"Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." ~ Hebrews 13:5
We don't have to go far to find the treasure we are seeking. There is beauty and goodness right where we are. And only when we can see the beauty and goodness that are close by can we recognize beauty and goodness on our travels far and wide. There are trees and flowers to enjoy, paintings and sculptures to admire; most of all there are people who smile, play, and show kindness and gentleness. They are all around us, to be recognized as free gifts to receive in gratitude. Our temptation is to collect all the beauty and goodness surrounding us as helpful information we can use for our projects. But then we cannot enjoy it, and we soon find that we need a vacation to restore ourselves. Let's try to see the beauty and goodness in front of us before we go elsewhere to look for it. Hoping that each day we recognize the beauty around us, while remaining in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017
0 Comments
Two years ago our grandson, Jaxton, was born. When I first saw him, I couldn't help but see a precious gift from God, and the conversations he had already had with God. These are the words I wrote that day....
Stay in God's grip! It began with a still small voice who whispered, and through the weaving of love, a spark gave way to light. "Do you know I love you?" the voice then asked. "Let me hold you now..." "Can you hear that sound?" the voice then asked. "It's the sound of your mother's heart. It's the joy she sings to you day and night..." "Can you feel that warmth?" the voice then asked. "It's the face of your father, laying next to you. It's pure joy to him, knowing you are growing." "Do you know I love you?" the voice then asked again. "I have many plans for you, for the world will be great, but even when you enter the world, if you will listen, you will hear Me reminding you that I love you." "Can you hear that sound?" the voice then asked again. "It's the laughter of your mother, feeling you move within, and bringing joy to her." "Can you feel that warmth?" the voice then asked again. "It's the hands of your father, that will always be there, to remind you of Me, and of this time that I held you." "Do you know I love you?" the voice cried out as your light entered into the world. "Always remember my voice, for I have created you, so that the world may know My voice, through the joy that your birth has brought to the world this day." G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 When God spoke to Elijah on Mount Horeb, He could have done so in the wind, earthquake, or fire. But He didn’t. He spoke with a “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:12)
God has to do some amazing things to get our attention sometimes. It's almost earth-shattering, and then it's only reflected on for 8 seconds, and then God has to try again. Why is it that for many the voice of God is so hard to hear. I remember watching a dear friend after the loss of his wife, struggling to put things into perspective. He kept looking for the answer to the "why" and all he seemed to find was silence. It's the still small voice that he desired, but that's not what he was hearing because sometimes things like pain, or things of the world, seem to make the voice white noise. It's just there. Listening for the voice is like the dial on the radio. Sometimes the frequency must be adjusted to get the desired outcome. Turning our attention to the still small voice must take ourselves out of where we presently are. All in all, it will be okay, because whether you are listening, the voice is present in many ways. God learned a long time ago that in uniquely creating us, God will find a way to be real and present to each of us. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "As the rain and snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out of my mouth: it will not return to me empty but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." ~ Isaiah 55: 10,11
No where does one understand the circle of life more than at a cemetery. I used to love to visit the cemetery in Lebanon, Indiana with my Mamaw Williams. She was probably our family's finest historian when it came to remembering names, circumstances around their life and death (if she didn't know, well let's just say she also possessed a great imagination and after she got done, often I felt sorry for the person for not having been more memorable!) I enjoyed walking through the generations. Her parents. Her husband, my Papaw, especially Memorial Day weekend. We would cut fresh peonies from my great-grandmother's fence row. Peppermint stripe was the color. God has been forever speaking things into being. From the first, "Let there be light!" to the three last words on Calvary, "It is finished," God seems to create and re-create daily around us, while remaining present and the same. Each day we try to seek a deeper understanding of who we are, and why we behave the way we do sometimes. It's only natural we would want good things to be said about us once we leave this earth. Whatever it is, remember the words you speak of others, also provides a clear understanding of who the person was as well. Live your life so that what you create will be a lasting memory, otherwise you may end up having your life "filled in" later by a little old lady with an amazing imagination! Be you, and be you for others. Be the words that God has spoken of each of us. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "Now Israel's eyes were failing because of old age, and he could hardly see. So Joseph brought his sons close to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them. Israel said to Joseph, "I never expected to see your face again, and now God has allowed me to see your children too." Then Joseph removed them from Israel's knees and bowed down with his face to the ground. Then Jacob called for his sons and said, "Gather around so I can tell you what will happen to you in days to come." When Jacob had finished [pronouncing blessings over] his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed, breathed his last and was gathered to his people. Joseph threw himself upon his father and wept over him and kissed him." - Genesis 48:10-12; 49:1,33; 50:1
