Titanic in 3-D

Movie poster for re-release in 2012

On Monday I took Elizabeth to see Titanic in 3-D. We balked a little at the $17.25 ticket price, but, as it was her 20th birthday, we decided to go for it. And I am so glad we did. With this week marking the centennial of Titanic's maiden and final voyage, it seemed appropriate to go see the film. I was a bit concerned regarding the 3-D effects making me motion-sick as even watching the boys play X-Box can make me feel ill, but I was thrilled to find that my fears were unfounded.

  Titanic is simply one of those movies that must be viewed on the big screen at least once in one's lifetime. It is meant to be seen in the theater, and watching it more times than I can count on television was nothing compared to viewing it in a movie theater.

Seeing Titanic on the big screen revealed how epic the film truly is. It shone with life and death, with vibrancy and drama, the colours deep and rich and the details finely tuned. Simply, Titanic sparkled on the big screen. But the 3-D effects, which I feared would be distracting, gently enhanced the film. The most striking effects were at the beginning of the film with the robotic camera shots of the shipwreck, especially the small bits floating in the water as captured by the lights and cameras. Even the scientists grouped in the small sub were amazing in 3-D; the simplest conversations glowed gently with the 3-D effects which brought the characters to life in such a realistic manner.

 In fact, the 3-D effects brought the drama, both the personal and the tragic, beautifully and poignantly to life in a way that was not distracting at all. The three hours and seventeen minutes flew by as we were mesmerized by the romance between Rose and Jack as well as the tragic story of the doomed luxury liner and the 1500 lives lost in the icy waters of the Atlantic.

The original movie poster of 1997

All of the actors shone in this 3-D version, but none so much as Gloria Stuart who died in 2010 at the age of 100. Stuart portrayed the modern-day Rose who, as a result of the events aboard Titanic, lived a very different life than she was trapped in when she boarded the passenger ship. Kate Winslet, long one of my favorite actors, became the 17-year-old Rose beautifully as she fought against the boring life laid out before her: marrying a wealthy man of her class after the death of her father who left Rose and her mother with "a good name hiding many debts."

 By marrying cold-hearted but wealthy Cal, Rose would "save" her and her mother's lifestyle. But once she met passionate Jack, a poor wanderer who won his berth on Titanic in a poker game ten minutes before the ship left England, Rose was exposed to "real life"--the life of adventure and love that she yearned so much for.

 As we watch their romance bloom, the Titanic draws ever nearer to its tragic demise, one that we watch with horror as we are sucked into the drama of the sinking ship and the graphic loss of life. When the people unable to secure one of the too-few seats in the lifeboats bobbed about in their life vests, the water lapping against them looked as if it would suck us in; I shivered with cold as if I, too, were in the black waters of the Atlantic.

 Watching Titanic in 3-D was an amazing experience, so much so that it felt so strange to walk out of the theater, as if I were being returned from 1912 to 2012 via time travel. It's been a century since the Titanic disappeared below the glassy dark waters of the icy Atlantic, but on Monday afternoon in a small theater in nondescript El Cajon, California, the "ship of dreams" sailed and sank once again...in all its three-dimensional glory. 

Watching Titanic in 3-D was truly an event of a lifetime...I cannot recommend seeing it highly enough. 

Yours,

Holy Week 2012

Image from OkieBookWoman.blogspot.com

Holy Week is by far my favorite week of the year. And it's not merely because we're on our Easter Break from homeschooling (despite still having to teach classes for our co-op and for Brave Writer).

Holy Week is our opportunity to walk the Way of the Cross with Jesus, starting with the Triumphal Entry of Palm Sunday, when the people of Jerusalem were crying, "Hosanna! Blessed be He who comes in the Name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!" and ending with the rolling of the stone to close the tomb in which Jesus' body, beaten beyond recognition, was lovingly placed to wait over the Sabbath and be properly laid to rest on the first day of the week. The events that occurred between the high excitement of Jesus' entry and the solemn silence of the tomb is the drama of Holy Week.

However, it's difficult to attend a non-liturgical church on Palm Sunday. Jesus' entry into Jerusalem was not read in the church service; instead, the wedding at Cana was the featured reading from God's Word. Palm Sunday was mentioned as the service began and we sang a few songs entitled "Hosanna," but that was it. The sermon was on Galatians 6, and not a palm was to be seen. It felt like any other Sunday...which is, in my opinion, a weakness in the evangelical churches. We have an opportunity to relive the Scriptures during Holy Week, to walk in them and make them more real to our 21st century sensibilities, and we often miss out.

