealed to be revealed only when looking back.

I vividly remember the seeming tragedy of needing to go back to work but then finding I loved my new job. Then there were the two family moves I dreaded. The first allowed me to meet people who became essential to my life. The second allowed my children to make life choices that had amazing results.

Flip the Cloth

If we look at events from our limited human angle, we may see what looks like the backside of a cross-stitch embroidery with random knots and a chaos of threads going every which way. Let’s ask for the grace to flip the cloth, to see God’s point of view, and to co-create the colorful, meaningful, exquisite pattern of our lives. The surgery was only a few weeks ago, and maybe it’s too early for me to fully unpack God’s recent gift, but when I do, I trust gratitude will fill my heart as I see that my difficult time completed a Divine design.

Today, be aware.
God’s Life floods your heart.
It’s always Raining Grace.

Books by Sally

During my action-packed, responsibility-laden teaching days, sleeping wasn’t always easy. Praying and relaxing my muscles usually helped me drift off at night, but one night I was drifting nowhere. I was stuck firmly—exactly where I’d been all day—awake. It didn’t help that my husband started lightly, politely snoring approximately four minutes after our heads hit our respective pillows. My eyes were closed, but my mind remained wide open to thought after thought, worry after worry. How could I help a student who was grieving the loss of his father? Should I change the schedule of talks for the retreat? Was Friday’s lesson plan the most engaging way to introduce a new topic for discussion? Lying there, tense and tossing, I didn’t know my shift was over—that God takes the night shift!

The “day shift/night shift prayer” is a prayer of trust that I heard about through the greatvine, word of mouth. For many of us, our to-do list at day’s end has as many items untouched as it has tasks crossed off. But just because there’s work to be done doesn’t mean it’s today’s work. This prayer’s pithy metaphor makes the process of letting go more natural and effective. Ask God for the grace to pray it well, to mean the words and say them with a faith-filled heart. The language below is mine. I’ve adapted the prayer to fit my needs and encourage you to do the same.

I hope and pray, fellow traveler, that you’ll rely on God to take each night shift of your life. He never sleeps and never quits loving, treasuring, and caring for you. If you have a little one, you can help your child get into the habit of turning things over to God at bedtime by reading Night of Mysterious Blessings as you tuck them in at night.

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“I began to look at life with a whole new positive perspective. I am able to talk with God about everything.” – LF

| Tips for Parents and Grandparents |

We always promised ice cream after church to make sure our kids would pile into the car happily on Sunday mornings. It worked—until the sad day it didn’t. I’d foolishly gotten a carton of double fudge mid-week, and our bribe had lost its flavor. It’s just as well. Faith built on a triple scoop cone will topple and melt in the heat of life. Through parenting, study, and teaching religion for decades, I’ve come to believe that the secret of helping our offspring establish a lasting faith lies in raising kids who love God.

We all want our children to understand what we believe, and that’s important. But understanding isn’t enough. True faith is built on relationship, not knowledge. Below are some suggestions for building that relationship.

• Help your child know God loves them personally, individually. When holding your child or expressing love to them, compare your unending devotion to them with God’s eternal love for them. Your love for them is unique and so is God’s. They are irreplaceable in God’s heart and in yours.
• Sometimes listen to and sing Christian/sacred music. Talk about how singing favorite lyrics makes you feel on the inside. Note the connection between feelings of joy or peace in our hearts with God’s presence, his Spirit. Give your child the language to discuss their faith and help them know what it feels like to interact with God.
• If you’re having a heart-to-heart with your child, share a difficult emotion you sometimes feel, sadness, frustration, anger . . . . Invite God to listen in. Explain that God knows our thoughts and feelings and doesn’t want us to put on a holy face before coming to him. He loves us exactly as we are. End with a heartfelt prayer of gratitude for God’s unconditional love.
• While tucking your little one in at night, ask, “When did you most feel love toward someone today?” Connect their love with God’s Spirit within them. Pray spontaneously together, aiming your prayers inward to the Spirit who abides in us.
• Consider ending your prayers with something like, “We love you, God. Help us love you more.”
• When your children make mistakes, big or small, after correcting them, remind them that both you and God still treasure them and are forever faithful to them.
• Share your faith journey with your children. Tell them about times you needed God, and he came through in incredible ways. Explain how you persevered in times of doubt and why you’re glad you did.
• Not all prayers will be answered to your or your child’s liking. Pray anyway. Listen to and discuss the country song, Unanswered Prayers—even if you don’t like country music!
• Look for books at your child’s level to inspire them. Read these books together and share your thoughts, feelings, and faith afterward.
• With teens, welcome their questions. Together you can comb Scripture and trusted sources for insights on questions beyond you. Adolescents respect the honest “I don’t know.” Some aspects of the faith remain a mystery. Infinite truths aren’t comprehendible by our finite minds. Mystery helps us stay humble, curious, and seeking more.
• If our kids feel they can be truthful with us, many will express doubts. Uncertainties show your young one is taking their faith seriously. Doubt is an integral part of the journey.

Childhood is fleeting, but its lessons last a lifetime. Let’s pray for the wisdom, patience, and strength to raise our children well. With God’s grace to empower and guide, we can touch the hearts of our offspring, whatever their age.

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