Chasms and Bridges

 Fewer words today as this past week I bothered you twice.

Short and sweet, then.

Let the construction begin.

Winter Storms, Ice Melt, and Again With the Quarters

Good morning on Ash Wednesday!

Lent begins today and I have a story to tell. It amounts to an unexpected "Part 2" to Sunday's "A Quarter Will Do" article.

Winter weather is about to deliver a punch to many of us today. Some, not so very far away, are anticipating up to 24 inches of snow. Blizzard warnings are in effect for many and here, in NE Iowa, we have an Ice Storm Warming with up to 0.6 of an inch of ice and winds up to 45 mph.

All of this is dangerous, so if you are out and about, be very careful, please.

A Quarter Will Do

Lent begins Wednesday.
Easter falls on April 9.
We have the in-between to prepare.

Growing up, I was told that in preparation for Easter, I should give up something for Lent that I really love. This was meant to prove my sacrificial love for God. The information supplied stipulated that it could not be something like well, Asparagus. Chocolate would do, and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups would be OK, but the Brussels Sprouts are off the table - well, literally, at least in my house.

In later years, I was hearing things like making a pledge for some kind of self-improvement.  This would, of course, start with a spiritual aspect, but it would also be good if there was some personal benefit as well. I guess some were thinking that a new Gym-membership would be financially sacrificial and would take up valuable time, but hey, the abs would be awesome! 

And come to think of it, perhaps the Brussels Sprouts might work if the idea was to EAT them - sacrificial for certain, maybe even beneficial. 

We Interrupt the News

When I grew up (just this side of the dark ages), I remember how things were a bit different regarding the news. 

I remember that the St. Paul Dispatch was delivered every evening except Sunday.  I remember that the St. Paul Pioneer Press was delivered each morning including the huge Sunday edition. There was a lot of information provided by newspapers.  One of the articles I most remember was the one in 1978 that informed everybody in the city that my mother and her friends found the Winter Carnival Medallion and collected $2,500!  They went to Florida to celebrate.

I remember we had three major television channels: The National Broadcasting Company (NBC), the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS), and the American Broadcasting Company (ABC). Mostly, we gathered around one of these stations in the early evening to watch about 30 minutes of coverage. Mostly we watched a black and white tube television.

Then, my grandmother bought a color television! You can only imagine the excitement to watch cartoons (hey, I was only 5) in “living color”.  It was important that we watch every moment, and I hated missing the NBC Peacock.  I think that became my channel of choice.  It was that peacock, don’t ya’ know.

Well, maybe cartoons needed the peacock association, but the news was something different.  We watched Walter Cronkite. After all, he was “The Most Trusted Man in America.”

Sometimes, I wish we could go back to those days. 

• The days before a 24-hour news cycle. 
• The days when we made a point to see what was going on in the world and our neighborhoods. 
• The days when we could believe this most trusted man. 
• The days when there was respect, calmness, and desire to inform what happened during each day without the need to, well, I won’t even elaborate.  You already know.

A heavy sigh.

But things are different now.  I came by this quote earlier this week.

It’s hard to imagine anyone even casting a vote for the most trusted man in America anymore, let alone having a reporter on the ballot.

Now, look.  I’m not ignorant.  I know that even when I grew up, politicians and the media lied. In fact, a semi-factual historical movie called, The Post makes special note of that.  But one line in the movie continues to haunt me; “The press was to serve the governed, not the governors.”

I wonder who serves who in this world. I was going to itemize a few of the headlines to make a point here but this requires no additional exposure. 

Enough of the lead-in, already.

Today, I was listening to a sermon about prayer. The speaker acknowledges that there are a great many variations available to us when we pray. One of her favorites is to use what she called “Scriptural Prayer.”

This is done by choosing a passage, reading it slowly, and stopping frequently after a sentence or a phrase to just open your mind and heart and listen to what God might have to say. Her communal exercise used Colossians 1:9-14.

"For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you[b] to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

I played along. 
I was humbled by the thoughts which took hold.

During this 'exercise', I found that I was thinking almost exclusively about those on the other side. This is to say that I was not distracted by the details of life today but focused only on the people, especially those who have viewpoints and agendas that I find hard to understand. I noticed a desire to pray for those who thrive on anger, division, and lies.  I found the desire to pray for all of us who are misled and righteous and angry and loud. 

And yet, none of these prayers included judgments of any kind.  None of these prayers were to ‘smite’ anyone – even when sometimes I wish, never mind. 

The prayers were centered on the people God created out of love.  They were for His peace in a lacking world. I think it is time that I keep this scripture from Colossians in front of me for a while so that when I am exposed to the agenda of others, I might hinder the anger in myself and find this peace not just for myself, but for the manipulated and the manipulators – yes, all of us.

If that passage gets too long, maybe I’ll keep this one handy as well.

"Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone.  If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone." Romans 12:17-18

"And, that's the way it is."

Dance With the One Who Brung Ya'

This one started with a blog somewhere in the past that recently started to blossom.  

The original phrase from 1995 is said to be, “We’re gonna dance with who brung us.” When asked about the game's starting lineup, this was the answer given by an unknown football coach. Its meaning was, of course, the starting lineup would be staffed by the players that contributed to their success in the past.

If you start a search today, you’ll see millions of possible links as these words have been bantered about in various venues for almost 3 decades.

I just have one point, really. Sure, it’s a loyalty thing which essentially means sticking with the people that got you where you are.

But I am thinking that gratitude will surpass loyalty if you'd allow my opinion to be voiced. Even if you’ve lost touch, knowing little about them after many years, and even if they’re no longer walking this earth, this person was there for you.  At the right moment, they supplied the exact right words and actions thereby teaching you something that matters. Something which probably continues to matter.  

There could be hundreds of these people who ‘brung you’ to the dance. Bless them, every single one, Lord!

• The teacher.
• The parent.
• The co-worker or boss.
• The pastor.
• The medical professional.
• The blogger.
• The gardener.
• The plumber.
• The singer.
• The stranger
• The spouse.

Shania Twain interprets this original phrase in her own way with, 
Dance with the One That Brought You.

"You got to dance with the one that brought you.

Stay with the one that wants you.

The one who's gonna love you when all of the others go home.

Don't let the green grass fool you.

Don't let the moon get to you.

Dance with the one that brought you and you can't go wrong."

I started thinking about all those people who have made a difference in my life. I started thanking them in my head. I truly appreciate each of them. But it goes deeper. 

They have become instrumental in teaching me one more thing. The “One Who Brung ME to the dance" happens to be the Creator of this universe.  He brought me to this dance and then surrounded me with the gifts of incredible people.

I underlined some of the lyrics above. You just can't go wrong with God. 

If you feel so moved, make a list and spend a moment with gratefulness to God and to them for answering His call.

And since Valentine's Day is right around the corner, make someone aware of how grateful you are that they've stuck with you at this lifelong dance.

Credit: RowenaMarella-Daw

(The address on the email has been changed - thank you!)