| ANNE WILLIAMSON |
I used to think of grace as a decision on God's part. To be sure, it was a loving decision made often by a generous God, but it was still a decision. To be gracious was a part of God's job description.
Today, grace for me simply is. It's not a decision God makes; it is God. And, because God is everywhere, in everything, so is grace.
Consequently, I play a much less passive role in grace's presence in my life. I still don't earn it; we can't earn something that simply is. But, I do see it as something to which I may be open or not, with which I may align my spirit or not. It's like awakening to a world of color from black and white. Each ordinary moment holds extraordinary beauty and potential. The question for me has become, "Am I brave enough to see it and listen?"
What do you think? How do you understand grace and your relationship to it? LISTEN, LEARN, LOVE...
RAINBOW EUCALYPTUS, MAUI -- PHOTOGRAPH BY KATHLEEN WILLIAMSON
Meditate on this photograph for a minute. Be still. Listen. What is it "saying"? What wisdom does it hold about grace? Keep listening...
Scenes from the movie Pleasantville (1998):
Big Bob: [bangs the gavel] You're out of order!
David: Why am I out of order?
[approaches Big Bob]
Big Bob: Because I'm not gonna let you turn this courtroom into a circus!
David: Well, I don't think it's a circus, and I don't think they do, either.
[David turns to look at the crowd, where many of the black-and-white people are changing into color. There are gasps and murmurs. Jennifer grins.]
Big Bob: [bangs the gavel] This behavior must stop at once.
David: But see? That's just the point! It can't stop at once, because it's in you, and you can't stop something that's inside you.
------
Betty Parker: [Betty is in color, George is still black & white] George, look at me. Look at my face. That meeting is not for me.
George Parker: You'll put on some make-up.
Betty Parker: I don't want to put on make-up.
George Parker: It'll go away. It goes away.
Betty Parker: [firmly] I don't want it to go away.
[Source: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120789/quotes]
What's stirring in you? Share it... with a friend, God, etc. Keep wondering... Keep listening...
Try something. Follow what you're "hearing." Be a little brave. Actively love by setting an intention for the coming week.
I'll offer this simple, yet challenging, practice... For one hour this week, make the decision to be open to grace, whatever its form. Maybe it's a conversation you wouldn't otherwise have. A loving, but subtle truth you wouldn't otherwise hear. A connection you wouldn't otherwise feel. A new perspective. A joy. A letting go. Grace takes all kinds of forms. Tell God, the universe, you're open to receiving.