I’ve been cheating a little bit, well I’ve been trying to prepare myself for the year-long sabbatical where I hope to find the intersection of art and spirit.  So my good faith art friend recommended a book by Sybil MacBeth “Praying in Color:  Drawing a New Path to God” and I’ve already read through the majority of it.

There’s a bit of a challenge when you think about ditching (or shelving) it all to concentrate for one full year on a specific topic.  In my case, I have no roadmap and I have no guide.  I only have a handful of half-baked ideas on how to get from here (dissatisfied unhappiness) to there (authentic joy).  And as the ideas come, I’m writing them down.  

One of the tools MacBeth uses in her art journaling or faithbooking is the use of the Lectio Divina (divine reading).  The Lectio contains four-part prayer forms:  Lectio (reading); Meditatio (meditate); Oratio (speaking/praying); and Contemplatio (contemplation).  How it is that I actually made my Catholic Confirmation and do not know these things is beyond my ability to understand, but nevertheless, the method of study is intended to create a tender crosstalk between Creator and creature.  

So I just wanted to say how excited I am that there promises to be lots of turns and twists along our amazing adventure.  Tuesday evening during my New Hope Church’s Beth Moore “Psalms of Ascent” study, we were asked what might have become of our lives without the knowledge of a personal savior. And it’s funny because as I was sitting in Five Guys just before the bible study, and in came a homeless man apparently under some influence, I wrote the following passage:

“He will supply.  He will lift these chains.  

Dear Lord, please bless this man in Five Guys who is obviously extremely down and out.  Blood red in the face, holding his face in his hands in a weary way, straggly dirty blonde hair hanging in his eyes.  I saw another man offer him some food which he declined.  There are so many that are hurting.  What is my purpose here?  How can I help?  What would you have me do?  

Help me to see the clues and signposts of your will and your way.  Help me. Dear Lord.  The man in front of me has a blue t-shirt that reads “Gospel Brunch” with the image of an angel.  His sister has angel wings on the back of her white t-shirt.  What does it all mean?  We are all looking and all frozen. Help me to hear your word to take the high road.  To be a person of deeper character who can be called on in difficult situations.

Help me to understand what you would have me do.  I cannot see my purpose.  Help me to understand and to manifest in my life that I may be the only Christ anyone else sees today.  This man has a family somewhere who loves him. How do you explain that to these children in this place?  How are kids supposed to understand why one person is down and out and another has a three-piece suit on rushing out the door for his busy appointment?  How did this man get here?  Who is he?  Lord, he looks so tired and worn.  Can’t you give him some rest?  And its cold and I don’t see a jacket.  What are we to do?  Your word says that whatsoever we do for the least of them we do for you.”

What are we to do?  No answer, no epiphany – he leaves and I leave and he goes out into the night and I go to my bible study…..So I go on, studying, reading, clearing, simplifying, praying, making the way for a year of transformation.  A year of authentic joy.  A year of some answers.  A year of marrying art journaling & faith.  Bon voyage to me, in just 31 days – wish I could have taken the five guys dude with me.