Brief Thoughts from Bren

…offering welcome keeps us grounded and leads us ever closer to God. It slows us down. It helps to cultivate within us the ability to listen, to listen with the heart. Recognizing the ache in people’s hearts helps us to recognize the ache in our own. Discovering the laughter in people’s souls helps to remind us of the laughter in our own.

As Christians, we believe God made our world and we believe God is a creative Creator. What is more honoring of God’s marvelous creation than to spend time learning more about it? Discovering how it works? Being in awe of the mysteries we still cannot solve?

During Lent we can choose to do something that crushes us a little bit, something that grinds us down, maybe even breaks us a bit. Not in a morbid, harmful sort of way but in a way that releases a healing balm, a balm that will course through our veins infusing us with an upside-down kind of power — the power of kindness, of decency, of compassion, of gentleness.

Have you taken a look at our blog lately? I admit, I am partial to writers and writing. I am lucky to live with some very talented people. And they are sharing with us — so much is happening, so much to share. There is a whole lot of writing going on and we hope there is a whole lot of reading going on, too. Here are a few recent blog posts I think you’ll love.

We thirst for big things — social justice, an end to apartheid, an end to systemic racism, for good paying jobs, that our children will be safe, that this planet can be saved, for an end to systemic sexism, and for so much more. It is all right to thirst for big things. But we also thirst for kindness. We are starved for cool, refreshing drinks of water. We want to be seen, to be known, to be shown kindness on the smallest scale. Small, kind gestures give life. And many small kindnesses just may add up to accomplishing some of these bigger ambitions.