Beloved: And with me Abba Is Well-Pleased

                                            Salt Water 

This past Sunday Christians everywhere celebrated The Baptism of Jesus. This year, we read Matthew's account. 

    When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold the heavens were open to Him and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly, a voice came from heaven, saying' This is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well-pleased.  Matt :3-16-17 NKJV

I pulled the last part of Sunday's reading from the pericope that was read yesterday, as it REALLY is what I heard the most yesterday. 

God the Father calls God the Son " beloved". Furthermore, *I AM* says that * I AM* is well-pleased with this person. 

Through Jesus the Son, each of us, at baptism, is adopted into God's Family. 

God says to us " This is My child; in them I am well-pleased. "

By grace and love, we are made kin with Godself. 

I know God loves me, but I struggle with self-love. Recently a wise person I know, and love said she wished that I'd show myself the same care that I show to another. 

She's correct: We all owe ourselves the same tender care that most of us offer to others. 

Especially lately, I've looked at certain parts of my life -- parts that I do not show people for fear that they will no longer love me. 

I've learned these past few years that some people who say they love me unconditionally actually quit speaking to me {unfollowing and blocking me on social media and not answering texts.} My " " crime" allegedly was being whom I am and expressing outrage at my personhood being stripped away by powerful people-- rights that are personal to over half the world's population. 

I've learned that human love-- be it romantic, familiar or any other sort of ways we humans love each other-- is fickle. 

As a result, I am even more careful with who gets access to parts of me that others might see as " abominable". 

In Jesus, Abba showed us a new Way. I do my best {and fail every day} to live according to this Way. As it was pointed out to me, I even fail at loving myself the way God loves me. 

Love:2 Sarah Beth 0. 

I need to remember that God loves me, and anyone who is worth staying in my life also will see me as God's Beloved-- no matter if they agree with me or understand me. 

Amen

Sarah Beth 

 

My 2023 Word: JOY

                                            Piano Hands Selfie. Note the SHORT manicure ! 

For the past several years, I've prayerfully chose a word on which to meditate for the year.  On some years, someone else chose the word, but as I meditated on Christmastide, coupled with some events in my personal life that jolted me during Advent & Christmastide, the word that kept returning to my soul is JOY . 

We all need more joy. 

One of the things that brings me a lot of joy is playing the piano. I've only started to take lessons recently, but I've discovered that time on my piano bench will bring me almost instantaneous joy. Being the curious person who majored in journalism in college, I did some Google research on the effects of playing an instrument-- especially playing the piano. 

This is a good article that shows how playing the piano benefits the brain. Check it out:

https://thebestpianoteachers.com/how-does-playing-the-piano-boost-your-brain

I know darn well that I am not ever going to be a great pianist. But thankfully, that is not my goal. My hope is that studying the piano will help me with some cognitive-motor deficiencies that have been a challenge for me since birth. 

Gee, whomever thought it was okay to pull a newborn into life on Earth with kitchen tongs must have found their medical degree in an old Cracker Jack box! 

I am very grateful that I have a teacher who not only understands that all piano students are not heading to Carnegie Hall, but she is also someone who has done a lot of work with piano-as-therapy. 

There is so much to be said for making art-- music, visual, drama, dance-- for the sake of making art. In our culture, we've come to see hobbies {such as creative or athletic endeavors} as a means to more achievement. While everyone should always strive to do their best, it does a disservice to expect that hobbies should always be competitive. 

Finding joy in life can be as easy as finding time for a hobby.  I've always been extremely drawn to the arts {although I grew up in a family of jocks} and spending time engaging my body and brain in creative endeavors has brought me joy. 

From the time I could walk, I danced {terribly, but I still danced} From the time I could hold pencils and crayons, I wrote creative pieces and drew. I still write and draw on a regular basis and spent my college years writing and reading others' written work. 

When I was in first grade, I joined a children's choir at the neighborhood Presbyterian church. My family was not churched at all: I was there for the music. Eventually I met Jesus at that little church, but it was not on my radar as a child. I love words and images. 

At the age of mid-40's, I am starting to learn to play the piano. It is challenging, as learning anything new as an adult is harder than people with young brains. Yet sitting at the piano bench to practice is not work in the sense that it is a task I must do. Playing the piano brings me joy. 

In 2023, maybe we all need to find what brings us joy and do more of those things. 

Amen. 

Sarah Beth McCarren

 

Feast Of Epiphany: and Second Anniversary of Capitol Insurrection

                                                      My home altar area, with lit candles . 

Today is The Feast of Epiphany. 

It is also the second anniversary of The Capitol Insurrection. 