So I was thrilled to be invited to the Music of the Lenten Season Concert, presented by the Choirs of the Mission San Diego de Alcala (California's oldest church) and St. Michael's Parish, Poway. Two friend of mine, former choir members from Lake Murray, sing in the Mission Choir, and it was a lovely afternoon. I even came home with palms to make into crosses. :)

The music varied from hymns to Mozart and Schubert, but my favorite--the one that brought me to tears--was their simple but powerful performance of "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross." The deep organ and the beautiful voices raised in harmony with the joyous birdsong joining in from the doors and windows opened to the afternoon sunshine was irrepressibly glorious.

Tonight, on Holy Monday, I attended the annual Messianic Seder hosted by Alpine Anglican Church of the Blessed Trinity. The Seder was lovely, but I've learned my lesson about not filling up the wine glasses too full because we have to empty them four times over the course of the dinner. But the most intriguing parts are when we realize how Jesus instituted the Last Supper while doing the Seder, breaking the Afilkomen as "this is My Body" and drinking from the Cup of Elijah as "this is My Blood of the New Covenant." It was wonderful and so revelatory as we celebrated the Passover together.  

Holy Tuesday and Holy Wednesday will pass quietly and prayerfully. Then Maundy Thursday will come--one of my favorite Holy Days. "Maundy" means "commandment" and refers to Jesus' commandment to His disciples to "Love one another." Wouldn't the world be a far, far better place if only we obeyed this simple yet profoundly complex command more often? Emulating Jesus, Father Acker ties a linen towel around his waist and washes one of the feet of every person who attends. This job--washing the feet of guests--was the work of the lowest servant in the household. In Jesus' day, everyone wore open sandals, and after walking about all day in the dust, dirt, mud, and animal leavings, their feet were pretty disgusting. But Jesus showed His disciples how to love one another by taking on this lowest and most despised job in the entire household.

It brings me to tears to have my foot washed, then have the pastor, kneeling on the floor, kiss my foot and thank me for my "service to our Lord." It's humbling for Father Acker, yet even more humbling for us. I now totally understand Simon Peter pulling his foot away and not letting Jesus wash his feet at first. How can I watch my friend and mentor be humbled, on his knees, washing my dirty, stinking feet? I want to say, "No, this isn't your place!" But instead, I force myself to sit still, accept his act of service, and thank him afterward.

On Maundy Thursday we also celebrate the Institution of the Lord's Supper...remembering how Jesus shifted the usual Passover meal into a declaration of His position as Messiah, as Savior of the World. It's also powerful...very much so.

At noon on Good Friday we attend the ecumenical Biblical Stations of the Cross at Queen of Angels Catholic Church in Alpine. More than one hundred Christians, Catholics and Protestants, walk the 14 stations set up in the side gardens of the churchyard. At each six-foot high wooden cross, one of the pastors reads a passage of Scripture, then Father Acker, our son Jonathan, and another guitar student, Nick, play "Were You There" with acoustic guitars, and we sing a verse that corresponds to the Scriptures just read. We don't speak at all, other than an opening prayer, reading God's Word, and singing the song. After the final cross, one of the pastors prays a short benediction, and we silently file to our cars, our minds and hearts weighted with Jesus' sufferings and sacrifice.

My favorite liturgy of the entire year is the Holy Saturday Vigil. Following the lighting of the Paschal Candle and the incense, we walk into the darkened church, slowly lighting a few candles at a time until all hold a lit candle. Then we pray and read God's Word together before celebrating the First Evensong of Easter.

So that's what has occurred and what is still ahead for this Holy Week. The Collect for Palm Sunday is a glorious one, and the new Book of Common Prayer 2011 contains Collects and Scripture readings for every day in Holy Week.