What a life Jacob lived! So often as a chaplain we would share how a person died with one another and refer to the experience as someone who "died well." The scenario was perfect. Surrounded by family, prayers concluded, blessings given, and Joseph's father, after many years, simply stretches out in bed, takes his last breath and dies. The act of dying well is something we all hope for. Let's face it, we all have thought of our own death at least once in our life. It's what we do. We are human and live in a conditional period of time, not knowing the day we enter, or the day we leave. The birth part is for the most part a similar story, but the process of dying is one that is mysterious and can often lead to anxiety for someone who dwells upon the idea. I have a dear friend facing a serious disease. She shared that because of her faith she is not afraid of dying, it is the process to get there. I don't think any of us truly embrace pain. So much of the time we pray that we simply "fall asleep and wake up in heaven." UNLESS, you are like my grandfather who often would say that he wanted to be awake when he died, so that he "didn't miss a thing!" While the experience will be different for each of us, the presence of God, and the sharing of the journey with God, is one that I know, will bring comfort with each step. In the meantime, each day is part of that journey. God is present, helping us, and offering encouragement and support. Just as important as dying well, is embracing that same attitude with life itself. The embrace of God reminds us that God will be with us "always... even unto the ends of the earth." Have a wonderful day, and Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." ~ Galatians 6:2
Years ago a family from our community was involved in a serious automobile accident. Through a series of events, the car they were riding in crossed the center line and hit a coal truck head on. It was devastating. To make matters worse, one of the passengers was the family babysitter. A popular girl, who was a cheerleader, honor student, and absolutely beautiful in every way. Her family learned of her death through a news report on the radio. It was a shock. There were no words to express what everyone was going through. I was like most of us and learned of the accident and deaths on the radio as well. There was just something about the monotone of the news caster, "An Owen County family and their babysitter were...." I don't know if you have ever encountered such news or a loss like this before? Throughout our lives there are simply moments when consoling one another is simply impossible. I have witnessed the responses to both good and bad news over the years. Good news is always easy. It's when we must find the words to try to explain why something happened, or to express our grief, that sometimes silence is the only response. Scripture does exactly this on more than one occasion. We are left with our own conclusions. When the Disciples finally regroup after witnessing Christ's death, there is silence. While on the cross, Christ relinquishes his mother to another, and shares, "This is your son. This is your mother." And then silence. The woman at the well is told to "go and sin no more." And silence. Adam and Eve eat of the forbidden fruit and are cast from the perfect garden. And then there is silence. Time tells the response. However, in that moment when there is overwhelming grief or circumstances, the silence that we embrace involves the overwhelming embrace by God. I wish I could say that I knew the appropriate response or words to the times when words are stolen by the circumstance. But I don't. What I can hope is that in these moments, you find that the embrace of Christ is felt. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him." ~ Luke 10: 34
The story of the "Good Samaritan" reminds us that caring for one another has many different descriptions. Within this story, the one person who is thought to be the less-likely to extend hospitality is the only person to stop and administer help. There is a difference between caring or someone and curing that person. Caring for someone is the actual act of being, suffering with, feeling with, and at times, crying out with. It is somehow responding in a way that creates a bond. It is also recognizing in one another our own "humannness" and that like all of God's creation, we are vulnerable and mortal. When we make caring for one another our first concern, then cure can be received as a gift. One thing is certain, we are not always able to find a cure for what the person is going through, however, we can show up and care. To care for one another is the embodiment of Christ in and for one another. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." ~ Galatians 5:22
There is something about spring that I love, and that is seeing the fruits of a cold winter. Living along the Gulf, winter life is much different than what I experienced as a child growing up in Indiana. The long, cloudy, and often dark days, with wind that was both dry and harsh, would often leave my skin red and chapped if not covered. The many layers of clothing that we would put on prior to going out, would make even a short walking distance a struggle. Then there was taking everything back off once you arrived at your destination! I can remember getting on the school bus. The first few steps would be slushy, as previous passengers upon boarding, would kick off snow and ice. The handrails were often smooth and shined from glove-covered hands. It wasn't until that you were mid-bus that you could feel the warm air of heaters, often clattering with each acceleration of the bus, from under the seats near the back of the bus. Because my sister and I were among the earliest on the route to be picked up, many of us could still see our breath, even while sitting on the bus, until we had reached the first few miles. For me, watching hyacinth, crocus, daffodil and tulips begin to emerge was something I couldn't wait to see, especially if the winter had been extremely long. There is something about seeing just a hint of green coming forth from ice and snow, that was nearly transparent from the spring thaw, and dripping with a winter dew. The first sign of a tulip often was the tip of a leaf, encircled by a thin layer of brown, like the outer layer of an onion, that could no longer hold it. Like so many of us who experience challenges, we each possess something that cannot be contained. Such things as peace, hope and love are innate characteristics, that when God stirred from within, cannot help but burst forth. For me, I am moved by those who have experienced the harsh realities of life, and through those life encounters suddenly find a way to break out and begin anew. To bloom, so to speak. For there is really nothing that prevents the love and joy of God from being encountered. Even on the darkest of days, Christ found a way to proclaim "it is finished," announcing the end to his own pain and suffering, and to be released. Nothing prevents any of us from proclaiming the same! Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 My sister, Laura, my Mamaw Wilkes, and I the last time we visited her and my grandfather prior to her death. "But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him." ~ Luke 15:20
