Monday, January 08, 2007
Recognize and respond
“Earth’s crammed with Heaven, and every common bush afire with God; but only he who sees takes off his shoes.” Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Have you ever heard of a blivet? It’s a word we use in our family (I don’t know if it’s a real word … but we use it nonetheless) that describes a 5 pound bag that is full of 10 pounds of stuff. For instance, when I search for the notes I made to myself on my desk I discover a blivet – 2 tons of papers on a quarter ton desktop. Baby diapers, Tupperware cabinets and plastic trash bags are might also be referred to as blivets in many circumstances. I have also discovered that for too much of the past several months, my schedule could be considered a blivet, and much like ruptured garbage bags and diapers .. that can be messy.
Some time back I borrowed a phrase that, until I shared with a friend recently, I had forgotten. The wise counsel reminds me that If I have too much to do, I am doing more than God asks of me. There is a part of our faith development that demands we accept that fact that life may appreciate our efforts, but life does not find us irreplaceable. God delights in our participation with Him in kingdom building, but our withdrawal from the task does not hamstring God. The key to our success is not that we accomplished many things, or that we accomplished good things .. but that we accomplish the right things.
And what are the right things? Those things that God lays before us. Period. Which requires that I be paying attention to what God is laying before me. Which brings me to Ms. Browning’s words, and my New Year’s resolutions, which can be summed up in two words: recognize and respond. I am determined to pay attention more keenly, because if earth is a blivet – overflowing with Heaven – then I want to see as much of it as I can. I don’t want to miss one marvel that God intends for me to enjoy. Or one prompting that He intends for me to receive. Attentiveness as an intentional habit tends to develop an innate understanding of our circumstances anyway. Which means I will operate more naturally in the realm of God’s will. Always a good thing. But recognition loses value if it is not yoked with response, so I am committed to tear down the barriers to my immediate response to God moments in my life. That will require some intentionality with respect to my time and my treasure … but a resolution without intention is nothing more than a wish.
So here’s to your ability to see the fire of God in the common bushes of your day, and to your having the good sense when you do … to take off your shoes.
Walking barefoot,
harry
Have you ever heard of a blivet? It’s a word we use in our family (I don’t know if it’s a real word … but we use it nonetheless) that describes a 5 pound bag that is full of 10 pounds of stuff. For instance, when I search for the notes I made to myself on my desk I discover a blivet – 2 tons of papers on a quarter ton desktop. Baby diapers, Tupperware cabinets and plastic trash bags are might also be referred to as blivets in many circumstances. I have also discovered that for too much of the past several months, my schedule could be considered a blivet, and much like ruptured garbage bags and diapers .. that can be messy.
Some time back I borrowed a phrase that, until I shared with a friend recently, I had forgotten. The wise counsel reminds me that If I have too much to do, I am doing more than God asks of me. There is a part of our faith development that demands we accept that fact that life may appreciate our efforts, but life does not find us irreplaceable. God delights in our participation with Him in kingdom building, but our withdrawal from the task does not hamstring God. The key to our success is not that we accomplished many things, or that we accomplished good things .. but that we accomplish the right things.
And what are the right things? Those things that God lays before us. Period. Which requires that I be paying attention to what God is laying before me. Which brings me to Ms. Browning’s words, and my New Year’s resolutions, which can be summed up in two words: recognize and respond. I am determined to pay attention more keenly, because if earth is a blivet – overflowing with Heaven – then I want to see as much of it as I can. I don’t want to miss one marvel that God intends for me to enjoy. Or one prompting that He intends for me to receive. Attentiveness as an intentional habit tends to develop an innate understanding of our circumstances anyway. Which means I will operate more naturally in the realm of God’s will. Always a good thing. But recognition loses value if it is not yoked with response, so I am committed to tear down the barriers to my immediate response to God moments in my life. That will require some intentionality with respect to my time and my treasure … but a resolution without intention is nothing more than a wish.
So here’s to your ability to see the fire of God in the common bushes of your day, and to your having the good sense when you do … to take off your shoes.
Walking barefoot,
harry