The Sixth Sunday in Lent: Palm Sunday

THE COLLECT:
ALMIGHTY and eternal Father, who in your tender love for humanity, sent your Son Jesus Christ as a man to dwell among us and in mortal flesh to suffer death upon the cross, so that all people might learn true humility; In your mercy, grant that we may follow him in his sufferings and share in his redemption; Through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and rules with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Ref: Phil 2.4-8; 3.9-10; Heb 12.3)

THE READINGS:
Phil 2.5-11; Matt 26-27 or 27.1-54; Ps 22.1-21; Zech 9.9-12

So I wish you all a blessed and deeply-meaningful Holy Week as we walk in Jesus' footsteps through this week of high drama leading to the glorious Resurrection of our Savior!!!!

Lenten blessings,

Biblical Stations of the Cross

Mosaic of Seventh Station of the Cross

The Stations of the Cross has been a devotion of Christians since the first years of the Christian Church. Even today, one can travel to Jerusalem and walk the Via Dolorosa (The Way of Sorrows), tracing Jesus' path to Golgotha.

I first walked the Stations of the Cross at the Mission San Luis Rey in Oceanside at a Contemplative Retreat with College Avenue Baptist Church in 2003 or 2004; it was a peaceful time that prepared my heart for Holy Week and especially for a solemn and prayerful Good Friday, like no other experience with the Cross I had ever had. It was a soul-changing and life-altering experience.  

Mark Roberts, who writes the Daily Reflections for The High Calling, is currently doing a series on the Biblical Stations of the Cross. Here is his introductory Reflection in its entirety:

Mar 24, 2012
An Invitation to Take Up Your Cross
by Mark D. Roberts

Mark 8:34-38

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." (NRSV)
--Mark 8:34

In Mark 8, Jesus uses the imagery of crucifixion to call people to follow him sacrificially. If they want to experience the life of the kingdom of God, they must die to themselves as sovereign over their own lives and live each day under the authority of God.

Many Christians throughout the ages have used the Stations of the Cross to deepen their gratitude for Christ's sacrifice and to augment their commitment to following him sacrificially. Traditionally, the Stations of the Cross included fourteen representations of the passion of Christ, beginning with this condemnation and ending with his being laid in the tomb. The original Stations of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa (way of grief), are in Jerusalem on the path Jesus walked to his death. But many churches throughout the world include artistic stations that help people reflect on the meaning of Christ's death.

Half of the traditional Stations are found in Scripture, while the other half come from ancient Christian tradition. In 1991, Pope John Paul II created a new series of fourteen stations, each one based on Scripture alone. These biblical stations have been attractive to those of us who base our piety more on Scripture than on church tradition.

I have found that reflection on the biblical Stations of the Cross has helped me to experience more deeply the love of God in Christ. Moreover, I have been encouraged to take up my cross and follow Christ more faithfully.

Beginning tomorrow and continuing for fourteen days until Holy Saturday, the day before Easter, the Daily Reflections will follow the new Stations of the Cross. My prayer is that, by "walking" the Stations with me, you will come to a deeper understanding of God's love and grace, as well as a greater desire to serve him with your whole life.

QUESTIONS FOR FURTHER REFLECTION: What has helped you in the past to take up your cross and follow Jesus? Have you ever experienced the Stations of the Cross? How did this affect your relationship with the Lord?

PRAYER: Gracious God, as we come closer to Holy Week, we yearn for a deeper experience of the cross. We seek to know your love and grace in a fresh way. We want to hear again the call of Jesus to take up our cross and follow him.

As we focus on fourteen passages from the Gospels that highlight aspects of Jesus' passion, may we be drawn into the scene. May our hearts be captured by the horror and the wonder of his sacrifice. May we be encouraged to take up our cross and give our lives in sacrificial service to you. Amen.

P.S. from Mark: Several years ago, some folks at Irvine Presbyterian Church, where I served as pastor, decided to offer the Stations of the Cross as a devotional experience for Holy Week. For obviously Protestant reasons, we opted for the Pope’s biblically-based version. My wife, Linda, offered to paint fourteen watercolor pictures that illustrated the passages upon which the revised stations are based. These were displayed in our church sanctuary during Holy Week, and people were invited to come, to read Scripture, to reflect, and to pray. For many members of my church and community, this was a precious time of drawing near to the Lord in anticipation of Good Friday and Easter. (For the past several years, I have offered the use of Linda’s paintings for churches and Christian ministries without charge. Her paintings have appeared in literally thousands of places of worship on six continents. They are permanently installed in a number of churches. If you would like to use her paintings, all I ask is that you contact me and ask permission. You can view Linda's paintings here.)

