"He himself bore our sins" in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; "by his wounds you have been healed." ~ 1 Peter 2:24 The cross. Although we are still weeks away from Lent, which leads to Good Friday, I am lead today to look upon the cross and consider what the view must have been like for Christ. It's not often that I consider what Christ must have seen and felt, hanging above the crowd, while encountering the transition from this life to the next. Like so many of us, I push through this image, stare at the empty cross, and think of the beauty of Easter morning, when lilies embrace the altar, and we lift our voices, sharing that "Christ has risen!" But, first there was the struggle, the pain, and of course, denial and death. We say that we can never truly know a person's struggles until we have walked in their shoes. Jesus walked among us, laughed, struggled, rejoiced, got angry, wept, ate, prayed and slept. How much more like us could he have been? But then, he looked down at us as he died. It's not a pretty thought. I still cannot bring myself to watch movies that center upon the crucifixion. It's not just the brutality of the act, the cruelty of condemnation and death, but the reality that what he witnessed was only a glimpse of what he must see as one who dwells now inside each of us, looking through our eyes, as we see and understand our world to now be. We are people, who live with the choices we have made, and with the results of the choices of others. It is both challenging and comforting for me. Somehow I can understand that what I witness, God sees it too. What I experience, God feels it as well. What I think, God knows as well. There is nothing that we experience that God has not seen as well. Today's scripture reminds me that no matter how difficult life may seem, the hands of the Savior still hold us, even from the arms of a cross that once held Him. May we find strength through these images and thoughts. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017
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"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." ~ 2 Corinthians 4: 16-18
One of the most difficult things I have experienced in my life was watching my great grandparents and grandparents grow old and die. In my eyes they were all great people who loved others, laughed, and even as they aged they continued to serve as amazing mentors. My grandfather when he struggled with Parkinson's would remark about the tremors in his hand, "but I can make an amazing milkshake." My great grandmother after seventy plus years of marriage to my great grandfather told me, "Don't hate. It takes up too much of the time of life that you could be loving life." After Dr. King's murder one of my grandfather's shared "What one generation will accept, the next will embrace. Be bold in what you do." The fact that we all at some point will enter the chapter in our life where we decline and then die is a journey we began the moment our lungs reached out to take that first breath of life. For some life has been filled with many turns, and for some, a course so well planned out there have been few surprises. For all of us, each day is new. Although we cannot stop the progress of time, nor the progressive pace of time on our bodies, the renewal of our relationship with God can and does occur each day. I miss my family whom I was blessed to know and who loved me so dearly, but watching them live their faith in such fresh ways, even until they drew that final breath makes my own journey easier. I guess that's why I'm okay with growing older, including all that comes with this condition. I want the next generations to see that life lived in faith can and does make it all worth while, and that's what really determines your quality of life. Stay in God's Grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope. Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning. Great is his faithfulness." ~ Lamentations 3: 21-23
I am reminded each day that the world can be a very loud and chaotic place. Advertisers on television selling must-have items. Sports announcers comment on players, while the roar of the crowd can be so deafening that the quarterback on the field screams the numbers to a play to players just inches from him. Even in the car, while at a stop light, the boom base of a neighboring car can vibrate several vehicles. Yes, there is noise! All these sounds seem to demand our attention. Besides these "noises," there are those voices within that also seem to want to be heard. You know, the voices that cause us to want to "do better next time." Or, "nobody cares." Some struggle with voices that shame, or try to bring you down. While all of these sounds interfere with daily life, there is within each of us that still, small voice, that shares these words, "You are my beloved child, and I love you." The words of a Creator who delights in each of us, dwells within the heart of all humanity. Bringing these words to life can indeed be challenging. Believing in these words can be empowering to self and others. This IS the voice we need most of all to hear. To hear that voice, however, requires special effort; it requires solitude, silence, and a strong determination to listen. That's what learning spend time in prayer is all about. It is about searching within, while listening to the voice that calls us "my Beloved." Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 A few years ago I travelled to Utah to watch my son, Brad, wrestle. Driving along the Wasatch Mountains I was moved by their overwhelming presence, and the power of God's beauty took my breath away.
