Eating the Elephant

Bishop Desmond Tutu once said,  “The best way to eat and elephant is one bite at a time.”

I have to be reminded quite often that all the “elephants” we face in our immediate future can be dealt with, one “bite” and one day at a time.  My friends who are in recovery all will testify that the only way they handle the gargantuan challenge of staying sober is by doing it (with lots of help from God and their friends) one day at a time. I might even break that down a little further  to “one moment at a time,” (or even, "one bite at a time!")

So often we co-opt our present for the sake of imagined fears. Many times, (in my case, especially) our main fear is the fear of failure.  As we encounter challenges our doubts cause us to question our ability to succeed.  Questions like: "Can I be organized enough?" "Am I disciplined enough?" "Do I have enough follow-through?" "Am I faithful enough to be a leader?" often plague those of us called to do the seemingly huge tasks set before us as leaders.

I know that If I stopped at those questions, however, I would be sunk before the ship even takes to the challenging seas spread out before me! 

Scripture is refreshingly familiar with the human propensity for anxiety. Paul says, in his letter to the Phillippians  (who apparently were a very anxious bunch!):

“Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all of your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks. Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.”  (4:6-7, CEB)

Jesus also tells us, in Luke 12:22-25:

“Therefore, I say to you, don’t worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. There is more to life than food and more to the body than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither plant nor harvest, they have no silo or barn, yet God feeds them. You are worth so much more than birds! Who among you by worrying can add a single moment to your life?” (CEB)

God recognizes that to be human is to worry, and yet God also confirms that worry is a waste of time. What a relief that God understands our preoccupation with the future!

I am finding a healthy reliance on some of the “old stand-bys” of Anglican religious practice like The Daily Office (Morning, Noon and Evening prayer and Compline) , Lectio Divina (sacred reading) and Centering Prayer are proving to be very helpful. Even people in other traditions vastly different from our own  are beginning to recognize that our form of Daily Prayer is a healthy way to allow God to help us with stress and anxiety.

Peter Scazzero, an evangelical pastor, writes in his book, “Emotionally Healthy Spirituality,” that:

“The Daily Office and the Sabbath…. offer us a rhythm so powerful that they anchor us from whatever catastrophic blizzard that may be blowing in our lives so we can feel the rope (that is, God himself) and make our way home…” (pg. 156).

I encourage you, as you face challenges that seem “elephantine” here at Incarnation and in your lives to begin handling them first by stopping, praying and (finally) knowing that these challenges can be handled “one bite at a time.”  The more that we rely on prayer, God’s word, and the love of our community, the less anxious we feel (and the more “elephants” we consume!)

Walking the Way: My Holy Land Experience

The Author in Jerusalem

A blog post from Sylvia Hutchings:

When asked to talk about my experience to the holy land, I was puzzled as to what  I could say in short form. I felt I should narrow it down to what I was seeking and what I got from the trip. I believe I had a spiritual awakening that made me closer to God. I have since given up control and truly feel that God is in control. I have replaced fear with faith and now believe faith and fear can not occupy the same space.

The trip went to Dubai, Oman, Jordan, Israel, Egypt and Greece.

My fascination in taking the trip was the leg to the holy land at Easter. To take the walk that Christ took for us  Via Dolorosa (the way of grief)

• Prior to going:

        1. I needed a change in my life

        2. I needed something to take me out of my comfort                 zone

        3. a spiritual connection

        4. an intimacy with God.

        5. a barometer  to measure my faith

to that extent I had tried

• Joining:

        1. bible study

        2. vestry person   

        3. priest class

        4. bible reading

        5. Praying on my knees.

Through all of this I felt something was missing. I felt I did not have the closeness with  God that I have seen in other people. The true faith and belief that what ever happens they had given it to God and they had trust that God would and could handle it.  God has always been in my life. But if I would have to say what I felt I was missing was this type of faith.

This trip was planned over a year and a half ago. Three months before the trip I learned that I needed a total hip replacement. my choices were:

• cancel trip
• have surgery before the trip.  (But, I couldn't rehab in time.)
• take the trip in pain.

as we know I  took option 3..... go in pain.

The group that I was traveling with was 78 in number and was very helpful and mindful of my limitations. Dubai, Oman and Jordan were enjoyable, and I did all the touristy things in these countries.

Then came Israel and the Holy Land and taking the walk that Christ took for all of us when he paid  the price for our salvation. I felt that if I was going to have a connection, perhaps this was the perfect time and the perfect place. We were divided into groups and each of us went on the walk on one of three days. I went on the last day. Each day, members of the daily group would meet up with me and tell me about the terrain of the walk. They related to me that this was not going to be easy for me- in fact, many said, it may even prove to be impossible. The terrain is rocky and  hilly and the day we were there was Greek Orthodox Easter, which made it even more of an issue.