My comment to Mark Roberts on The High Calling site (to the above post) reads:

Hi Mark,

I've been leading a Biblical Stations of the Cross since 2006 at my EV Free Church during Holy Week or Good Friday at least. I found art work by the Old Masters to go along with each of the 14 Biblical Stations, then framed and hung them on the back and side walls of our sanctuary. I had started the Biblical Stations as an activity at a contemplative retreat I led, and then we posted the Stations for the next few years.

Currently I attend an ecumenical Biblical Stations with both Protestant and Catholic churches; we walk along the fourteen seven-foot high wooden crosses, reading the Scriptures for each Station and singing "Were You There" adjusted to each Biblical Station.

The Biblical Stations are an incredibly satisfying exercise for the dayus before Easter as we celebrate our Lord's life, His death, and, on Easter, His Resurrection from the Dead. I look forward to your remembrances, Mark, of Christs's Life, Death, and Resurrection through the Biblical Stations.

--Susanne :)

Here are this week's Daily Reflections so that you can catch up with the previous Stations:

Invitation to Take Up Your Cross (March 24)

First Station (March 25)

Second Station (March 26)

Third Station (March 27)

So I hope that you will find the wonderful connection with the last events of Christ's life and death that I have found in the Biblical Stations of the Cross over the years. I can't find the words to express how meditating on the Stations of the Cross has deepened my faith walk in general and my experience of Holy Week, especially Good Friday, in particular.

How can we explain in finite human words the sacrifice of the Infinite God Who took our sins upon his own human body...Who was tortured, suffered excruciating pain, and died for us?

Words fail as Christ prevails.

Prayerfully yours,

The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Bronte

I've long been a fan of the Bronte family. As a young woman in graduate school, one of my major areas of study was the 19th century British novel, and therein I met the Brontes: Charlotte, Emily, Anne, and Branwell. Their two older sisters, Maria and Elizabeth, died of typhus at school in an epidemic that Charlotte recreated in her seminal novel, Jane Eyre.

Either during the crazy cramming in of every British novel I could get my hands on and further study into the Brontes after I graduated with my Master of Arts degree, I continued to read the works of the Brontes.

And there was only one of their novels I just couldn't seem to like: Wuthering Heights, the only novel published by Emily Bronte, or, as she preferred then, Ellis Bell. I enjoyed all of the others although the quality was quite different among them. Charlotte's Jane Eyre remains heads and shoulders above her other novels: Villette, Shirley and, published posthumously although written first, The Professor as well as Anne's efforts in Agnes Grey and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (although I much prefer the latter over the former). Branwell never published a novel although some of his poems were published upon occasion, and the three Bronte sisters published a volume of poetry together under the male pseudonyms of Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell.

All of this history as well as the most important two years of Charlotte's life come to light in Syrie James' excellent The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Bronte, published in 2009. I had quite liked her first volume, The Lost Letters of Jane Austen and I have her third novel, Dracula, My Love: The Secret Journals of Mina Harker ready to start tonight.

While I mildly enjoyed James' first book on Austen, I was swept away by her novel of Charlotte Bronte's life. I've long possessed Mrs. Gaskell's famous biography of Charlotte Bronte in my teetering "to read" stack, being a fan of both Elizabeth Gaskell's work as well as Charlotte Bronte's, and after reading (and even rereading great portions), I am more drawn that ever to the idea of pulling out Gaskell's famous work, published a mere two years after Charlotte Bronte's death at nearly 39 years of age, less than a year after her very happy marriage to Arthur Bell Nicholls.

I won't go into too much detail as to the content of The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Bronte in case my readers here don't know the outline of her life and the lives of her beloved siblings, but suffice it to say that James' book provoked tears at times, and a delicious romantic shiver at others. It's truly masterful in a way that her first book on Austen, though quite good and somewhat entertaining, lacked.

Perhaps it's Charlotte's late-in-life romance with her father's faithful curate after disliking him for so many years that draws me into Charlotte's "diaries" more than into Jane Austen's "letters." Perhaps a life fraught with tragedy makes for better reading than one of staid drawing rooms and an absence of passion, of zest for life, in Charlotte and her siblings that make this book impossible to forget.

So I'll see how Dracula, My Love is as I start it this evening in my jacuzzi tub...where I don't dare bring my beloved Kindle--on which ALL of the Bronte's novels reside, ready for me to take up again to re-read in delicious and decadent solitude....

