Black and White

“So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

1 Corinthians 13:13

In the last month, several events that appear to be random and unrelated have caused me to think more deeply about how I evaluate my thoughts.  In this case, the random events involved the colors black and white.  The idiom “black and white” denotes a clear choice or to be clearly defined or concrete.  In the past, I have seen others as being good or evil, a clear choice of white versus black.  But it is not always as simple as that.  In today’s society, it is hard to interpret actions as good or evil because there are so many narratives or versions of the facts.

For me, determining actions often comes down to evaluating intent.  Does someone intend to hurt or help others?   But often it can be difficult to determine intent.  Sometimes someone is careless, uninformed, blind to or ignoring other’s needs, or driven by their own pain.  This results in actions that are hurtful to others.  I have been all these things in my life.  I can only hope that with maturity, I now choose my thoughts and actions more carefully.  In evaluating other’s intentions, I also have to recognize I do not always have all the information that would allow me to reach a conclusion.  In those cases, I need to ask God to fill me with the Holy Spirit, pray, and let his plan unfold through others while remembering all of us, including me, need God’s love and forgiveness.   

The Cat in the Garden

There are few things in life more heartwarming than to be welcomed by a cat. ~Tay Hohoff

When I moved into my apartment five months ago I purchased a jigsaw puzzle of a cat in a garden.  Last week I began to piece together the puzzle while processing my thoughts about the next steps in my life.  The garden in the puzzle symbolized to me God’s work in the world and is a sign of heaven.  I was the mystic cat with the blue eyes in the garden.

This morning the symbolism of the puzzle took on a different meaning for me.   Today, my eighteen-year-old cat Buffy was called to heaven by God.  He was a very special cat, demonstrating the presence of God’s unconditional love, especially when I most needed it.  He would constantly ask to be picked up and put in my lap.  He gave me kisses when I asked for them and snuggled under the bed covers with me for hours. 

Buffy had a digestive illness for the last five years, and he always fought back to stay with me through all the visits to the vet seldom complaining about his pain and suffering.  But today I had to release him to God with the faith I will see him again and he will be healed by God.  Tonight I asked Jesus in my prayers to hold Buffy tight, heal him and join his spirit with mine in the garden. God answered my prayer. 

.

The Power of the Lord’s Prayer and Light

I wrote in my post, the Greatest Power, “Saint Anselm of Canterbury – a Benedictine monk, philosopher and Archbishop first posed, in the 11^th century, the ontological argument for the existence of God.  He argued that the greatest good is when everyone maximizes his or her talents.  Because nothing can be conceived greater than this power of greatest good and if it can exist in the mind, it (God) exists in reality.  Saint Anselm stated that omnipotence and perfect goodness do not conflict because it is the cumulative greatest power.  That is why God does not choose evil - because God being the most powerful will always choose love, which results in the greatest power and perfection.”  

With the recent election results I have been contemplating love versus evil, light versus darkness. There are times in our history when evil initially overcame love with great cost to humankind because we did not recognize and confront the darkness when it first emerged.  Those who do not reflect the power of God who is love, can become addicted to the power of darkness.  It takes great discipline that only can come from God within us, to reflect love in the face of evil.  Evil through hate and fear manifests its power by diminishing the light in others.  

In this world it is important to act from love by remaining vigilant by shining light in the darkness.  We do this by following Jesus, standing up for those who are oppressed including those who are not Christians, working for the common good, and not allowing hate and fear to prevent us from our sacred responsibilities.  The greater the number of people who practice this, the more powerful the light of love shines illuminating and extinguishing the darkness thereby establishing God's kingdom on earth. 

Matthew 6:9–13 (ESV) "Pray then like this: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.'" (For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen )