Only Love Creates

God therefore called man into existence, committing to him the craftsman's task.  Through his "artistic creativity" man appears more than ever "in the image of God", and he accomplishes this task above all in shaping the wondrous "material" of his own humanity and then exercising creative dominion over the universe which surrounds him.  With loving regard, the divine Artist passes on to the human artist a spark of his own surpassing wisdom, calling him to share in his creative power.

 - Pope John Paul II

I adore this quote about art and creativity.   In the past few weeks I have taken great pleasure in  choreographing a routine for my dance team.  I find myself driving home from rehearsals feeling especially satisfied with my work.  Call me crazy, but I have even lost some sleep due to my excitement about movement phrase ideas and counts.

We learn early in our lives that God is creative.  Children pray to God in thanksgiving for rainbows, lakes, puppies, ice cream and other wonderful creations that we can't image our world without.   Being made in God's image and likeness means that creativity and innovation is a deeply-rooted part of who we are.  This shines through the choreographer who busies himself by making dances, the artist staring at an empty canvas, or the co-creative parents who find joy in watching their child grow.  Creativity is written into our bodies, our minds and our souls. With our creativity we use our talents and gifts to make beauty and to glorify God.

It is amazing to me how easily art can be viewed as frivolous or trivial.  Are we not constantly hearing about art education programs being cut?  Did you know that creativity helps to develop an entire half of our brain?  This does not seem unimportant to me at all.  While majoring in dance during college, I was consistently asked what I would accomplish with an arts degree.  I was encouraged (and responsibily went along with the idea of) studying for an additional degree to exercise the left-side of my brain with a more rational or "realistic" major.  In fact, part of me truly believed that one day I would have to eventually part with my inner-artist to "grow up".  Several years after graduation however, I am discovering how important this aspect of my life and personality will always be.

Being creative does not only mean being a musician, a sculptor or a designer. Nor do you have to blow your budget for art supplies at Michael's. I discover my inner-artist when I bake, decorate my space, choose my outfit, play with my baby, photograph memories and even blog online!  Pursing these God-given interests and talents help me escape the ordinary day's routine, build confidence and find self-accomplishment in my life.  And did I mention that it is fun? 

Our divine artist calls us to share in His creative power.  St. Maximillian Kolbe quoted that "Only Love Creates".   Therefore, by using our gifts we can only reflect His love and goodness.  We literally make our lives and our world more beautiful and more like-God!  What is so frivolous about that?

Now it's your turn-- how do you express your artistic gifts?

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"My Lord and My God!" Homily week #2

So here's my attempt to hear one thing (at least) from the Lord through the homily. How many times have I heard the phrase "My Lord and My God," a million? But the way the Priest was talking about God the Father on Father's Day and he reminded us that as the host is raised that's what we're saying to the Lord. It struck me at how powerful that moment and those words are - 5 words can bring me to the verge of tears. So today I'm trying to head to adoration so I can sit and stare at the awesomeness of My Lord...... "My Lord and My God."

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The World Needs More {SPECIAL} Hearts Like Hannah's !

This is my sister Hannah ... and below is an email my Dad sent me last week ...

Our daughter, Hannah, age 29, with Prader-Willi syndrome, wrote this touching eulogy to her friend, Johnny, a man of 68 years, developmentally disabled to about the age of two or three, who lived with the same host family as Hannah. Johnny passed away recently, and the eulogy was read at his funeral.

QUOTE
Psalm 24
The King of Glory and His Kingdom

Johnny and I met 7 years ago, and he was the sweetest young man I knew on the face of the planet. I loved helping getting his outfits for him, feeding him, but most of all I liked being mother hen to him. I want very badly to be a mama someday when I grew up, but sadly it couldn’t be. I love him a lot, I will always be sad, and will always remember him way deep in my heart.

I would like to close with a short reading from Psalm 24.
“The earth is the LORD’s, and all its fullness, the world and all therein; for
He has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters. Who may
ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol,
nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the LORD, and righteousness
from the God of his salvation.”

May your heart be eternally at peace, Johnny!

Love, Hannah
ENDQUOTE

Now Hannah had asked me to help her find a verse to read for Johnny. I thought and thought and searched high and low for something that would be truly comforting and meaningful and not cliché or sappy. I came up empty, but Hannah’s choice was perfect.

At the funeral, the priest told everyone that when Johnny met someone, that person immediately became family. What a world it would be if everyone had that attitude.

It wasn’t too many years ago that I learned what the term “special needs people” means. These people are special, and they have been placed on this earth because we need them. Though they are often maligned and disparaged as something less than “normal,” these special people are often much closer to humanity’s ideal, i.e. they are humane, merciful, humble, compassionate, giving, sensitive to the feelings of others, loving and expressing that love unabashedly.