So, truly, I can't recommend The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Bronte any higher; I only hope that Dracula, My Love measures up a bit...although I have to admit that The Lost Letters of Jane Austen refuse to do so--just like sometimes petulant Jane herself....

Wishing you happy reading!!

Quotation of the Week on a Snowy Sunday

Our front yard this morning, as the storm continues to roll in....

This Sunday our family was snowed in, unable to attend church. Six inches of snow may not sound like a great deal of the wintry white stuff, but then this is Southern California.... ;)

So I prayed from my Book of Common Prayer 2011 this morning, including the Collect for the Fourth Sunday in Lent:

GOD of all mercy, who knows that we are justly punished in all that comes upon us for our evil deeds; In your mercy, grant that we may be relieved by the comfort of your grace; Through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and rules with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

I also prayed the Psalms for the Eighteenth Day which includes Psalms 90-94. Psalm 92 contains some wonderful lines that I prayed while the snow fell in large, fluffy flakes while our family gathered around our roaring fire:

It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High;

to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night,

to the music of the lute and the harp,
to the melody of the lyre.

For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;
at the works of your hands I sing for joy.

How great are your works, O Lord!
Your thoughts are very deep!

But as I meditate upon my Lenten journey which has been quite the exercise in self-control, I can only pray with Paul's Second Epistle to the Church at Corinth:

"And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another."


--2 Corinthians 3:18

So as we continue through the second half of our Lenten journeys, may God strengthen us as we behold His glory, transformed into His image from day to day as we grow in the grace and knowledge of our Savior!

Journeying with you, this Lent and always,

Saint Patrick's Day

Today, March 17, is, of course, Saint Patrick's Day. As a catholic Christian (note the small "c" which denotes a universality, not necessarily Roman Catholic although I love my fellow Roman Christians dearly), I enjoy discovering the Christian roots behind many secularized holidays...rather, holy days.

So while our secular society celebrate the day with green beer, parades, and green everything (let's not go there, shall we?), we Christians remember the missionary behind the corned beef and cabbage, Patrick, a Britain boy kidnapped by Irish pirates, who after escaping, returned to Ireland to share the Gospel of Christ with openly hostile pagans.

I've written posts in the past on Saint Patrick, relating his story; I won't repeat myself but instead will share last year's post which includes links to past postings on Saint Patrick:

Celebrating Patrick, Missionary to Ireland

In honor of Saint Patrick and Irish culture, I thought I'd post today's "Poem of the Day" from the American Academy of Poets. The tune is very familiar, but do we ever listen to the lyrics?

Danny Boy
by Frederick Edward Weatherly

Oh Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling
From glen to glen, and down the mountain side
The summer's gone, and all the flowers are dying
'Tis you, 'tis you must go and I must bide.

But come ye back when summer's in the meadow
Or when the valley's hushed and white with snow
'Tis I'll be here in sunshine or in shadow
Oh Danny boy, oh Danny boy, I love you so.

And when you come, and all the flowers are dying
If I am dead, as dead I well may be
You'll come and find the place where I am lying
And kneel and say an "Ave" there for me.

And I shall hear, tho' soft you tread above me
And all my dreams will warm and sweeter be
If you'll not fail to tell me that you love me
I'll simply sleep in peace until you come to me.
I'll simply sleep in peace until you come to me.

Originally written in 1910 then adapted to the melody in 1913, "Danny Boy" has become a sort of unofficial ballad of Irish Americans. Here's some additional information from Wikipedia: "Danny Boy."

And let's finish with one of the many prayers attributed to Saint Patrick:

May the Strength of God pilot us.
May the Power of God preserve us.
May the Wisdom of God instruct us.
May the Hand of God protect us.
May the Way of God direct us.
May the Shield of God defend us.
May the Host of God guard us.
Against the snares of the evil ones.
Against temptations of the world

May Christ be with us!
May Christ be before us!
May Christ be in us,
Christ be over all!
May Thy Salvation, Lord,
Always be ours,
This day, O Lord, and evermore. Amen.

So I wish you all a blessed remembrance of Saint Patrick today and of Irish culture's place in history as Irish monks are credited with preserving much of Western Culture, especially Christian Culture, during the Dark Ages.