In today's reflection I share thoughts based on Psalm 90, The Immortal Creator. Stay in God's grip! The Immortal Creator (Based on Psalm 90) Lord, we know our history and look forward in time, but You remain our constant. Before the labor pangs of the mountains, before the first cosmic particle even back before the beginning, You are God. From the very dust of the earth You cry, “Go back oh mortals.” In Your eyes a thousand years are like yesterday, or like an hour’s sleep in the night. You remove people, just as the plains’ tornado wipes a home from its foundation. We are as winter grass in the Guadeloupe Valley – In the winter it bursts with green life, Yet by summer it is quickened and burnt in the scorching heat. So it is with our life, consumed by Your discipline, and by Your insight we are removed. Our inequities are evident to You, our guilt disclosed to You in a solitary glance. Each day surrenders each second to Your might. Our life ends as suddenly as a short story. Our life span may measure seventy-five years – If we persevere, perhaps, ninety. If our life is full of struggles and sadness; Soon it is over and our soul takes wing. But, do we take a moment to think of Your love? Where else may we find respect even remotely Close to your amazing power? Treasure each day is a lesson You try to teach each of us, Stretching forth before us Your words of wisdom. By our side, stand Lord, through the long hours of each day; Show us Your mercy. Fill us with Your gift of love, so that we may know joy, laughing and singing like children. Give to us Your grace, so that we may find ways to dilute the pains of life with happiness. Help us to see You more clearly, working and ever re-creating within us, so that others may recognize Your glory. We want so much for God’s beauty to be upon us, until our hands find their way to Yours, and we share in your eternal purpose. G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "For anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation: the old order is gone and a new being is there to see. It is all God's work" ~ 2 Corinthians 5:17-18 One of the hardest things in life is to let go of old hurts. It serves as a stumbling block to overcoming the event, and the ability to practice grace and forgiveness. By holding on to such things, it begins to eat away at us, until we become so trapped that the only option is to lash out, or seek revenge. Sometimes our hurt isn't actually even ours. How many times have we made a choice based on someone else's bad experience? Holding people's faults against them often creates a situation that cannot be healed. Paul shares: "For anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation: the old order is gone and a new being is there to see. It is all God's work" (2 Corinthians 5:17-18). Indeed, we cannot let go of old hurts, but God can. That's what renewal, reconcilliation, and forgiveness is all about. Paul says: "God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not holding anyone's fault against them" (2 Corinthians 5:19). It is God's work, but we are instruments of God. We have been challenged by God to minister to one another, and to be "the message of reconciliation" (2 Corinthians 5:19). This message calls us to let go of old hurts in the Name of God. It is the message our world most needs to hear. I pray that the things we all have experienced may find a pathway to grace and peace. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "Because of your great compassion you did not abandon them in the desert. By day the pillar of cloud did not cease to guide them on their path, nor the pillar of fire by night to shine on the way they were to take." ~ Nehemiah 9:19
At some point in our life we have been asked that notorious question, "Where do you see yourself in five years?" Oh, how I wish I could really see into the future! I have to admit, the older I get, the more I begin to factor in my age in this question, along with what I have already accomplished, learned about life, and how I am feeling. There are no answers to these questions. If truth be told, for many of us, we are fortunate to see our next step, including what we have to do in the next hour, or the next day on the calendar. The art of living is to enjoy what we can see and not complain about what remains unseen or unknown. When we are able to take the next step with the trust that we will have enough light for the step that follows, we can walk through life with joy and be surprised at how far we go. While we hope to know where what our life will look like in five years, we can rejoice now in knowing that the light of Christ will guide and hold us with each step along our journey. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he replied. Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.” ~ Genesis 22:1 - 2 Have you ever wondered what life was like for Abraham and Isaac after this encounter on the mountain? I've often thought that Isaac would have continued to be cautious any time his dad said, "Hey, want to go on a walk with me?" The ability to move on from a situation like this, or any situation in our life where we have found ourselves wounded, or somehow hurt, can be difficult. Sometimes we must make a conscious decision to move on, or risk getting "stuck" in that emotion. Becoming attached to this menatility can often lead to an even greater wound. It's important to explore these feelings, but the greater lesson involves learning how to move on. I still wonder what Isaac's face looked like the next time Abraham said, "Hey son, let's go for a walk." One thing is for certain, moving forward and remaining faithful to God, for any of us, often leaves us stronger. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 One thing about keeping a journal since I was 14, I have found that sharing my thoughts also includes writing poetry and prayers. As this new year begins, these words come to mind as I pray...
