Come and find the quiet center in the crowded life we lead,
find the room for hope to enter, find the frame where we are freed: Clear the chaos and the clutter, clear our eyes that we can see all the things that really matter, be at peace, and simply be. I love this song. I first became aware of it when Pastor Rod Lyon began serving Pleasant Dale, Denton, Malcolm and Raymond UMCs. He introduced it to us as a song during worship to prepare our hearts and still our souls for listening and sharing with God. Every Sunday we would sing these words, from the first of three verses. And I came to love it! So much so that I have continued to have us sing it on Sunday mornings all these years. It serves as an anchoring reminder to stop all that we are doing, for some moments at least, in order to center ourselves. In God’s presence. In the universe. In order to focus on that which matters most. In order to be at peace in the world. In order to be. Listening to the news for any length of time can add to our chaos and clutter. President Trump is planning to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jung Un again, this time in Vietnam. What outcome might we expect this time? We learn that an actor has allegedly staged his own mugging. For what purpose? We hear that the Mueller investigation may be completed soon. Can we believe it? God, help us to clear this and other chaos and clutter from the crowded lives we lead. Gun violence. Poverty. Mental illness. Abuse that is physical, emotional, spiritual, sexual. Addiction of drugs, alcohol, sex, food, work. Neglect of children, aging parents and elders, animals, natural resources. Lack of empathy. Lack of understanding. Overindulgence. Self-centeredness. Bitterness. As sisters and brothers in Christ gather in St. Louis this weekend from The United Methodist Church around the world, I pray that the Spirit moves through the General Conference in a mighty way and assists them in listening to and hearing one another, in speaking truth in love, in discerning God’s voice among the human. And, in voting, I pray for the delegation to be able to focus on those things that really matter.Grace and peace … --Pastor Pat
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