May we all share our faith with the brilliance and fervency of Saint Patrick in our increasingly secular country and world, in the strength, power, grace, hope, and love of Christ Jesus our Lord!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day,

Brave Writer Classes This Spring

The spring schedule is now up at Brave Writer, and I’m going to be a very busy woman. This winter I’ve taught two family workshops, The Groovy Grammar Workshop (in which we turned grammar upside-down and played with language) and the just-completed Playing with Poetry Workshop in which we explored many aspects of analyzing and composing poems, from haiku to quatrains, from visual poetry to song lyrics. Both classes are among the highlights of my teaching year. :)

This spring I’ll be teaching a Literary Analysis Class on Little Women starting March 12; we’ll be focusing on Louisa May Alcott’s classic which is quite autobiographical. I’ve read extensively on the Alcott family, studying Alcott’s journals and letters plus several biographies of the family as a whole. After reading through the novel together using the discussion questions (the “Think Piece” Questions) from The Boomerang, then writing an exploratory essay on one of several given topics. This class still has a few openings, so sign up quickly to join the fun!!!

Starting on April 16, I’ll be teaching a Literary Analysis Class on The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare. We’ll be reading the play together, act by act and scene by scene using a set of discussion questions, then we’ll write an exploratory essay on one of several topics. Shakespeare is one of my favorite classes to teach, and we'll definitely have a blast together as we explore the Bard's play and also watch film clips from certain scenes together. It's gonna be fun!!!!

Then starting on May 14, I’ll be facilitating a Shakespeare Family Workshop. We’ll explore Shakespeare’s life and times, the theatre scene of his day, his sonnets and poetry, then his Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies. This class is ideal for homeschooling families who are rather intimidated by the teaching of Shakespeare, yet it's also tons o' fun for families already comfortable with the Bard and his works. We'll be watching lots of video clips and will also be doing some hands-on projects, so do join us for a Brave Writer perennial favorite class!

My classes will end on June 15, and after that I’ll be teaching a new class at Brave Writer over the summer that will be a surprise. :)

So, I hope to see you on Brave Writer soon…or if you’d like help with grading your students’ essays, e-mail me at SusanneMBarrett@aol.com. 


Writing bravely with you,

Quotation of the Week: On Lent and Workshops

It's the third week of Lent...which is nearly half over. And my Lenten vows have taken quite a beating. Well, allow me to say that the tech-related fasting is going much better than the food-related one....

But the Lenten quotations keep coming, and after I shared my bulging Quotation Journal at the Pine Valley Bible Conference Center's Spring Women's Retreat where I spoke on Saturday in workshops on Journaling in the morning and on Blogging in the afternoon, I find more value than ever in my decade-long collecting of the written words of others.

The Journaling Workshop was very well-attended; the small room was filled, with women standing in the back when the seating ran out. There had to be about thirty women there which is very nicely attended considering it's my first conference speaking gig since I was the main speaker at Lake Murray's Women Retreat in 2006 when I spoke on contemplative prayer and practice. My name will get out more and more as I speak more, too. :)

Both workshops are available here on my blog on the pages under my header: On Blogging and On Journaling, if you'd like to read them. :)

I asked many people to pray for me before I spoke, and I felt His Presence with me as I rarely had to consult my notes; I just shared my journaling practices and offered some assistance, and we journaled together using some freewriting prompts, a method I learned from Brave Writer. So thanks be to God for a successful day of workshops!

It was also really fun that several women from Lake Murray were helping out at the Women's Conference, so Joy was helping to sell the copies on the book table of The Book of Common Prayer 2011 that I helped to edit; Patty was helping me at my Journaling Workshop, and my doctor's wife, Marcia, who was leading a workshop on women's health in the afternoon, also joined my morning Journaling Workshop. What blessings!!

My daughter's boss at the Bible Camp told her that a good number of women mentioned the Journaling Workshop when they shared what God was saying to them at the close of the retreat, and I've been asked to offer the Journaling Workshop again in May at the Mother-Daughter Conference.

So tonight I pull out my trusty Quotation Journal which I started in August of 2001, just before moving to Pine Valley, and I found another quotation on Lent to keep us (and especially ME) focused on the reason we sacrifice and fast during this time of year:

"It [penance] does not mean sacrifice and self-denial in the first place, but a 'change of heart,' a victory over sin and a striving for holiness."

