Thursday, May 14, 2015

Dear God,

Sometimes you come to us with a question.  "Who do people say I am?" you once asked.  "Do you love me?" Questions are intended to elicit a response from us.  Do we pay attention when the question comes?

One day while on my knees working in the spiritual garden, you asked me, "Why are you doing this?"  I had to stop what I was doing and think.  Why was I creating a spiritual garden in the woods adjacent to our yard?  I did answer.  I was fulfilling your call to open the woods, to dig out huge, nasty, thorny vines, trees, bushes, and weeds, to clear and clean out the land where all kinds of things were dumped for decades, and to create a spiritual path where people would come to find respite, tranquility, and faith.  Although you already knew what I was doing and why, you still wanted me to answer the question of faith so I would be reminded of the divine connection we have and the purpose you have given me.

So often your questions challenge.  Once when I was really angry and pained over something and I was ranting to you about what I was going to do about a difficult situation, you simply asked, "Really, is this what you really want to do?"  Of course, I backed down realizing that my reaction was not a faith-filled one.  I felt ashamed and you helped me reconsider both the situation and my response.  In the end your question stopped me from doing something stupid.

As I consider the spiritual journey and the call to remain close to you, I give thanks for questions that compel me to think how I live my life, who I follow, and the witness I want to make for the good of the world.

Understanding God,
thank you
for questions
that stop me
dead in my tracks.
Thank you
for inquiries
of faith.
Thank you
for love
that always rests
behind every question.

Love, Andrea