When you were growing up, what kinds of things did you wish for? Did you wish for good grades, did you wish the acne to disappear from your face, or did you wish that you could take back some words you thoughtlessly hurled at someone in your class? What’s that quote, “wishing doesn’t make it so?” No, to get good grades or to have a clear complexion or to resolve the hurt your words caused, you and you alone have to take action. Your wishes, if they can be granted at all, require you to act.
But then of course, even if you study hard, wash your face three times daily or apologize to the person cut down by your words, your wishes still may not come true. It’s a fifty/fifty chance that your wishes will prevail. It all depends on you and even that may not sufficient. Wishes being fulfilled are no sure foundation on which to stake your future.
What about hoping? As an adult what do you hope for? Do you hope that there really is an afterlife, do you hope that all people will be treated with justice and compassion, or do you hope that your employer doesn’t declare bankruptcy, leaving you out of work with no pension to fall back on? These hopes are not affected by your ability to bring them about on your own.
Hoping requires that we consider the three concepts of Expectation, Assurance, and Trust. As an illustration of how to encounter hope, let me use the example of your employer’s ability to stay in business and keep you employed.
What goes through your mind when a thunderstorm suddenly rages outside, and in an instant, you are left in darkness as all the lights go out? No candles, no flashlights, just the darkness.
In response to a teacher friend of mine who asked the question, “what inspires you Jon?” I offered the following answer. I walk into my downstairs office. Closing the French doors, I light a stick of incense and sit down. I close my eyes and take some deep breaths. It is then I am reminded that I am surrounded on three sides by walls of books and other sundry items. The fourth wall is a very large bay window looking out into my neighborhood. As I turn my chair to the left, the books on that wall form an eclectic collection of titles. Dictionaries, WordPress resources, biblical and spiritual resources, books written by some of my favorite authors, and “how to” books fill those shelves. Also on those shelves are artifacts and gifts given to me by family and friends to remind me of a particular person or moment in time. Chief among those treasures is an oversized hour glass full of sand, a thirty-minute supply, that a parishioner gave me to use as I rehearsed my weekly sermons. This good natured gift was to remind me that when the sand had run out I should stop talking. Every time I turn it over, all I think about is the Wizard of Oz. When the Wicked Witch’s hourglass was empty… On the shelves, there are pictures of my favorite fly fishing spots in Colorado and Wyoming and even a few pictures of fish I actually caught. Every once in a while, I must show proof of the veracity of tales that I tell.
Most every day I hear from former church members (remember if you will that I was a pastor in my last life) who still seek my advice, not as their pastor, but as someone they can turn to who they trust. That trust is important to me. The overriding reason I would like to blog is to offer a safe place for folks to ask and answer questions and to read the questions and answers of others. I realize that some folks would prefer anonymity. That will be an issue of importance to me as I plan the blog’s functionality. I would imagine that in the beginning, till folks figure out the mechanics of the blog and experience the exchange of questions and answers, I will blog on general topics I know from past experience are concerns most folks encounter. I would hope to provide resources and links to other sites I know that offer specific assistance for issues outside of my comfort zone or expertise. So, my blog would also serve as a clearinghouse of sorts. In short, I want to blog to maintain the relationships I have built over the years and hopefully, as word gets out, to attract new folks to a safe place where people’s questions will be handled with care and compassion.
I feel energy vibrations. I can walk into a house and know within five minutes if it is a safe house or a house that is quietly whispering “get out.” And if I hear “get out,” I linger. I have experienced that the voices aren’t there to overwhelm or harm me, the energy is not there as good or bad, but it is there to act like a cattle prod to shock me into confronting a place I would rather avoid.