November 4, 2020
Beloveds,
My heart is filled with a mash up of our experiences today as we find ourselves in the unknown, the in-between, the interim. Some of us may be holding steadfast to hope, some of us may be feeling injured by the declaration of divide, some of us may be numb and disconnected or desperate for something different from what is.
I was reminded by Howard Thurman this morning that we are most encouraged and nourished by our human connections and reflections of our goodness. What I believe will nourish us most strongly today is to turn to our relationships and connections that feed us. I strongly encourage (would mandate if I could) you to reach out to the folks who truly feed you, the folks who you know can be in this moment with you and remind you of your true nature, your goodness, your Godness.
If you are in a place that is well resourced today and your personal well is feeling full I encourage you (again, would mandate if I could) to call your people, reach out and be a presence for them, remind them that they are not alone and have a shared foundation in good, in God, with you. As you are able be the Presence for as many as you can today.
For any of you who maybe don’t know where to turn, or may find nourishment in spiritual community today I invite you to join me on zoom @5pm MST so that I and others can be the presence for you and your presence may be that reminder for someone else.
We are having a multitude of experiences today and each of us deserves to be nourished and companioned in whatever is showing up.
BIPOC & LGBTQI folks are encouraged to attend.
Please say you will join us by clicking here to RSVP via email and you will be given the zoom link.
I love you so much,
Rev. Amani
*Please allow this blessing from John O'donahue to provide you a bit of nourishment in this moment.
FOR THE INTERIM TIME,
When near the end of day, life has drained
Out of light, and it is too soon
For the mind of night to have darkened things,
No place looks like itself, loss of outline
Makes everything look strangely in-between,
Unsure of what has been, or what might come.
In this wan light, even trees seem groundless.
In a while it will be night, but nothing
Here seems to believe the relief of darkness.
You are in this time of the interim
Where everything seems withheld.
The path you took to get here has washed out;
The way forward is still concealed from you.
"The old is not old enough to have died away;
The new is still too young to be born."
You cannot lay claim to anything;
In this place of dusk,
Your eyes are blurred;
And there is no mirror.
Everyone else has lost sight of your heart
And you can see nowhere to put your trust;
You know you have to make your own way through.
As far as you can, hold your confidence.
Do not allow confusion to squander
This call which is loosening
Your roots in false ground,
That you might come free
From all you have outgrown.
What is being transfigured here in your mind,
And it is difficult and slow to become new.
The more faithfully you can endure here,
The more refined your heart will become
For your arrival in the new dawn.
From "To Bless the Space Between Us" by John O'donahue