--Fr. Francis X. Weiser, SJ

So as we continue in this Lenten season, may our hearts change as we seek the Face of our Saviour each and every day, striving to become like Him through His grace and strength, and definitely for His glory, not our own.

And as I recover from speaking two weekends in a row, I pray for a quiet week ahead with less stress so that I can focus all the more easily on my Lord and Saviour so that He can change my hard heart this Lenten season.

Walking this Lenten Journey with you,

A Broken Vessel--Magnificent!

The cupboards were bare this week. With the arrival of my paycheck, we can fill the pantry and fridge again.

After staring at the mostly-empty fridge, I decided to make oatmeal for lunch.

I pulled out the Irish Oatmeal, the honey, the walnuts, the measuring scoop, a spoon, the small saucepan, and one of the large soup bowls.

Then I noticed the bowl...and the chips along the edge of the bowl.

Sighing, I scooped the half cup of oats into the saucepan, added three half-cup measures of water, and placed the pan on the stove to heat. While I waited for the distinctive burbling sound of simmering oatmeal, I broke the walnuts into small pieces and found the bag of craisins in the back pantry.

While I waited for the oatmeal to boil, I examined the bowl again. We had four of these bowls when we first bought the set at Sears years ago: a red one, an orange one, a green one, and a blue one, each with a different fruit which match our dinner dishes.

But now we have only three bowls; the red one painted with cheerful cherries broke and was reluctantly swept away into the garbage several years ago. 

So without the red one (to match my dinner plate), I am drawn to the blue bowl with grapes on the side. I pick up the bowl and notice the large chip just under the edge.

When one assigns dish duties to boybarians, breakage and crackage happen. It's inevitable.

(They aren't touching my new glass teapot--no way, no how.)

I run my finger over the large chip--actually, it's two large chips, side by side, crevassed one into the other.

But despite the double imperfection, the bowl still fulfills its function: it cradles my oatmeal with walnuts and craisins as I trickle in some rice milk and add a final dollop of butter.

As I consume my delicious lunch of steaming, fragrant oatmeal, I ponder the brokenness, the chips in my armor that show all-too-clearly, even to mere passers-by.

It's hard to not miss such obvious brokenness.

Yet it's in the deeply-hidden broken places that hearts can rupture in pain, souls can scream in agony, minds can whirl with the "what ifs" and "why, God?s."

At least my brokenness is easily to see in cane and wheelchair, trembling hands and dizzy, forgetful mind.

It's the way-down-deep brokenness that can do far more damage than merely chip away at our vanity. This deep separating pulls hearts apart, families apart, friends and colleagues made distant by space and time...and pride.

Why does my brokenness always mask itself behind pride...like a child hiding behind an ancient, towering oak during hide-and-seek? 

But, somehow, God sees this broken body, pain-riddled with halting steps. Yet He still fills me with nourishment...with Himself.

And I pray that I can and will share nourishment with others...the nourishment God provides through His holy Word and divine Presence, and everlasting Comfort.

Also I pray that as I speak at the PVBCC tomorrow, leading workshops in journaling and blogging for Week #2 of the Spring Women's Conference, that I speak and share nourishment...the nourishment of His Spirit, the nourishment of His Word, the nourishment of His living in us daily. (To read the text of my workshops, see "On Blogging" and "On Journaling" below the header of this blog.)


As I finish this tonight, the lyrics to U2's "Magnificent" (my phone's ringtone) call to me. "Magnificent" expresses Mary's song of praise (known in liturgical churches as "The Magnificat") in updated language, and doesn't shy away from the big questions that we all want to ask God. He can handle it, after all. And our response is sweet praise....

Magnificent
Oh, oh, magnificent

I was born, I was born
To be with you in this space and time
After that and ever after
I haven't had a clue only to break rhyme
This foolishness can leave a heart black and blue, oh, oh

Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love can heal such a scar

I was born, I was born to sing for you
I didn't have a choice but to lift you up
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
I give you back my voice from the womb
My first cry, it was a joyful noise, oh, oh

Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love can heal such a scar
Justified, till we die you and I will magnify, oh, oh
Magnificent, magnificent, oh, oh

Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love unites our hearts
Justified, till we die you and I will magnify, oh, oh
Magnificent, magnificent, magnificent

So may we, the cracked and chipped and broken, reach out to other cracked and chipped and broken ones in the Love that is manifested in our Magnificent Lord!

