“And the one who was seated on the throne said, ‘See, I am making all things new.’ ” Revelation 21:5a
Revelation 21:5a
“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.”
Rumi, 13th Century Sufi Mystic and Poet
Autumn is reminding us that letting go is a part of the creative process. Even so I always feel a little sad to see the leaves falling. It seems a fleeting finish to a long season of vital productivity. The leaves of the hackberry tree in my back yard have spent the summer creating rich food from carbon dioxide and water, nourishing the tree, and generating oxygen for us creatures with lungs. It has served as a climbing gym for squirrels, a sanctuary for birds, and shade for plumbago shrubs and rose mallow plants. It will soon be bare.
My daily observation of this process calls me to reflect on what has nourished, guided, and protected me over this past year. It is most surely my deepening awareness of God’s Presence. That has come of necessity! This year of challenging situations in our world has moved me to seek more closeness to God, more choices to see from God’s perspective, more commitment to act from spiritual power. The gift of experiencing conditions that are way beyond my capacity to change pushes me to a new experience of myself. It pushes me to trust God a bit more, to let God’s gifts be more profoundly real, to let moment by moment cognizance of God’s nearness touch me. I hope that you too will take time to reflect on what has nourished, guided, and protected you this year.
This transformation of our own inner experience is the activity that makes all things new. We each have a divine purpose and the divine Light needed to fulfill it. This is the Jesus Christ message. We shed attitudes, ideas, and actions that block the full radiance of that Light, releasing anything that tells us we are less than magnificent, loved, and wanted. Our Light shines brilliantly and we bring our unique wisdom into the world. What are you are ready to release so that your Light has plenty of space to gleam?
The leaves of my hackberry tree have done their summer’s work. As they fall, they are making room for the new buds that will soon be pushing their way through the bark, once again making all things new. And the unadorned branches make a stunning frame for the dazzling winter moon.
In the Love and Light of the Christ,
Rev. Anna