The night before the walk, my room mate asked me what was I going to do. My answer was, “I didn't come this far  not to try.” Somehow I knew I was not going to fail.

The next day, with a plenty of Percocet (and my cane) ,our group

headed for the walk that Christ took for all of us. Our Israeli

guide took me aside and told me the terrain was rough and hilly

and  that it was going to be crowded. He also said that could not  hold up the group just for me. Perhaps I needed to think about staying on the bus  when we got there. My response was that  I didn't come this far not to try.

I would like to interject that in this region only 10% of the population are Christians. So, for the Israeli guide this was a tourist attraction and did not have the same meaning that it had for me.

Little did anyone know that the night before I had prayed that

my trip would not be in vain. I wanted to take this walk.I

needed to take this walk.Maybe I would find the intimacy I was seeking. Maybe the void would be filled with something..... (hopefully, faith).

As Christ said in Matthew 17:20  "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you."

Surprisingly, to me my hip was less painful that day than any

day of the trip. Yes, the hills and the terrain were rough but

because of the crowds nobody could hurry through the course.

This gave me time to catch up to the waving flag of our guide. I could rest through the guide's explanation of the stops. For instance,  there is a hand print on a wall representing where Christ stumbled. Again, we paused at Veronica’s veil (station 7) and when Jesus faltered and the man from Cyrene called Simon was petitioned to picked up the cross for Jesus. I was so into what  God gave all of us that day that the pain of my hip was not in the forefront.

When we arrived at the square where the cross was raised ( no pictures were allowed) there was not a dry eye among us. Our Israeli guide came over and said I didn't think you would make

it. I said I didn't think I wouldn't.  I felt full of God's presence in a way I had never felt before. I felt  I was touched with the holy spirit. Most importantly, I realized that religious feeling doesn't arise from going to church or reading the bible but from interior experiences, either of great joy or of staggering pain. I felt I needed both the pain of my hip and the joy of a spiritual experience to feel closer to God. It was without a doubt a life changing experience for me. I discovered faith and had a spiritual awakening.

Living for Christ represents that exact sort of humbling that  "I" needed in order to die my old conceited self.  (Yes, I use the word conceit. The conceit came in that I thought  I was in control).

It has been 3 months since I had my hip replacement surgery. Praise the Lord I am doing well. But, the day before I was to leave  for the Middle East I got a call saying that my mammogram did not look good and I that needed to have it repeated. I did not have time to go before leaving so I postponed the repeat until after my trip. I repeated the mammogram to learn that it still did not look good and I needed a needle breast biopsy. (This took place 6 days before my hip replacement, so I had to wait again until I had the surger, went to rehab for 3 weeks and went home.) I had the biopsy. Thank God, the biopsy was benign. Now that I can turn and move more I noticed a dark spot that look like it could have been a melanoma on the side of my foot. So off I go to the dermatologist for another biopsy. She tells me that nevi (another name for moles) usually do not appear past the age of 35. So, this doesn't make me feel good because- Hello! I am past 30 years! So, I had the biops,  and it was a nevus. However, now I see a dermatologist once a year.

Earlier, I said that you have to  let go of fear and replace it with faith. When I was in the Middle East people all around me were doubting my ability to walk 2 miles. When I elected to take the trip there were people who said I should postpone my trip. I wanted  to move forward with the trip in spite of my hurting hip. I felt something was drawing me to the Middle East at this time in my life and I needed to go.... As scared as I was, the hot bed of the Middle East was not a deterrent. In the time I was in the Middle East-19 days- I had a spiritual awakening. I came to believe that walking in faith replaces living in fear. I knew I would complete the walk that Jesus took. I knew when I came home that my surgery would go well even though Jeff ( my son) needed to return  home to North Carolina and that  Joan (my daughter) works every day. I felt with the 2 cancer scares that what ever I had to do, I was not doing it alone. God would and did pull me through. If I had breast cancer and had to take chemo, so be it. I would not be alone.

I felt terribly tired, weak and vulnerable  after surgery, but God sent some angels because each time I opened my eyes and had a need I had a willing smiling face. All my needs were met without me interfering. I had an inner peace that all was well and I had Jesus holding my hand then, now,  and always.

I don't know where this new found faith and awakening will take me. I know it will not be where I want to go but where I am led. Giving up control is a relief. Having faith puts many fears to rest

I once read an explanation of  the simplisticity of faith. What if the meek really do inherit the earth? What if the truth was simple, so that everyone could grasp it and not complex so that you needed a Master's degree? Maybe the truth can be perceived through an organ other than the brain and that wasn't that what faith was all about?

Faith is a no cancel contract signed by God.