Here’s a story from Hannah’s life that I have told previously. One Sunday morning Hannah and I were driving across town to Sunday School. (Kathy had been called in to work unexpectedly at 3:30 in the morning so was not with us). Out of the blue, Hannah says to me "Dad, I wish everyone in the world could be as fortunate as we are." I was moved to tears. Here was Hannah, who was born with a rare syndrome affecting her appetite and emotional control. Because of the syndrome she will never be able to have children, which she loves more than anything in the world except perhaps dogs and horses. She will never drive, likely never marry. She will never be truly independent (she lives outside our home but in a host home with another family, who take care of her). Throw in a mild case of bi-polar disorder, and Hannah has enough problems to give her a hundred excuses to complain, but rather she says, "Dad, I wish everyone in the world could be as fortunate as we are."

Hannah often says to us that she is thankful that God put her in our family, that she has the best parents in the world. Last night Kathy asked her whether so-and-so might think their parents are the best in the world, too. Could they have the best parents in the world, too? Hannah matter-of-factly answered that they could--the best parents for them. We call people like Hannah "special." Some may think this a euphemism, but it is not. She is special, and we are so thankful that God put her in our family. We have learned so much from her.

Before closing this email, I want to talk about two other very special people: Angie, with whom Johnny lived for 15 years, and Itha, who initially obtained legal custody of Johnny in order to get him released from institutional living. Itha found Johnny languishing in an institution and made it her mission to get him out. She went through legal channels and did just that. While Johnny lived with Angie’s family, Itha would often take Johnny away on special travels and fun, local field trips. The word special doesn’t seem big enough for this lady.

Angie is the big-hearted woman who, along with her husband, Zeke, took Johnny in and treated him as if he were her own son. She is the wonderful person who loves and treats our Hannah is if she were her own daughter. Angie and her husband have a family of their own, but find overflowing love to shower upon those they’ve taken into the heart of their home. For Hannah, this is an opportunity to move out “on her own,” as she has seen her brother and sisters do, although she can never be truly independent. Kathy and I spend time with Hannah on special occasions, weekends, take her to therapeutic horseback riding and Sunday School, but Angie is there for her constantly. We can never express the depth of our gratitude to Angie for all she has poured into Hannah. She, indeed, is a special person with a big heart for the special people who have been specially placed among us to fulfill our special needs.

Wishing you the best always, Jim and Kathy

For more information about Prader-Willi Syndrome, check out the web site of the national organization here, or the Colorado group here.

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{one very wordy post}

During my much needed rest on Friday, I did a lot of thinking. I love my life. I love all of the things that we are each involved in. I love being a wife, and a mom, and taking care of our home. I love planning and preparing great meals. I love that my husband plays sport, and that our son does too. I love watching Jono as he develops that passion. I love having special mommy-daughter nights with Alia when Jono sometimes goes to watch Rory play. I love managing Jono's soccer team (ok, I don't love it, but I do it because he loves soccer!!) I love where I work three days a week. I love that I don't have to work there but that I can. I love that I feel like I am contributing to something great. I love that the kids are big enough now that Rory and I can both be involved in the music team at church again. I love taking the kids to swimming lessons. And watching Alia develop a special friendship after school while Jono plays AFL each week. I love all of the extra bits and pieces that happen each week. The coffee's with friends, the occassional having someone over or going to someone's place for dinner. I love re-connecting with old (like, from the first grade old !) friends on facebook, and blogging, and playing the Wii with my family.

But sometimes ... and last week, was one of those sometimes ... it all gets too much. I start to feeling overwhelmed and just need to stop. I am glad that I am able to do that from time to time. Of course, it meant that my cleaning schedule didn't get finished. My bathroom sinks won't be cleaned until tomorrow which means they didn't get done last week. I didn't do the mopping ... and that only happens every TWO weeks ! But ... I'm not going to beat myself up about it. I'm not going to try and kill myself to get it all done just so I can tick it off on my chart ! I'm just going to start this new week and two weeks of my cleaning schedule a fresh. (and yeah, those will be the first things I do !!)

During these days that I spend thinking and refreshing and recharging and ensuring that I am able to continue on with all of these things that we love, I always wonder if there is something I need to change. Maybe something we need to stop doing. This time, I didn't feel like it was something we needed to stop doing but rather something I need to change.

I've been feeling lately like I've been neglecting my most important relationship. In the business of life, I can sometimes forget to spend time with the One who gave me life ! And that is never good.

So anyway ... on Friday, I was contemplating this. I was reading some blog and I was struck by the similarity of two post. Two posts written by two of my friends. To my knowledge, these guys don't know each other. I knew one of them in high school in Spain and the other one after high school in Japan. They both live in the States now but with one of them in Alaska, I doubt their paths have crossed.

