Monday, December 10, 2012

My dearest God,

You opened the door to joy when I heard an unexpected voice from the past. Normally I don't answer the phone to numbers I do not know but for some reason I picked up.  On the other line was my sister friend Toni, one of my great links to the monastic community.  For several minutes we reminisced about our yellow bus trip to the USSR in 1988, her participation in my ordination, and the work that is taking place among the poorest of the poor in Africa.  We laughed like we did twenty four years ago on some of our great adventures in Russia.  We celebrated your work, the many stories of faith, and the joys of living close to you.  Like a great waterfall in the middle of a dry, dusty desert, you came to me with a ladle.

You never cease to amaze me.  You bring life out of death.  You bring living water to the thirsty.  You bring sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf.  You bring joy to our sadness and love in the face of loss.  You come...every time.

Loving God,
full of grace
and compassion,
thank you
for the ways
in which
you minister
to us.
You come
lavishing us
with gifts
from heaven.
You remind us
not to
lose hope
but to
trust you
in all things.
You teach us
to rise up
out of
our beds
to see
the light
of day.
How grateful
I am
to be
so richly blessed
by you.

Love, Andrea