Have you ever been embraced by arms that made you feel absolutely welcomed and safe? As a child, I was blessed by the arms of family members that were open to me, and made me feel that way. However, no pair of arms made me feel that way more than the arms of my grandmother. Mamaw Wilkes, as we called her, was a person who paid attention to fine details. An artist, she sewed magnificent pieces, painted beautiful pictures, and offered a home of hospitality that any stranger would feel welcomed. Even though it has nearly been 40 years since I last knew those arms, to this day, if I smell Jergen's hand lotion, I think of her. Funny how that works. There was something about running to greet her, and her arms embracing, and always being told, "I'm proud of you," and believing these words to be true, even when I knew that not everything in my life was always good. I have to believe that the son who returns home after making a mess of things in his life, was greeted and felt worth, even after all he had done and experienced. For those of us who have experienced arms that embrace when we have known hurt, sadness, disappointment or failure, they are the very thing that doesn't just embrace our wounds, but they are healing. I have been asked many times why I use the phrase, "Stay in God's grip!" I guess it's because I want us each to know that embrace. To be reminded that when we experience the presence of the arms of God, that there is a sense of wholeness. When we hear the words, "I'm proud of you," we somehow take the things that world has taught or told us, and relinquish the power they have over us. That in a moment, we see ourselves as God sees and knows us to be. It's knowing that everything will somehow be alright. For me, it's not necessarily going out an making a mess of things, returning home to a party, and a disgruntled sibling. It is a story that we all can relate. It's knowing arms that love, and hands that hold, when we need them. I'm thankful for the human hands that have held me, and the arms of God that hold me! Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "Though the mountains be shaken, and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken, nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the Lord, who has compassion on you. ~ Isaiah 54:10
I remember as a young child we would attend a newly created guitar mass in Indianapolis where my mom, sister and I were living. It was the "new" thing and was thought to be contemporary for the church. During this service there would be discussions about the Holy Spirit and how God's love was unconditional. I understand now that this was the charismatic movement being ignited in the church, and I was a witness to people exploring spirituality for the first time. For me, I loved the songs, and the words, "Here I am Lord," taught me to listen for God's voice. It was at this age that I first understood that God's love was unconditional. Having had parents that had just went through a divorce, there wasn't a lot of talk about unconditional love in our home. It was important for me to hear about God's presence, that God would never abandon me, and that God's love for me would never change. God does not say, "I love you, if ..." There are no "ifs" in God's heart. God's love for us does not depend on what we do or say, on our looks or intelligence, or on our success or popularity. God's love for us began while still held within our mother's womb and will continue to exist when we have released our final breath. God's love is not bound by time or circumstances. One thing I have discovered through God's unconditional love, is that although the love is everlasting, our daily expressions and actions concern God. They have to. As a father who loves my own children, there are times I become concerned by their words or actions. It's natural to want good things for them. God's love for us wouldn't be real if God didn't care. To love without condition does not mean to love without concern. God desires to enter into relationship with us and wants us to love God in return. To enter into an intimate relationship with God without fear, trusting that we will receive love and always more love, is truly what it means to love and be loved unconditionally. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else." ~ 1 Thessalonians 5: 15
Thomas Merton, was an American Catholic writer and mystic. A Trappist monk of the Abbey of Gethsemani, Kentucky, he was a poet, social activist, and student of comparative religion. His real journey began when he stepped off a bus in downtown Louisville, Kentucky and had an epiphany that all the people he saw were his brothers and sisters and that he loved each one. (Of course there is much more to Merton, but this is one of many wonderful things he shares about his life.) Have you ever considered this to be a fact about the Kingdom of God? That every person you encounter is a brother or sister? It's kinda interesting, especially when you hear of so much conflict, and witness such awful things we seem to do to one another. I told a friend the other day when someone remarked, "God has a special place for people like that..." I remarked, "Yes God does, they become the greeters at the Pearly Gates of heaven and welcome you in." Being family, or where I'm from we call them "kin" is just short of the word kind. Being kind to one another is a human attribute families often attribute to one another. At least I hope that's the case. To be kind is to reach out to one another in a kindred spirit and to see each other as part of the family of God. The great challenge is this: All people, whatever their color, religion, or sex, belong to humankind and are called to be kind to one another, treating one another as brothers and sisters. There is hardly a day in our lives in which we are not called to this. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 God walks among us, fragmented, wounded, and seeking wholeness. While we ask, "Who is our neighbor?"
