Newsletter - June, 2004
Moses' staff, flung onto the ground, became a writhing snake; the moment's flamboyant magic exposing a deeper message: Drop the authority you've been given and it becomes a hissing serpent.Standing as we are, knee deep in a pit of vipers, it is easy enough to rail against the mess. More to the point would be to reach down and grab a slithering beast by the throat. Give it a shake and it will become a staff of authority in your hand. There is, as Mother Teresa said, always room at the bottom.
Mother Teresa picked up a dying person, her staff in time blossoming like
Aaron's, spreading the sweet odor of sanctity throughout the world. Transformed
by the light of God, the stink of decay from those left rotting on the street
morphed into a bubbling spring of love, a drink offered to a thirsty world.
I've been sipping on NO GREATER LOVE, a collection of Mother Teresa's
words wrapped in a pristine hardback. This is not a 'one greedy gulp' sort of
book, but I ought to be finished in a week or so if you want it next. $7
There is, of course, a time of endurance. The snake refuses to straighten
out, flicks it's forked tongue at you, mocking your efforts. The temptation is
to hurl it against the wall in a fit of fury and leave the mess for somebody
else to clean up. We all succumb. The best insurance is prayer. Regular
prayer; day in, day out. Prayer laced with scripture, worship, fellowship. Akin
to Roo's strengthening medicine, daily habits build endurance for the race.
Tiggers LIKE strengthening medicine; it sustains the bounce.
I'm not sure how I got from Moses to Winnie the Pooh in four paragraphs.
Tessa writes that she loved all the books about magic when she was growing
up; that's how she discovered the Narnia books, she was looking for more books
in that genre. She says she never knew they were "Christian" until she was
grown up. Two authors she mentions that are unfamiliar to me are Elizabeth
Enright (Gone Away Lake) and Edward Eager (Seven Day Magic, Half Magic).
I remember sneak reading the whole fairy tale section in school readers
during grade school. Disappointment reigned when I finished the tales and had to
plod thru the history or 'our neighborhood' section instead. Fairy tales are a
language for discussing spiritual things. One of my stories, originally
titled, "Going to Church," just won first place in the local Hans Christian
Anderson contest and has been sent on to the international competition in Italy.
Tra La Tra La. (It runs about 8 minutes and I'll perform it for your church or
group at the slightest provocation....)
LOST IN WONDER - Rediscovering the Art of Spiritual Attentiveness is going to
be a supplemental text for our 7-week Illustrated Journal Workshop. Written
by Esther de Waal, the book weaves around Benedictine and Celtic spirituality,
with lots of quotes from believers and literary types through the ages. The
writing rambles a bit, but if you've gotten thus far in this newsletter, you
can clearly cope with that! $14.95.
We're calling the workshop, DRAWING NEAR. It's all a ruse to get you settled
down for a couple of hours a week. Settled down so you can see what comes
up. Kathy Swanson, who is a wondrous painter, is leading the workshop with me.
I, of course, am the wondrous writer....lots of people left wondering.
"Huh?" 10-12:00 Thursdays beginning July 1. Let me know if you're planning to
come.
Prayer of Jabez, Left Behind, Purpose Driven Life...I'm not sure why certain
books sweep the nation. I know that as a retail establishment I'm supposed to
ride the crest of these waves, raking in the bucks, but I always seem to roll
my eyes and shake my head instead. And this isn't ONLY because Costco sells
them cheaper than we can order them. After all, a couple years later WE get
them cheaper than Costco...three stacks of Left Behind books....um....Left
Behind.
My Christian Retailing magazine exhorts me to "prepare for a resurgence of
interest in The Passion, with the soon to be released video." Some times I can
barely stand it.
Hopefully YOU are still standing. Leaning on your staff. Here's a final
quote, courtesy of word-a-day (from whence I get many of the endquotes for this
newsletter):
It is surprising what a man can do when he has to, and how little most men
will do when they don't have to. -Walter Linn
Blessings,
Alliee +