Say Yes

What a great way to wake up in the morning! 
http://vevo.ly/YkyvAM

graceless space

as i look at the childhood pictures of dear friends, my eyes brim with tears ... tears for the pain suffered as children forced into prostitution and tears for the pain suffered today — knowing there are photographs, fearing that someday the images will surface.

Child pornography is escalating. Explicit content of younger victims is becoming increasingly available and graphic. Online child pornography communities frequently trade content for free and reinforce behavior. Offenders often consider their participation a "victimless crime." — Urban Institute [read the abstract]

as i look at my sleeping grandson, my eyes brim with tears ... tears for the pain that will inevitably come into his life, the struggles, the disappointment, the hard knocks life on this earth inevitably hands us. most on my heart is grief and fear, that this baby still in diapers will likely be exposed to pornography between kindergarten and third grade. 

“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;

    I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters,
    I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
    they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
    you will not be burned;
    the flames will not set you ablaze.
For I am the Lord your God..."

— Isaiah 43:1-3 NIV excerpt

grief and fear within me, a heart hardened, graceless space

Rjw

this came true

Three years ago the aroma of toothpaste greeted my daughter as she came into my office. I imagine a quizzical look scampering across her eyebrows as her gaze came to rest on the white poster board on which I'd painted with toothpaste the words "Jesus Wept" – an illustration for my blog.

use of a toothbrush 1899 - wiki commons

That this unconventional use of oral 
care product was not so odd as to cause 
serious concern regarding my mental 
health speaks to the longevity and 
fluidity of our mother-daughter, 
mentors-friends relationship.

Today there is an added bonus, the 
exquisite discovery of the words of 
a prayer, an answered prayer:

I want to evaporate fear – caring about 
people in the moment, struggling and 
weeping beside people in distress, 
living and celebrating joy as it happens 
in my life and in the lives of those 
around me. When we put down our 
shields to share our sorrow and 
our joy with the world, Life evaporates fear. – "This" July 6, 2011 more

During the 1095 days spanning the gap between the original writing and my reading, the prayer was answered. "This" came true.

While experiencing daily the concepts of "Exclusion & Embrace" more ... while embracing the blessing of sabbatical ... while diligently focusing a great deal of time to discover, nourish and integrate Sabbath ... it is not by accident that I discover an answered prayer.

Rjw