Hosea

"But then I will win her back once again.
I will lead her into the desert
and speak tenderly to her there.
I will return her vineyards to her
and transform the Valley of Trouble into
a gateway of hope.
She will give herself to me there,
as she did long ago when she was young,
when I freed her from her captivity in Egypt.
When that day comes," says the Lord,
"You will call me 'my husband'
instead of 'my master.' "

I will make you my wife forever,
showing you righteousness and justice,
unfailing love and compassion.
I will be faithful to you, and make you mine,
and you will finally know me as the Lord.

(Hosea 2:14-16, 19-20, NLT, italics mine)

Today

Today I am:

• just as tired as usual
• wearing a top purchased from the Tibetan store downtown. If you're being nice, you'll describe it as "bohemian" if you're not being so nice it's just "hippy"
• wearing earrings from the same shop
• needing to embrace life and color and warmth
• feeling deeply introspective
• longing for "home"
• going to drink at least one cup of tea
• eating protein (string cheese!) for breakfast
• caught by the things I've been reading lately
• going to curl up for at least part of the evening with a Bible, a journal, and figure out how to pray again

Hiddenness - Henri Nouwen

It's been a while since I shared one of the daily emails I receive from the Henri Nouwen society, but the one from this morning spoke deeply to some things I've been thinking about and experiencing lately...

Hiddenness, a Place of Purification

One of the reasons that hiddenness is such an important aspect of the spiritual life is that it keeps us focused on God. In hiddenness we do not receive human acclamation, admiration, support, or encouragement. In hiddenness we have to go to God with our sorrows and joys and trust that God will give us what we most need.

In our society we are inclined to avoid hiddenness. We want to be seen and acknowledged. We want to be useful to others and influence the course of events. But as we become visible and popular, we quickly grow dependent on people and their responses and easily lose touch with God, the true source of our being. Hiddenness is the place of purification. In hiddenness we find our true selves.