To be honest, friends, I am not over it. People always talk about where they were when the horrors of 9/11/01 happened. Yet few talk about where they were when AMERICANS tried-- and almost succeeded-- in a literal coup of our government. 

What happened in New York, DC and rural Pennsylvania in 2001 was horrid. 

In my opinion, what occurred two years ago today was even worse. Many people died in September of 2001 and that is tragic. However, the horrors we all saw two years ago was orchestrated by AMERICANS, against other Americans. 

Regardless of whatever political party to which one subscribes, this was horrible. 

The Magi had a mission to find the Christ Child and report back to Herod. 

Herod, as many Christians know, had nefarious plans for this toddler. 

The Magi, upon meeting Child Jesus, sensed that this Child was no ordinary child. He would be a King, but not in a way that should have frightened Herod. This Child would grow up to bring people together.  He would rule not on Earth, but as part of Godself. 

The Wise People went home " by another way" and did not return to Herod. 

This was a brave act of civil disobedience that could have cost them their lives. Scripture is silent on what happened to the Wise People once the made the choice to avoid Herod. 

I'm still angry, and to be honest it is hard for me to avoid pointing fingers today. 

A wise friend pointed out that perhaps an act of brave civil disobedience on the part of Christians is to say less and work quietly to bring the world closer to where people work together-- a world that is safe for all of us. 

Herod acted cruelly, but maybe he also acted out of fear. His world was about to change with the birth of this Child, although not in the way he probably imagined.  Herod has one view of kingship-- and this Child threatened that status quo. 

Jesus is King of all, but His ruling is not partisan or nationalistic. 

His ruling is kind, but firm. 

Knowing Who Jesus was and is, how can my acts of civil disobedience bring about justice for all? 

Happy Epiphany, friends. 

Amen. 

Sarah Beth McCarren 

#AdventWord #Obedience

                                       The #cross entrusted to me when I was admitted to The Order of The Daughters of The King back in August 

Today's word is Obedience. 

As someone who was a hell-raiser and rule-breaker for most of my life, this word is an odd one for me to appreciate. 

One of the blessings with ageing is that one really starts to lean into a more mature, settled life. And one's faith journey usually reflects what happens in one's biography. 

 For those who want to know exactly what The Order of the Daughters of the King is, here is their Web site for more detailed information on our Order. 

https://www.doknational.org/default.aspx

Membership is open to woman and girls in the Episcopal, Lutheran, and Roman Catholic Christian traditions.  In a nutshell, here is what we are about. We are an Order, NOT an organization. 

Order vs. Organization

A Christian order is a community of men or women living under a religious rule. Because Daughters of the King accept a Rule of Life, we define ourselves as an order, not an organization. Our community is found primarily in our local chapters, but it extends around the world.

We don’t just enroll as members and attend meetings. After a three-month period of study and discernment, each new member takes vows to uphold the two Rules of The Order, the Rule of Prayer and the Rule of Service. { source DOK National Website }

As a Daughter, I took solemn vows in front of my priests, our congregation, and other Daughters to do my best to follow my Rule of Life, the Order's Rule of Prayer and Rule of Service. 

The cross I wear daily{and is worn by every other active Daughter around the world} reminds me that I took vows that need to be obeyed. Do I mess up in totally fulfilling my Rule of Life every day. No! I'll be the first to tell you that some days it is impossible for me to obey the tenants of my vows.

We cannot do all things. And we cannot do more than we can at any moment. God knows this, and God loves us anyway. 

Praying is hard on some days. I pray every day-- often several times per day. As I've matured I realized that most of the sincere praying I do does not employ words. 

Regarding service to others, I am grateful that my chapter is full of wise, faithful servants who show me daily how to put others' first. 

What I can do, I ought to do. What I ought to do, by the grace of God I will do.

~ parts of The Motto of The Order

Daughters { a.k.a DOK} are called to both pray for/with our priests and help them with whatever they might need. This also means { at least to me} that we trust our priests especially when we might not agree with a decision they might make for the parish. 

Again, we are called to obey our clergy and to trust in their pastoral and administrative wisdom. 

I am thankful for The Order of The Daughters of the King, especially my chapter. I'm grateful for the life of prayer, service and evangelism that my vows lead me towards every day. 

I'm thankful that my vows as a " DOK" came at a time when I was open and ready to think about obedience as part of a faith-full Christian Walk. 

Amen

Sarah Beth McCarren 

Advent 4 2022

 

Piano Playing As Contemplation

                                      My Facebook contacts are probably sick of this photo. But to me it is more than a practice area {our house is too small for a " music room"}, it is a place where I can find peace. Photo by me. 

