May you be surprised today with His joy

In Your majesty ride out victoriously
    for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness. Psalm 45:4

And He said to him, “Follow me.”  Luke 5 

Joy is the echo of God’s life in us. – Columba of Iona

And so once again, during my morning fixed prayers I stare at my Tuesday prayer for myself, typed out so long ago: May the joy of the LORD be my strength as I fix my eyes on You and Your faithfulness- My Rock and My Redeemer.  That you will specifically guide me as to how you want me to minister to Your hurting and broken world. 

And every week, this prayer takes on new nuances and new shimmers in the light of the present… Ann Voskamp reminded us last night that “the past is a memory sealed right into you, tomorrow is a mystery unknown to you, and today God’s momentary gift to you–which is why it’s called the present.Continuously make Christ present.”

Surprise us with Your joy, O Lord, and let it resound in all that we do. Amen

And I know that His joy is what we can offer the world. Joy is what shines light over the achy breaky thirteen-year-olds with whom I spend my long hours every day. And in only thirteen days I will send them off to the big bad beautiful world, with a few carefully crafted words and a big squishy hug.

Sunday night I snuggled under the breezy night skies to listen to Ryanhood close out the 32nd Annual Tucson Folk Festival in El Presidio Park downtown. And for the first time in public they sang their new song, “Thirteen.”  And my Monday afternoon Writer’s Club kids sing this song in every word they share. Thirteen was the worst thing, was the worst thing being thirteen, When no one can find you, and no one believes you and every conviction is full of contradictions all you can see is who you never want to be…”

And really each of us can be trapped in the age thirteen perspective

I tried to turn the sound up 
I tried to drown it out, but 
Somehow the shouting 
Always found me down the halls 

There’s so much inside
We were hoping to hide
So, I won’t be unkind
I won’t be unkind 

I still go there sometimes 

We still go there sometimes.

And then Cameron followed up this song with his love song from Jesus.

No need to be so confused by
All the fires you have to walk through
‘Cause they’re breaking you
And making you
And building you to be
Soft enough to love the least of these
And even me

And I will always love you
Even when you feel you walk alone
When you walk away from my love for you
I will walk along with you unknown
And I always love you
Even when you feel you walk alone
When you walk away from my love for you
I will walk along with you unknown
Oh, I will walk along with you unknown
‘Til you come home

And so dear Lord, as I step out into the day, You are alongside of me as we walk the path of “Follow Me.” And may I believe deeply. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin urges, Give our Lord the benefit of believing that His hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of felling yourself in suspense and incomplete.

Because joy is the clear marker of one who believes.

The echo of God’s life in us.

'Til we come home.