the mythical Phoenix
rises from the ashes of its previous life
I get knocked down
But I get up again
You're never going
to keep me down
~ Chumbawamba
If there is anywhere
on earth a lover of God who is always kept safe,
I know nothing of it, for it
was not shown to me. But this was shown:
that in falling and rising again we
are always kept in that same precious love.
~ Julian of Norwich*
Dear God of Skinned Knees,
Bruised Egos, Grieving Hearts,
Pain-Filled Bodies, and Damaged Souls,
I've been hit hard here and there ~ more than some, less than others ~ and
then life goes on in its way until the next bump, or fall, or smack-down and I
pick myself up, dust myself off, and life goes on again. Some days,
though, I do have to fight back the quiet fears of what's next while
the world turns on its axis, the sun rises and sets, and the seasons change.
I know You are here with me, I don't know how I would have
gotten this far without You. And as long as I have breath within me, I
will try to remember to turn to You in those inevitable times. But, could you
give me a nudge now and then? Sometimes I need it to get myself out of the
dark. Better yet, send me off to help someone else ~ then I'll get out of my
own stuff and let Your light shine. amen.
*Julian of Norwich [1342-ca 1416], was an English Anchoress ~ a hermit who lived in, and was sometimes
permanently enclosed in, a small cell attached to a wall of the church ~ whose
life consisted of daily devotions, prayer, devotional reading, and writing. She
is considered to be one of the most important mystics in all of Christianity.
Her manuscript of Revelations of Divine Love - also known as the Short Text -
is thought to be the oldest surviving book written in English by a woman. She
is probably best known for her words that with God, "All shall be well,
and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well."
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