I'm middle-aged and deal with challenges associated with a birth injury. I was delivered with forceps, a tool they used in the 1970's for ' assisted birth'. Rather order an emergency C-section, the doctors used what look like huge kitchen tongs to pull Newborn Sarah headfirst into the world. 

 Seriously, who decided that pulling a newborn from its mother's body with damn kitchen tongs was safe? 

 I'm one of the more fortunate people who were pulled into the world in this manner, but my birth left me with some deficiencies. 

 I cannot safely ride a bicycle.

Nor can I safely drive, as my right and left feet do not cooperate in a safe way on the floor pedals {and I really do not want to talk about the occupational therapist's report after they did their best to help me drive.} I want to drive, I physically cannot. 

 Learning to type in high school was hellish. Thankfully, I devised my own weird system for typing. It isn't what Mrs. C unsuccessfully tried to make me learn, but I can type. 

At the age of " approaching 50 in a few years" I am learning to play the piano.  

 For this opportunity I am blessed. 

As a clumsy child, I'd always wished for piano lessons.  Sadly, my physical challenges made teachers and other adults in my life mark me as not musically inclined. 

I did sing in choirs from first grade until now, and that experience provided me with a very basic understanding of music theory. I'm starting with the basics of piano, hand placement, finding notes, and running through simple exercises that help me both learn notation and work out the brain-hands pathway. 

The physical aspects of learning piano do not come easy for me. My fingers sometimes slip and play the wrong note. Rather than get frustrated because I made a mistake, I play the same measure again-- slower and with intention. 

All of us could slow down and be intentional for half an hour each day. Piano practice teaches me to really slow down and be present in the moment. 

I've discovered that playing the piano puts me into a contemplative mindset. When I focus on playing music-- playing music for music's sake-- my brain concentrates on the task at hand and leaves all the inner noise outside. At practice-- it is just myself, the music and my Creator. It is a lovely gift that I give to myself every morning. As an added bonus, my electric keyboard has headphones, so Brian does not listen to my mistakes. 

I've no delusions about being a great pianist. Oddly enough, removing that pressure to be " the best" at music leaves room for me to enjoy the learning process. 

At midlife I am learning something that I have wanted to learn. 

I'm finding a contemplative peace in the process. 

I'm doing something people told me I could never do. 

I am making music. 

Sarah Beth:1 Doubters:0 

Namaste....

Sarah Beth McCarren 

12/16/22

Advent 4
 

#AdventWord #Rain

Today's #AdventWord is #Rain. 

Rain is necessary. But to be honest, due to some skeletal problems and some PTSD from surviving a major named storm, I am not a fan of rain. Pressure systems that usually bring rain make my nerve pain worse, and big rains trigger memories of IVAN. 

I do not like rain. 

Yet without rain, Earth could not sustain life. 

Rain is essential. 

As much as I really dislike rain, I am thankful that there is plenty of rain {relatively speaking} where I live. Much of the world suffers from inadequate rainfall, and the results are horrible. 

Creator God, I thank You for rain . I also thank You that I have a safe home in which to stay dry. My prayer is that the parts of the world that are suffering droughts now may see more rain in 2023. 

In Jesus Name... Amen 

Sarah Beth McCarren 
 

#AdventWord #Make

                                             A selfie of my left hand playing some exercises on the keyboard. 

 Today's Advent Word is #Make . 

I started a new adventure in this Liturgical New Years. On Tuesday afternoon I had my first piano lesson as an adult. I'd tried to play the piano as a child-- but that endeavor lasted briefly due to the fact that I'm terrible with fine motor skills. A traumatic brain injury I sustained at birth left me with two halves {hemispheres} of my brain that do not like to " talk" to one another. 

 I've managed to work with my limitations, but there are some parts of life that I simply cannot do with my stubborn brain hemispheres that do not like each other much.  

My piano teacher specializes in helping students who, like me, can benefit physically from playing the piano. The goal for me to be a top-notch pianist-- that just is not literally how I am wired.  But #making music for the sake of healing, and for the making of making beautiful music {no matter how simple} because to do so brings joy. 

I had always wanted to play the piano but felt for 40 years that would never happen due to my brain difference. At age 46, I AM learning to play the piano-- and feeling comfortable with the fact that I will never be good. I'm making music that will help connect some neurons and bring joy to my soul. 

We humans are designed to be co-creators with our Creator. Our brains-- and our souls-- yearn to create beauty. Art is not just for the most gifted among us.  This is why I am such a huge supporter of arts in education-- we are created to create.  People, and especially young people whose brains are still developing, need time, space and places to make art.

Art, including visual, and performance arts, is essential. 

Making art connects us to ourselves, our communities, and our Creator. 

Amen. 

Sarah Beth McCarren