Both of their posts hit me right where I'm at ! I have their permision to share them with you ...

Here's the first one, written by my friend Alex ...

During our visit to Richmond last weekend I was perpetually trying to connect with people that we were trying to meet up with. So my cell phone was constantly buzzing with text messages and calls.

At one point my wife looked at me as I again glanced at my phone and said, "You've been looking at that thing all weekend long!"

That's made me think this week about my eyes, my thoughts, how I can so easily get fixed on something that makes me look down, that narrows my perspective.

I so easily get caught up in small annoyances or inconveniences in my life and think that they're major catastrophes.

Or maybe you'll resonate with me on this: I get so focused on scheduling for tomorrow that I miss what's happening right in front of me. I spent all day yesterday scheduling for the today that I'm now mentally dis-engaged with because I'm so focused on looking ahead to tomorrow! What a fool I am to never actually get around to living because I'm so busy planning on living in the future!

So I've been thinking off and on all week: where are my eyes fixed? what does this tell me about my heart, my thoughts, the things that shape me most?

Then this morning I was reading Psalm 25 and came across this line: "My eyes are ever toward the Lord."

When there's the convergence of a comment from my wife and a word from Scripture, that generally means that there's something here for me to pay attention to.

So I'm thinking about this today, thought I'd invite you in. Where are your eyes fixed? What does that tell you about your heart, your thoughts, the things that are shaping you most right now?

And the second one, written by my friend Khrista ... (and Oswald Chambers!)

While reading this morning, this really struck me...it is relevant to all, maybe some in particular, more now, than ever...

Keep Recognizing Jesus
. . . Peter . . . walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid . . . —Matthew 14:29-30

The wind really was boisterous and the waves really were high, but Peter didn’t see them at first. He didn’t consider them at all; he simply recognized his Lord, stepped out in recognition of Him, and "walked on the water." Then he began to take those things around him into account, and instantly, down he went. Why couldn’t our Lord have enabled him to walk at the bottom of the waves, as well as on top of them? He could have, yet neither could be done without Peter’s continuing recognition of the Lord Jesus.

We step right out with recognition of God in some things, then self-consideration enters our lives and down we go. If you are truly recognizing your Lord, you have no business being concerned about how and where He engineers your circumstances. The things surrounding you are real, but when you look at them you are immediately overwhelmed, and even unable to recognize Jesus. Then comes His rebuke, ". . . why did you doubt?" ( Matthew 14:31 ). Let your actual circumstances be what they may, but keep recognizing Jesus, maintaining complete reliance upon Him.

If you debate for even one second when God has spoken, it is all over for you. Never start to say, "Well, I wonder if He really did speak to me?" Be reckless immediately— totally unrestrained and willing to risk everything— by casting your all upon Him. You do not know when His voice will come to you, but whenever the realization of God comes, even in the faintest way imaginable, be determined to recklessly abandon yourself, surrendering everything to Him. It is only through abandonment of yourself and your circumstances that you will recognize Him. You will only recognize His voice more clearly through recklessness— being willing to risk your all.

-My Utmost For His Highest, Oswald Chambers...emphasis added

And then this morning at church ... the sermon was about knowing Jesus. About getting back to basics. All the fluff and nonsense of 'religion' needs to be ignored. It's just about Jesus and becoming like Him.

Where are my eyes ?
Where is my focus ?

How do I live life ... in all of it's business ... and keep my eyes focused where they should be ?

This is what I'm thinking about ...

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Something new ...

The other day I picked up a couple of devotional books for the kids that I am really excited about. We've been doing them for a few days now and I really like them. The kids do too. I've been feeling lately like I need to spend more dedicated time with the kids ... talking about things more than just "how was school?" One on one, with each of them. These books facilitate that perfectly ...

They each have one.

Alia's ~ God and Me ~ is for girls age 6-9. She's only five but she her understanding level is high, I think. She understands and is able to talk with me about the stuff we are reading each day. One thing I love about these books is that there is so much for the child to do. Heaps of participation. Interaction. Talking. Writing. Thinking.

Jono's ~ Gotta Have God ~ is for boys age 6-9. It is perfect for him. He can write things by himself. I love the things I am hearing from him. He has such a deep understanding. His heart has always been such a soft one and I love to listen as he shares it with me.

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Sharing The Storm

In the midst of heartbreak that I am not at liberty to share with you, I am holding on to this ...

"When the oceans rise and thunders roar, I will soar with you above the storm.
Father you are king over the flood, I will be still and know you are God. "

Oceans are rising, the thunders continue to roar, there is a terrifying storm. But God is still God.

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