… watching for the brushstrokes of God
Into a world which needed you
My wish for you
Is that you continue
Continue
To be who and how you are
To astonish a mean world
With your acts of kindness
Continue
To dare to love deeply
And risk everything
For the good thing
Continue
~ excerpts from Maya Angelou Poem
Where do you need to hear “continue”?
Your story is not just a shallow pool collecting a little rain here and there from what maybe-could’ve-should’ve been. Your story is a sea, weighted with mystery, and wave after wave it reveals more and more, no matter the opportunities you missed or left behind on the shore. ~Morgan Harper Nichols
What does it reveal to you?
In the story of the burning bush God said, “I have seen the misery of my people who are in Egypt. I have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings and I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land…” Exodus 3:7-8
How does God see, hear, know about you, and is near? What will God do for you? How do you listen for God’s promise?
When day comes we ask ourselves,
where can we find light in this never-ending shade?
…
We’ve learned that quiet isn’t always peace
And the norms and notions
of what just is
Isn’t always just-ice
…
When day comes we step out of the shade
aflame and unafraid
The new day blooms as we free it
For there is always light
if only we’re brave enough to see it,
if only we’re brave enough to be it.
~ Amanda Gorman, excerpts from Inauguration Poem 2021
Are you brave enough?
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” Martin Luther King Jr.
How do these words resonate within you?
“My father always used to say, “Don’t raise your voice. Improve your argument.” Good sense does not always lie with the loudest shouters, nor can we say that a large, unruly crowd is always the best arbiter of what is right.” ― Desmond Tutu
How do you speak up in light of yesterday’s happenings?
With the Eyes of the Heart 