Today I saw You, Lord, weeping with migrant mothers around wooden shacks and burrows where children learn little except how to fight - weeping. Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. Today I saw Christ, gasping for His breath in churches where superficial worshipers provide lip-service justice to the hungry, then drive home to an overwhelming feast while watching overpriced athletes - gasping. Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed Is the One who comes in the name ofthe Lord. Hosanna in the highest. Today i saw Christ, hoping in the corridors of our schools, where the question "Why?" is raised and seeds of truth are not nurtured and our children live and die - hoping. Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is the One who comes in the name ofthe Lord. Hosanna in the highest. Today I saw Christ, struggling in the homes of older Americans where the choice between medicine and food leaves them poor, lonely and malnourished - struggling. Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed Is the One who comes in the name ofthe Lord. Hosanna in the highest. Today I saw Christ, dying for the stranger whom society has deemed unworthy, homeless and huddled under bridges - dying. Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is the One who comes in the name ofthe Lord. Hosanna in the highest. O Lamb of God, who takes away the sins ofthe world, have mercy upon us. O Lamb of God, who takes away the sins ofthe world have mercy upon us. O Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world grant us Your peace. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "Your kingdom come..." ~ Matthew 6:10a Sometimes God captures us in a moment, and you realize the Kingdom of God is being ushered in. I am aware of so many issues facing several friends and even family members, including myself. It is easy to let the issues of the world mask the eternal presence of God. In just a single moment, a snapshot, and a glance up to heaven, suddenly there is peace. It's not long until I'm back on my way, and I recognize I just had an encounter with the Kingdom of God. John the Baptist proclaimed that the Kingdom of God was "at hand." We bump into it all the time. The issue that many of us face, is the fact that we are not looking for it, and so we miss it. By not recognizing the Kingdom when it is present, we are keeping God in the shadows. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "Your kingdom come..." ~ Matthew 6:10a
Years ago friends of mine were praying for patience with their children. All 13 children! Their oldest child was about to go off to college, and it was just a very stressful time for this family. My friends had shared that they just seemed to find the need for more patience. I have to admit, I laughed a little as they sharted of some of their experiences, but, I also prayed with them, especially when they found out that they were pregnant once again with number 14! (I will do the proverbial "rest of the story" at the end of my post.) We talked about what praying for patience looked like. When we find ourselves seeking to be more aware of God's timing, or at least the ability to be comfortable in that timing, we suddenly realize the importance of patience. For many, patience is a discipline that is difficult to master. It is not the waiting until something happens over which we have no control; the setting of the sun, an end to a conflict, or the waves finding their way to the shore. Patience is also not about waiting on someone else to make the first move. I have discovered that patience is being involved in every moment of our life. To not wait. To be not just aware of the here and now, but to be present in every breath that we take, and to be available in those moments. Impatience, for me, is when I can't seem to live in that moment, and that by some miracle, behave as if life will simply be lived tomorrow, later, or in some other place. Being patient is trusting that what we seek is already present, and that either we must pray to have our eyes open, or God is simply waiting for us to realize the blessing. And now about the friends who were praying for patience? They had a little girl, child number 14. They named her Patience. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "We put no stumbling block in anyone's path, so that our ministry will not be discredited." ~ 2 Corinthians 6: 3
In chaplaincy, we often would refer to our role as a "non-anxious presence" when it came to being on the journey with those around us. It's really a blessing to be present with someone, even when the moment is one filled with unknowns, while remaining calm, letting the person know that you will remain no matter what. Similarly, it is important for each of us to be a "nonjudgmental presence" for those who have experienced woundedness, or who are different than us. Each of us have been reconciled with God, and because of Christ, each of us are instruments of reconciliation. Essential to the work of reconciliation is a nonjudgmental presence. We are not sent into the world to judge, to condemn, to evaluate, to classify, or to label. When we walk around as if we have to make up our mind about people and tell them what is wrong with them and how they should change, we will only create more division. Jesus says it clearly: "Be compassionate just as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge; ... do not condemn; ... forgive" (Luke 6:36-37). In a world that constantly requires us to make decisions about others, being a nonjudgmental presence can seem like a daunting task. Being a nonjudgmental presence is truly a blessing to others who long for reconciliation with God and others. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me." ~ John 15:4