We are reminded in the story of the good Samaritan that our neighbor, especially in today's world, can be much different than we are. Broken? Perhaps. LOVED... YES! When did we see You, Lord? God of the Forsaken - Reflection from under a bridge while thinking of the footsteps of Christ - TODAY My God! My God, why have you forsaken us – Forsaken us in the painful groans of the crucified! In Christ's miserable helplessness, We are even more helpless, suffering by the million and dying alone. My God! The nails that pierced my Lord, cruelly surely also pierced humanity; The stares from Calvary’s spectators are ours: The unspoken doubt that all ends in a silent cry, empty of light and love. My God! That my Lord’s life should end, watched by crowds filled with rejection. Loved only by a terrified few watching in fear, leaves us all in shock and despair. My God! Into that cold stone tomb fall our best desires; The visions of our youth succumb to dark shadows, and even in rebellious desperation in the darkness sobs. Dear God! On that darkest of Fridays You did not forsake us! Not Jesus, nor any other desolate child of humanity – That day You entered all our forsakedness, tasting for Yourself the flavor of death shaping the valley of the shadow to become a pathway of hope. We praise you, O God! We proclaim You to be Lord! Hated and rejected, One of sorrow and grief great and marvelous are Your works! Wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities, God is with us! Hallelujah! Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 "He reveals the deep things of darkness and brings deep shadows into the light." ~ Job 12: 22 How can we take what troubles us and turn that into something positive? I think all of us understand what it means to have times when we feel powerless. Or that there are goals that we begin to realize we will never complete. I have always hated "bucket" lists. It's one thing to have goals, or things you hope to complete before the end of life. It's another thing when you realize that the list will never be fulfilled and then find you are remorseful because the goals will go unmet. Being realistic with life is something that we are all challenged to accept. Years ago Reinhold Niebuhr penned the "Serenity Prayer" "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at a time; enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His Will; that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him forever in the next. Amen."** Instead of creating bucket lists that can become unwelcomed guests creating anxiety, perhaps it's an opportunity for healing our hearts that seem to be driven. Our restlessness calls us to look for the true inner peace that comes with accepting. There is a lot of anxious energy in anxiety. When that energy can be directed toward loving well, we can transform not only ourselves but even those who might otherwise become the victims of our own drivenness. This takes patience, but it is possible. Praying that the peace that surpasses all understanding becomes present in our hearts. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 **The Serenity Prayer is the common name for a prayer authored by the American theologian Reinhold Niebuhr (1892–1971). The best-known form is: God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, And wisdom to know the difference. Niebuhr, who first wrote the prayer for a sermon at Heath Evangelical Union Church in Heath, Massachusetts, used it widely in sermons as early as 1934 and first published it in 1951 in a magazine column. The prayer spread both through Niebuhr's sermons and church groups in the 1930s and 1940s and was later adopted and popularized by Alcoholics Anonymous. "By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures." ~ Proverbs 24:3-4
Our ability to love one another often involves "mercy" and "sacrifice." As we struggle to sometimes even love ourselves, we find it even harder when applying this to others. How does God do it? The patience that God demonstrates makes me realize just how loving God can be. The tragedy of our life involves the times when I am not patient enough to realize God is working something out in God's time, and I expect more. Today I pray that God gives me the wisdom to wait upon the Lord. God of the Current... God of discovery and re-creation, help me to know that there will indeed be times of wandering, but in my wandering lead me to green meadows; I understand that there are times of darkness but while in that darkness, I know that there will also be the dawn; that in my heart which seeks You through my whole being will begin to flow a river washing over the valleys of my soul; and that I will journey wet from the experience when again I find that I am wandering. Stay in God's grip! G. Todd Williams (c) 2017 Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea-- the LORD on high is mighty. ~ Psalm 93:4
Have you ever felt like the world is crashing in all around you? There are days when things can seem to be all-consuming, and for any of us, no matter how seasoned a swimmer we may seem to be as we maneuver the waters of the world with it's problems, sometimes we can feel as if we are drowning. The power of God, according to the Psalmist, "Is mightier than the thunder of great waters." I love sitting along the shoreline of the Gulf. I have a few favorite places on Galveston Island where the jetty joins the sea with the land. The huge granite stones, set there nearly a century ago, invite waves of all sizes to crash, creating sounds of thunder as they meet one another. It can be both a place for meditation and energy for those who sit, watch and listen. Christ serves as the One who is available, like the jetty, to reach out and embrace when the waves come crashing in around us. However, we must recognize that even the jetty has safe boundaries. It is the choice of the those who wander out, exploring, and sometimes nearly being washed away, only to learn that the safest place is still remaining close to the shore. May the mighty hand of hold hold you safe from the crashing waves of this world. Stay in God's grip! 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
|