Together

Letter 4345

My neighbors and me. Dwellings crowded by a crossroads. We are together on this earth, for this time.

Yet we were not born together, nor will we die together. Our paths intertwine, but in the end the ways are separate.

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How can I then know these strangers by whom I live?

I see them along the path at dusk. I know the sound of their boots.

They carry burdens and fears I cannot see. Some whisper prayers behind closed doors. Some do not.

Let me live together with these familiar strangers.

Consider:

Can I love even those I do not fully know?

Reading:

❖ “The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” — Frederick Buechner

❖ “Community is not about perfection; it is about belonging.” — Parker J. Palmer

❖“Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God.” — 1 John 4:7 (KJV)

Thank you for for reading. If this helped you today, please consider sharing it.

~B.R.

Wait a While

Letter 4344

The day, the chores, the morning call to me. I awakened already with a feeling of hurry.

Especially at this time, Lord, let me slow my movements and wait. The calling day, let it wait while I seek you. A racing heart will not bring peace.

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The field outside the window holds its breath in early light.

Lord, before I answer the day, let me be answered by you.

Consider:

Can I wait a while, and begin from peace?

Reading:

❖ “Patience is the companion of wisdom.” — Saint Augustine

❖ “Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” — Lao Tzu

❖“Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.” — Psalm 27:14 (KJV)

Thank you for for reading. If this helped you today, please consider sharing it.

~B.R.

Giving and Offering

Letter 4343

I would gladly offer a meal to any who come to my door. I would greet them with civility and cheer.

Yet none come.

Am I giving of myself if I know few will ask?

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Let me go forth, Lord, and find the ones who need what I have, and give, and give.

Let me not wait for my fellows to discover your light, but uncover the lamp and let it shine into all the dark places.

Consider:

Can I be a beacon?

Reading:

❖ “No one has ever become poor by giving.” — Anne Frank

❖ “It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.” — Khalil Gibran

❖“Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.” — Matthew 5:15 (KJV)

Thank you for for reading. If this helped you today, please consider sharing it.

~B.R.

Mechanical World

Letter 4342

Neighbors and friends live in a mechanical world of concrete and gears, hard rain and winter.

Somehow, Lord, you have given me eyes to see life: shoots pushing through sidewalk cracks, buds on late winter branches, a family of foxes under a disused car.

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Let me share what I see with my neighbors. We live in the same locale, let your miracles benefit us all.

Consider:

Can I share what I see?

Reading:

❖ “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” — Marcel Proust

❖ “Instructions for living a life: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.” — Mary Oliver

❖ “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.” — Psalm 19:1 (KJV)

Thank you for for reading. If this helped you today, please consider sharing it.

~B.R.