Dear Friends ~ Warmth sweeps across the globe in its own time, as does the cold. Wet or dry spells make their ecological homes, then ebb away. As I greet you, dear readers, February is inviting winter in all its glory, despite its chilly inconveniences. It's a time to draw in close to the fire, to snuggle up with a good book, or brave the elements, swooping down the slopes, gliding across the ice, building a perfect snow man or woman with young loved ones, or admiring the beauty of transformed terrain.
In lockstep, another thermometer robs us of any semblance of warmth: wars, school shootings, fear, political wrangling, dangerous gangs, rudeness, and emotional coldness seep slowly into old-fashioned neighborly warmth. Let us pray that sacred warmth will infuse our hearts and hearts across the world.
Whether your neighborhood is facing the winter elements or exploring an avalanche of enduring joys, or being challenged in any way, know that we are with you. We invite you into loving kindness and healing silence, and encourage you to spread warmth daily. We pray that warmth will infuse our hearts, our neighborhoods and nations, near and far. ~ Mary Ann
Surrender is not an abandonment of ourselves in the face of difficulty, nor is surrender synonymous with submission, we yield ourselves to God freely, not under coercion. Surrender is not resignation. It is an invitation to be ourselves more fully... Surrender is not so much a giving up as it is an OPENING up. It is a dynamic living and striving in the face of the unknown. When we surrender in faith, we enter into the power of God, into the realm of all possibility. We open ourselves to new perspectives, thoughts and dimensions of life yet to be explored. We do not give ourselves in the sense of extinguishing ourselves. Instead, the little lick of light we are joins with the holy flaming that is God. We are brought more fully into ourselves and at the same time brought into that fullness which is greater than all that is.