{"id":23659,"date":"2024-04-26T10:41:07","date_gmt":"2024-04-26T14:41:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/?p=23659"},"modified":"2024-04-26T10:41:07","modified_gmt":"2024-04-26T14:41:07","slug":"a-place-of-belonging","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/?p=23659","title":{"rendered":"A Place of Belonging"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"TobyMac ~ Everything (Lyrics)\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/7RIp_t3gKZw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Father Richard describes Francis of Assisi\u2019s early days of ministry and how he related to nature:\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Francis sets out on the road, excited because he knows his vocation is to be a contemplative, spending time in nature in solitude and prayer, and to be in active ministry and to preach to people what he\u2019s experienced. Along the way, he sees a tree filled with birds. He approaches the tree and the birds don\u2019t fly away, so he starts talking to them. We have several accounts of this first sermon which is not to human beings but to animals, to birds. Maybe it\u2019s been romanticized, but the story is that they stayed and listened to him. At the end of the sermon he says, now go off, because I\u2019ve told you who you are.\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For the rest of his life, Francis is in relationship with a variety of animals, birds, fish, trees, and flowers. He always tells these creatures, \u201cDo you realize that by your very existence, you are inherently giving glory to God? So just be who you are. <strong>Every animal, every created being has a unique thing to do. Each of you, do your thing; and in that doing, you are giving glory to God!\u201d<\/strong> He would take delight in everything doing its thing. This is a mutual mirroring and I think it allowed him to do his own thing. <strong>He realized that just by being Francis, in all his freedom and joy, he also was giving glory to God. He has no trouble being alone because mirrors are everywhere.\u202f\u202f\u202f\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The only reason I can talk about Francis\u2019 relationship with nature with some confidence is because it\u2019s honestly what I have experienced on my Lenten retreats in the desert. <strong>I know it may sound fanciful, but everything becomes a mirror<\/strong>\u2014whether the shape of rocks or the color. I\u2019d collect a whole pile of rocks by the end of the five weeks because they were always naming something about me, and I didn\u2019t even know what it was. <strong>All I\u2019m saying is the whole world comes to life: every kind of cactus, every kind of tree or dead branch, the sunrise, the sunset, the different kinds of birds. I find myself in the middle of a universe of belonging.\u202f\u202f\u202f\u202f\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>David Whyte echoes this message in his poem \u201cThe Sun.\u201d Father Richard shares an excerpt:\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2026 I want to walk\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>through life\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>amazed and inarticulate\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>with thanks\u2026.&nbsp;&nbsp;\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I want to know\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>when I lean down to the lilies\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>by the water\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>and feel their small and\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>perfect reflection\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>on my face\u2026. \u202f\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I want to know\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>what I am\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>and what I am\u202f\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>involved with by loving\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>this world\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<br>as I do\u2026.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I want to be found by love,\u202f\u202f\u00a0<br>\u2026 I want to come alive\u202f\u202f\u00a0<br>in the holiness\u202f\u202f\u00a0<br>of that belonging. [1]\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>___________________________________________<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Sarah Young, Jesus Calling <\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>\u00a0 \u00a0 <strong>\u00a0As you look into the day that stretches out before you, you see many choice-points along the way<\/strong>. The myriad possibilities these choices present can confuse you. Draw your mind back to the threshold of this day, where I stand beside you, lovingly preparing you for what is ahead.<br>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<strong>You must make your choices one at a time, since each is contingent upon the decision that precedes it.<\/strong> Instead of trying to create a mental map of your path through this day, <strong>focus on My loving Presence with you. I will equip you as you go, so that you can handle whatever comes your way. Trust Me to supply what you need when you need it.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>RECOMMENDED BIBLE VERSES:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><u>Lamentations 3:22-26 NLT<\/u><br><em>22<\/em>\u00a0The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease.<br><em>23<\/em>\u00a0Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.<br><em>24<\/em>\u00a0I say to myself, \u201cThe LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!\u201d<br><em>25<\/em>\u00a0The LORD is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him.<br><em>26<\/em>\u00a0So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the LORD.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Additional insight regarding Lamentations 3:21-23: <strong>Jeremia saw one ray of hope in all the sin and sorrow surrounding him: &#8220;The faithful love of the Lord never ends&#8230;&#8230;Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin fresh every morning.&#8221; God willingly responds with help when we ask. <\/strong>Perhaps there is some sin in your life that you thought God would not forgive. <strong>God&#8217;s steadfast love and mercy are greater than any sin, and he promises forgiveness.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Additional insight regarding Lamentations 3:23: Jeremiah knew from personal experience about God&#8217;s faithfulness. God had promised that punishment would follow disobedience, and it did. But God also had promised future restoration and blessing, and Jeremiah knew that God would keep that promise also. <strong>Trusting in God&#8217;s faithfulness day by day makes us confident in his great promises for the future.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><u>Psalm 34:8 NLT<\/u><\/strong><br><strong><em>8<\/em>&nbsp;Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Additional insight regarding Psalm 34:8: &#8220;Taste and see&#8221; does not mean, &#8220;Check out God&#8217;s credentials.&#8221; Instead, it is a warm invitation: &#8220;Try this; I know you&#8217;ll like it.&#8221; When we take that first step of obedience in following God, we will discover that he is good and kind. When we begin the Christian life, our knowledge of God is partial and incomplete. As we trust him daily, we experience how good he is!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Father Richard describes Francis of Assisi\u2019s early days of ministry and how he related to nature:\u202f\u202f&nbsp; Francis sets out on the road, excited because he knows his vocation is to be a contemplative, spending time in nature in solitude and prayer, and to be in active ministry and to preach to people what he\u2019s experienced. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23659"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=23659"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23659\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23660,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23659\/revisions\/23660"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=23659"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=23659"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=23659"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}