Greetings!

In her book Seven Sacred Pauses: Living Mindfully through the Hours of the Day, the late Sr. Macrina Wiederkehr speaks of “the violence many of us carry in our hearts due to a stressful, multitasking work environment.” What I infer from those words is that a frenetic and constantly driven way of being can do untold damage to one’s general and spiritual health. Sr. Macrina highlights this malady, among others, to support the imperative of sacred pauses, to keep us in touch with God and ourselves; they act as it were, to ease the pain, anguish and insanity, that seem to have become the rule rather than the exception, for too many, in our very tense world.

It is a rather tall order to say the least, this intentional engagement of pauses throughout the day; but given what seems to be the devolving into anarchy, being experienced here in Jamaica, evidenced in brazen and wanton acts of violence, even in places once considered sacrosanct, there seems no other way to regain the shattered composure, steady the erratic nerves or calm the mounting fears of an entire nation and individual members thereof.

As the previous week drew to a close, I felt a nudge towards writing something with a lighter tone…something that would perhaps engage your funny bone but alas…I doubt whether there is any decent person on this rock or in the Diaspora for that matter, who would not just want in this moment, to invoke the wrath of Almighty God. I shall speak the truth and shame the devil. I had to dig deeply and am still plumbing the depths of my spiritual moorings, to find even a modicum of whatever it is that ought to be projected at this time, instead of spewing out pure unadulterated vitriol. I wanted to command a battalion from the army of angels, to wreak vengeance upon the perpetrator[s] of yesterday’s heinous and dastardly act against a woman as she sought to worship God. So, make no mistake…living this cruciform life of love and forgiveness, even with an elasticizing of the imagination, is no easy undertaking!  In fact, such a life is possible, only by the enabling of the Holy Spirit.

Sr. Macrina’s call therefore, regarding the necessity of sacred pauses to stem the tide of ebbing sanity, cannot but be heeded! There is absolutely no other way to deal with all that is happening around, within and to us, in these differently difficult days, of pandemic and lawlessness, apart from divine grace.

To be sure, these pauses are not meant to provide magical, instantaneous cures for every ill in our lives and times; they are germane however, to our ability, in the midst…as we submit to the quiet stillness they invite, to hear the voice of the Almighty as He speaks peace to our battered souls. It is that peace…that shalom that transcends the abject nature of our circumstances while pulling us toward divine wholeness, that allows us to still know and experience joy! Romans chapter eight [The Voice], verses thirty-one and following, offer words for our pondering, as we allow the Spirit of God, to lead us through the valley shadowed by death, without cowering before evil’s repulsive presence. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+8%3A31-37&version=VOICE 

 There is much through which to wade here; we will need to let ourselves go though, and allow the gentle current of the Spirit’s strong tide, to buoy and carry us. A difficult undertaking yes…an impossible one, no! For though the waters of life roar and are troubled; the Lord of host is with us…the God of Jacob is our refuge [See Psalm 46:11]! Until next week then, hold on…no matter what. Remain in HIS grip!

Grace+