Lisa Helene

love this St. John Chrystostom quote… “Everywhere, no matter where you find yourself, you can erect an altar to God in your heart by means of prayer.”

I hope I can live as well as this 94 year old blogger!

Not to contribute to John Pavlovitz’s server issues, but his entire blog is very worth reading: John Pavlovitz. You may not agree with everything he says about white privilege or sexual assault, but his writing is thoughtful and interesting.

The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ | May 28/29, 2016 Fr. Brian Zumbrum’s homilies and reflections are posted weekly at Leaven in the World. To see the archive of all his posts,…

Source: HOMILY: Blessed, Broken & Poured Out

Third Sunday of Easter | April 9/10, 2016 Fr. Brian Zumbrum’s homilies and reflections are posted weekly at Leaven in the World. To see the archive of all his posts, just click here: Salesian Sermo…

Source: HOMILY: Crazy in Love

Ok, we can’t have this everyday, and we didn’t get it here in the DC metro area until after the morning rain washed away the detritus of our very windy week. Look at all the shades, the deep blues, the brighter shades between the clouds… there are so many blues to imbibe with your eyes outside.

We’re scheduled for a fierce winter chill and possibly a windstorm later tonight but in the meantime everyone is out enjoying our amazing beautiful weather, dogs and children especially. After living in California for nearly two decades, I took blue skies for granted but Virginia’s variable weather has made me more grateful.

Writers and artists have deployed many metaphors and poetic approaches to express the “perfect blue sky day” and the many things it makes us yearn for and celebrate. Some prefer their skies perfectly clear and vibrant. Others will take any peek of blue behind the clouds. Me, I like a good mix of both as you can see in the photo above of the sky outside my window.

The Johnny Nash classic I Can See Clearly Now sums up what seems to be a universal feeling about this kind of day.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FscIgtDJFXg]

I confess: I love storms. They are an astounding embodiment of God’s awesomeness. Yes, things get destroyed, trees fall, rivers get re-routed, but God is right there through it all. Whatever the outcome, he walks with us, loves us, comforts us.

We cannot be an Easter people if we aren’t grateful for the Cross, and our own crosses, the storms of our lives. Sometimes God whispers, sometimes he roars, but always he Loves. I’m convinced that he uses storms to draw us closer to him, to convince our hearts that we can trust in him, to open us to greater possibilities than we will ever imagine on our own. He sends angels and helpers to us, often in disguise. He turns the unexpected challenge into a blessing. 

I don’t always like walking through the wet, windy, messy storm of life, but I try to be grateful for the opportunity to grow closer to God. A good storm reminds me to pray, “thy will, not mine, be done.”