Making time for God…

"In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. " -Mark 1:38 Bertram Polloch was at one time the Bishop of Norwich. As Bishop of Norwich, Polloch was continually being pulled in a million different directions with people coming and going, clamoring for his attention. He knew that he needed time for self care, and connection with God.  Bishop Polloch had certain times set aside on his calendar for prayer and spiritual connection. No matter who came to see him at those times scheduled on his calendar, they were told that he could not be interrupted because "he had an appointment with God". I admire Bishop Polloch for his ability to ensure that he fostered his relationship with God. I often find it hard with the many things piled on my desk to take time for prayer, meditation and self reflection. I don't often put God in my appointment book and I wonder if it might not be a practice to try this coming Lenten Season. Do we really make time for God in our busy modern day 21st Century over-scheduled lives? We are tempted to say "Yes" we make time for God. We go to Church, we say the prayers, sing the hymns and even offer a hug or two at the Peace but if we are honest with ourselves, outside of formal worship we make little room for God. Most of our meetings with God are not planned. Our prayers are occasional, spontaneous, spur of the moment prayers. If we meet with God, it's usually an emergency or a crisis. Most often during those time when our backs are up against the wall, bills are due, a child is sick, it’s the end of the semester and there are exams to take, too many papers to write, too many proposals to get in, we need help. If the truth be told, God is the last resort when everything else has failed so we figure "I've tried everything else, now I'll will try God." I suspect that if I had a friend that the only time I called on them was when I was in trouble or needed help I would soon find myself one friend short. An occasional visit or prayer doesn't foster relationship with our families and friends and it certainly does not foster relationship with God. If we love God, why do we find it so hard to make time to talk to God and to let God talk to us? The truth is God will always be there when we need to talk and even more so when we need to listen but building a relationship with God can only benefit us in the long run. We need to have an appointment with God every day. It needs to be a priority engagement that cannot be broken. I invite you to join me during the season of Lent to put a "God-appointment" on your calendar that cannot be broken. I'll let you know how I do…

The Holiness of God

The Burning bush...

DAYS PASS and the years vanish, and we walk sightless among miracles.
God, fill our eyes with seeing and our minds with knowing;
let there be moments when Your presence, like lightning,
illumines the darkness in which we walk.
Help us to see, wherever we gaze, that the bush burns unconsumed.
And we, clay touched by God, will reach out for holiness,
and exclaim it in wonder:
How filled with awe is this place, and we did not know it!
Blessed is the Eternal One, the Holy God!

It is sometimes hard to see the awe, the burning bushes along the way sometimes. We now more than ever find it hard to trust that God will be there when we need God’s providence and presence that most. But time and time again God is there when we need God most. That was true for the people of Israel and it is true for us. Even when we complain, when we grumble and long for the way things used to be God reminds us that as we travel through the wilderness, with hunger and thirst, plagued by scorching sun and stinging insects, with all the calamities and trials of life, we are assured that God will be with us.