Lamenting is not just complaining.  It is crying out to God/the Universe/All-That-Is in blunt confusion, anguish, anger, grief or whatever else is weighing us down…It is a structured practice of bringing emotions that sometimes feel overwhelming into the light of the Holy One. Lamenting may start with complaining, but it then moves on…

On this Inauguration Day, I find myself humming the song “Gather Us In” by Marty Haugen. You can listen to the song here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuLORIyEet4
As I listen, I find myself praying a prayer inspired by that song, and using many of the lyrics. I invite you to pray it with me. You can also use this as a pattern to pray your own prayers from favorite poems, popular songs, scriptures or hymns.

…“Grace is not magic. And Heaven will not do the work for you. Let us be very clear that Heaven never does what you can do yourself…. Heaven does what you cannot do and steps in after you’ve exhausted your own resources…. So when someone says, ‘Give me some Grace because I don’t want to do this,’ the answer is no, no, no, no, no. You’ll get to Grace…. Heaven doesn’t make life easy on you because you are frightened or because you don’t want to do something. Heaven directs you to do what you need to do because you’re frightened…” (Caroline Myss)

December is a time of waiting.  In the Christian tradition, Advent is a season of waiting and preparation for the coming of Christ.  Even if

The idea of “self-care” can sometimes feel selfish or narcissistic. But the idea of a pattern of work and rest and caring for our very

Red or blue, we look to the government to save us. Red or blue, we look to laws to save us. Red or blue, we look to leaders to save us. But….Only Love can save us….We are the help we’ve been waiting for. Let’s stop waiting.