The Interconnection of Prayer and Service

Nouwen: The Interconnection of Prayer and Service

Prayer and service: we fill the pots to the brim. Christ changes the water into wine.

“Life becomes an unbearable burden whenever we lose touch with the presence of a loving Savior and see only hunger to be alleviated, injustice to be addressed, violence to be overcome, wars to be stopped, and loneliness to be eased. All these are critical issues, and Christians must try to solve them; however, when our concern no longer flows from our personal encounter with the living Christ, we feel an oppressive weight.”

A key question arises: “Can we see Christ in the world?” The answer is, “No, we cannot see Christ in the world, but only the Christ in us can see Christ in the world.” This means that through prayer, the Christ within us opens our eyes to the Christ among us.”—Henri Nouwen in The Road to Peace (Orbis Books, 1998).

Nouwen reminds us that prayer and service can never be seen as conflicting or mutually exclusive. Prayer without action becomes powerless piety, and action without prayer degenerates into questionable manipulation.

When we pray for others, we stand in God's presence for them, just as Christ does for us. Praying for others takes us out of our heads and places the world's problems in God's presence. Nouwen reminds us that when we pray for the world's endless needs, our soul expands and brings them into God's presence. 

But we cannot embrace the world; but God can.

When we connect to God’s Presence, we are no longer victims of the fear, hatred, and violence that rule the world. In God’s Presence, we connect with the Christ within us and see the Christ in others. Our hearts of stone break, and we feel compassion as we pray for others. Our prayers are energy, pulses of Hope that connect with God’s greater energy that surrounds us.

We are filling the water pots to the brim. The wine-making is God’s. We remove the stone. “Lazarus, come forth,” belongs to God. We are the dry bones. Putting on flesh and breathing are God’s.

We are called to prayer and service together, not one or the other.

Joanna Joannaseibert.com  

Flexible Bible

Flexible Bible

“Mary Cosby used to begin her New Testament class by bending her soft-cover Bible and saying she preferred a Bible that was flexible. Then she would say, ‘The Bible is not a manual for morality but a mirror for identity.’”—Carol Martin, Bread of Life Church, “A Mirror for Identity,” InwardOutward.org, Church of the Saviour..

My first introduction to this more profound and flexible approach to Bible study came through a small group at St. Mark’s in Little Rock in the 1980s, led by Dick Moore in a room above the children’s classrooms, which we called “the upper room.” As we studied the books of the Bible, Dick reminded us that the Bible was a roadmap, not the destination. 

I think of old friends like Carole and Gary Kimmel, who were in our class and now live on the Outer Banks in North Carolina. I remember Betty and Brady Anderson well. They later became Bible translators in Tanzania, Africa. Brady was later appointed by President Bill Clinton to serve as the American Ambassador to Tanzania. They taught me so much. Together, we uncovered new insights from the Bible that had never occurred to us.

As we saw God present in the lives of people in the Bible who were like us—with gifts and faults—we also became more aware of the Holy Spirit at work in our own lives and in the lives of others. We saw that the Holy Spirit's relationship did not end with first- and second-century Christians; instead, the Spirit continues to lead us today. If we believe only in a strict, literal translation of the Bible, we deny the Holy Spirit's continued presence in our lives today, which will bring us more good news. 

I share with you the Bible I received from Bishop Maze twenty-five years ago, at the time of my ordination. It is also flexible.

Joanna. https://www.joannaseibert.com/daily

Nature as Healer

Nature as Healer

“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play and pray, where Nature may heal, cheer, and give strength to body and soul alike.”—John Muir.

A Forward Day by Day writer recently reminded us of John Muir’s quote, one of our country’s most renowned naturalists and conservationists. Muir played a pivotal role in establishing the National Park Service and the Sierra Club. In spiritual direction, we ask, “Where do you find meaning or feel closest to God?” The most common answer is “outdoors in nature.”

In photosynthesis, trees transform light energy into chemical energy. I believe the trees, the sun, the sky, the ocean, and the mountains also convert some energy within us when we are outdoors among them. As a result, we see beauty alive and well, whereas before we could only see ugliness. We realize that there is something greater than ourselves, something that transcends our own problems. It is there for us. We do not have to pay for it. It is a gift.

My experience is that when I have difficulty sleeping because of physical, mental, or spiritual pain, it helps to go outside or sit by a window to watch the sunrise in the morning, even on a cloudy day. The sunrise and the world outside can be a constant reminder of a new opening, a new beginning—the dawning of a fresh perspective. I am reminded of John McQuiston’s book, Always We Begin Again, a modern version of the Rule of Benedict.

Muir stands out for making us aware of nature's marvels, particularly the wilderness, while also reminding us of our stewardship of this gift. 

Consider spending time in nature and the outdoors one of our most crucial, lifesaving, and life-renewing spiritual practices and remedies—perhaps even more effective than drugs. But nature, like our own soul, also needs care and love.

Joanna https://www.joannaseibert.com/