One thing that I have learned in the course of my life is that there is a difference between being successful and being fruitful. Success seems to be centered on control and respect. It's creating something and steering it, until it becomes something. Success can bring about many things, including notoriety and fame. Fruitfulness, however, comes from a different place. The vulnerability is like community that is born out of a shared brokenness. Intimacy is fruitfulness that is born out of reaching out and touching one another's wounds. Being successful is great in the eyes of the world, but what brings us true joy is not successfulness but fruitfulness. Stay in God's grip! (c) 2017 "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." - Psalm 90:12 I'm always amazed how nature seems to find balance in this world. If there is something we can all learn from the world, that would be to be more aware of our purpose and how God's presence effects that purpose. A leaf begins life like many leaves do. As spring awakens trees following winter, they come forth, providing a canopy that offers shade, and air to those who breath oxygen. The forest provides resources used by many. They weather storms, and rustle in the wind until they find themselves swirling in the wind, or as in the case of this leaf, adrift upon the water and fully relying on the current to take it to the shore. Our reliance on God provides us with not just purpose, but helps us in all stages of our life. Life and death are connected by vulnerability, while both remind us of the preciousness of our lives. Praying we all find the place where God wants us to be. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "Surprise us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days." - Psalm 90:14
Do you live each day expecting a surprise? There is something I love about walking along the beach in winter. I don't know if it's the fact that the crowds of summer have left, or simply enjoying the sound of waves meeting the shoreline. Perhaps it's because even in the chill of the misty sea air, there are signs of life. Seagulls continue to call to one another. And if you search just beyond where the tide ends, flowers bloom. Each day holds a surprise. But only if we expect it can we see, hear, or feel it when it comes to us. Let's not be afraid to receive each day's surprise. The God of all creation is waiting for us to open a new place in our hearts, a place where we can welcome new friends and celebrate more fully our shared humanity. Stay in God's Grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 As we begin a new year, I begin a new blog. I'm excited about 2017 and what God has in store. Each week I will be sharing thoughts and reflections about upcoming lectionary lessons, original poems, photos, updates on the upcoming release of "Stay in God's Grip!" and events.
Since most of my past experience have been on Facebook, this new format for me offers an opportunity to reach out to a larger audience. I hope that you will share my blog with others, and invite them to come and be a part of a community where I will remind us each day to remain "In God's Grip!" A poem for today... I watched as the old hands of time made their way to midnight, and like two hands folded in prayer lifted high, I said good bye to one year and welcomed the next. I can't say that I felt any remorse as "Auld Lang Syne" often makes me feel. Somehow above the sounds of rockets exploding, people cheering and laughing, a somber reminder that peace on earth still has a long way to go. I couldn't help but remember the challenges this last year had brought, as well as the hopes and dreams crushed, but somewhere, under leaves that withered and left only a memory, a new leaf emerges, as a new generation does. I suppose I'm still a romantic, filled with hope as those who wish upon stars and cross their hearts. Until the new year proves itself, I might actually hold my breath and pray I don't find myself gasping following some act. Like so many others on this journey, I will raise to heaven, with both heart and lips, one more request. "May God bless all humanity, both living and the dead." For on this day I am but one among nations and city blocks, to proclaim, "May I be healthy and strong. Be surrounded by those I love. May strangers find hospitality, and may I be given the mind to discern Godly answers, when given the choice to answer or be silent." "Teach me to be transparent, even when it seems overwhelmingly vulnerable." "God of this new year, please, may YOU be, present to us always, even when we close our eyes, both when happy and in fear." And with that, I watched as the hands of time, slowly slipped away from one another. In my heart it was clear, I am the one who must now be the vessel that will initiate all these things. Stay in God's grip and Happy New Year... G. Todd Williams, (c) 2017 |
AuthorRev. G. Todd Williams is the author of the book, "Remember Me When..." and is a former hospice chaplain and pastor. Archives
February 2024
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