But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. Jude 20-21
Spiritually we are in God, in The Lord, at home in God. Our true identity is that we are God's children. It is from that perspective-God's perspective- that we perceive the world. We are called to see the world as God sees it; that is what theology is all about. Therefore, we are continually diagnosing the illusory quality of anything outside that perspective. The Road to Peace
Now I know that it is not I that pray, but the Spirit of God who prays in me. Indeed, when God's glory dwells in me, there is nothing too far away, nothing too painful, nothing too strange or too familiar that it cannot contain and renew by its touch. Every time I recognize the glory of God in me and give it space to manifest itself to me, all that is human can be brought there and nothing will be the same again. Once in a while I just know it: of course God hears my prayer. God prays in me and touches the whole world with love right here and now. At those moments all questions about "the social relevance of prayer, etc" seem dull and very unintelligent, and the silent prayer of the monks one of the few things that keeps some sanity in this world. Henri Nouwen, The Genesee Diary
Yesterday is the first time I remember when I asked someone if I could pray for her, she said no. She isn't very religious, so I said that I would hold her in my heart as I rode. And I did. And last night she found us and is sleeping in the same little cabin as we are in this crazy packed-full campsite that laughed and shouted way past the posted silence hours of midnight. And she is seeking quiet in her head. And has the biggest 38 kilo pile of stuff on her bike imaginable. May Abba Father be her rest.
And I don't understand prayer. But the LORD God Creator of the Universe does, and He told us to pray without ceasing.
We are a pretty tired little team, but happy. I guess that is the thing about doing something hard, is that it is hard, but hopefully things are going on deep within each of us because of this experience. Moving beyond being tourists in this life of ours, into being pilgrims, with His perspective.
May I practice His presence all day long, up and down, press in, release.
...
And it was a press in sort of day, but glorious. His glory. His glory gleaming like one of Nicole's disco balls, brilliant, around and around. And sure there were a couple more flat tires and a little wandering from the path, and there were no clouds to run interference from the sun, but so many moments of joy, the conversation with the couple from New Zealand whose jazz musician daughter just moved to Tucson, with the pilgrim family on bicycles from Mexico, D.F., the nice guy who drove Tracy and her bike around and me and my bike around, whose son just got accepted to Berkeley. And Leo from Italy and Paulina from Spain and Nolin from Italy too as we sit in the sun watching our freshly scrubbed clothes wave in the sun. And share our groceries. And Celtic tunes are on someone's iTouch, which is perfect.
And once again, God's conversation with me has a lot to do with He is God. Trustworthy. Powerful. Faithful. And full of love for me His daughter. And for the world. Each one His child. And may I speak His love, clearly and finishing my sentences. And the Korean guy sitting in the sun next to me and eating his vegetables doesn't know why he has been walking the Camino for fifty-three days. But His Father does; His Father who knows him by name.
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