Spiritual Practice: Obedience, Pt. 3

Normally, I would tie the spiritual practice of the month to the focus passage for the week, and in some ways, what I'm about to share does tie in in that the people in the gospel story for this week showed up with an expectation, with a hope, with faith. But today's sharing is much more personal. Today, I'm headed out for two retreats: the first is a Mission Madness Workshop at Belk Park in Wood River. For three years, we worked side by side with local agencies at least twice a month to support their work in the community and to offer our embodied prayer through mission work. We have continued that work in the last year remotely, working in our homes, checking in via Zoom, and it has been good, but we long to be back together in person and to work alongside those agencies again. It is hard, with varying policies in place during the transition and folks in different places with comfort levels around vaccinations for various reasons. We are excited to be able to work together outdoors to keep our commitments to those working diligently in our community for those who are in need. Showing up in whatever way one can to do what God has called us to do is obedience.  

The second retreat is a Prayer Art Retreat at Von Dell Gallery & Studios, also in Wood River. I have one person registered. One. It takes me back to five years ago ... four years ago ... even three years ago when I was working hard to get A Place of Grace off the ground. I can't count the hours I spent alone waiting for someone to come or the number of retreats I led with one participant. After a year of COVID, it feels like I'm starting all over when I had literally just gotten this thing off the ground. I'm not the only one. Small business owners/ministry leaders such as myself all over the world are struggling with the same challenges: How do we welcome with hospitality those who are feeling anxious about being out and in group settings? How do we combat Zoom-fatigue, particularly in weather that lures people into their yards vs their dining room tables or offices? I don't have the answers to those questions. Like everyone else, I'm trying my best to figure it out. But obedience to this call, obedience to the One who has remained faithful through this challenging time, requires that I show up.

It would have been easy to stay home today, to decide it wasn't worth loading my van to the gills to move from one thing to the other and unload and reload multiple times. So easy. But obedience is not about taking the easy path. Obedience is about showing up. Obedience is about loving our neighbors and doing our best to provide safe spaces for them to share in community. Obedience is about proclamation of the Word and the shelter and nurture of humankind. So today, I'm showing up, and like the father of the dying girl and the woman who has been bleeding for years, I am trusting God will be present ... that God will provide ... that God will heal what is broken. Where is obedience calling you to show up this week?