Nourish us, O Lord. Despite our obvious brokenness and fragility, the cracks and crazes in our enamel, the chips and gauges from our exteriors, use us for Your glory. May we be even more effective because of our imperfections as You transform our hearts, minds, and souls to walk in the footsteps of Christ our Lord.

Praising as a chipped vessel with cracked voice,

What Is God's Glory?

Sometimes a devotion just reaches out and plucks at one's soul. And today's daily devotion from The High Calling does just that.

If there's one verse in Scripture that I try to live by, that I try to apply to my life most consistently, it's this:

"...whatever you do, do all for the glory of God."
-- 1Corinthians 10:31, ESV

So Mark Roberts' wonderful Daily Reflection from The High Calling explores this concept of God's glory beautifully and deeply. It's the kind of reflection that settles into my very marrow, uniting body, soul, and spirit into a single flame of worship. Enjoy and ponder....

What Is God's Glory, Part 2

          Ezekiel 10:1-22

"Then the LORD’s glory rose from above the winged creatures and moved toward the temple’s threshold. The temple was filled with the cloud, and the courtyard was filled with the brightness of the LORD’s glory."
Ezekiel 10:4

In yesterday’s reflection, I began to examine the nature of God’s glory as it’s revealed in the Old Testament. We saw that the basic Hebrew word for glory, kabod, comes from a root that means “heaviness.” God’s glory is heavy in the sense that it comprises all the goodness of God. Add together God’s majesty, power, grace, justice, wisdom, and love, and you begin to fathom God’s all-encompassing “heaviness,” his glory.

Yet the notion of heaviness does not fully convey, in English, the glory of God. In fact, if we equate God’s glory with heaviness, we might miss an essential quality of his glory. Let’s take another look at Ezekiel 10:4: “Then the LORD’s glory rose from above the winged creatures and moved toward the temple’s threshold. The temple was filled with the cloud, and the courtyard was filled with the brightness of the LORD’s glory.” God’s glory is not like a giant rock that sits there passively because it is so large it cannot do anything else. Rather, God’s glory shines like the sun.

In fact, if we’re looking for an image to represent, however incompletely, the glory of God, the sun is a strong candidate. For one thing, the sun is the heaviest object in our solar system (with a weight estimated at more than a hundred times that of the earth). But, of course, the sun doesn’t just sit there. Rather, it is continuously active, burning so fiercely that it lights and warms the earth, which is about 93 million miles away.

The similarity between God’s glory and the sun is found in Scripture. Consider, for example, the promise of Isaiah 60:19: “The sun will no longer be your light by day, nor will the moon shine for illumination by night. The LORD will be your everlasting light; your God will be your glory.” This promise comes true in the vision of the heavenly city found in Revelation 21:23: “The city doesn’t need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because God’s glory is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb.”

You and I are called to live our lives in the light of God’s glory. We do so when we acknowledge his glory in worship, and when we live worshipfully each moment, thus reflecting the glory of God in the world.

QUESTIONS FOR FURTHER REFLECTION: Can you think of other analogies for God’s glory, besides the sun? How might you live in the light of God’s glory today?

PRAYER:
O splendor of God’s glory bright,
O Thou that bringest light from light;
O Light of light, light’s living spring,
O day, all days illumining.
O Thou true Sun, on us Thy glance
Let fall in royal radiance;
The Spirit’s sanctifying beam
Upon our earthly senses stream.
All laud to God the Father be;
All praise, eternal Son, to Thee;
All glory, as is ever meet,
To God the holy Paraclete.
Amen.

“O Splendor of God’s Glory Bright,” Latin original by Ambrose of Milan, 4th century. English translation by Robert S. Bridges and John M. Neale. Public domain.

If you would like to peruse Part 1 of "What Is God's Glory," click here: Part 1

Aaaah. I just love Saint Ambrose's beautiful hymn. Hymns from the Early Church resonate with me soooo deeply, just knowing how they've been a means of worship for Christians around the globe and through the centuries, and that we can join in worship with the Heavenly Host when we, too, raise our voices through these ancient, holy words.

So may we all shine with the glory of God while we go about our ordinary daily routines, His glory making the ordinary extraordinary. Because that's what He does.

Soli Deo Gloria, this day and always,