So another day…..another post. It’s funny, because when I start these writing binges, I typically have a day or two of posts in my mind. Day 3 though is always where there is surprise. I typically have no idea where I am going, and it makes me nervous. What is going to happen? Will I be able to write anything? The funny thing is, something typically catches my attention.
So I have been reading through the Bible this year. I’m not following a reading plan or anything, just reading along until I’m too tired, or I find something that I want to ponder for a while. Just going at my own pace. Well as I started to read today, I wondered if I should go to the Nativity story since it’s that time of year? That would make sense….right?
But…..I really wanted to keep reading where I was. So back to the beginning of the gospel of John and what he wrote about John the Baptist. Ah…another outsider. I’m intrigued by the path of the cousin of Jesus. His mom getting pregnant way past her prime, his father doubting and struck speechless, the Angel and the news that this young man would be the forerunner. The one who would come before the Messiah. Pretty cool…. You’d think he would be an important part of the temple and everything that surrounded it, but he wasn’t. I’ve always wondered about that. Why not? It is part of his family heritage, it would make sense….right? The ultimate insider!
I ‘ve tried to get on the inside, but it’s never really worked. Isn’t the church where you 
use the gifts you have? I’ve taught Sunday School and was pretty good at storytelling, but any role outside of that has never happened. There have been times over the years where I’ve thought, I could be used for that! Or I’ve being willing to say, use me! For some reason though, I was never picked. Or there wasn’t a place for me to use my gifts. It used to bug me, and I wondered what’s wrong with them?
It was hard at times, but trust is a great thing. And I had to work at trusting God. I had to realize that it was not them, but really me. If God didn’t open that door, there was a reason. God used those times to help build trust in Him. Not people, not pastors and not in church, but Him only.
I wonder if it was like that for John? He knew that God was going to use him and even what his role was. The real question was how was that going to look? I can’t imagine his parents thinking it would be the way it played out. Your son, the one who is supposed to come before the Messiah, out in the wilderness, eating bugs and telling people to repent. Where is his place in the temple? Wouldn’t’ that be where the forerunner spoke from?
John though was an outsider, and I like him because of it. Maybe because he was an outsider, he was able to be who God really needed him to be? I like to think so. It helps me to think that any time we may spend on the outside is just a proving ground. A place where God can weed, water and grow us to who He really wants us to be.
Now some put shepherds in a category of outcasts from society, but others say they are just another group among the poor. Either way, they give us a picture of separation from other people and the normal rhythms of life. To have a big flock, you would need a big area of grass to feed them. Have you ever seen sheep go through a field? And when that field is done, you need to move them to another one. The life of a shepherd was not a normal one of home and family.
them. What I do like about puzzles is the what they show……A complete picture. You have all these pieces that go together but they are in such weird shapes, it is not easy to see how everything fits. But they do.
Life is like a puzzle. All the days and everything that happens to you become pieces that are fitted together to create you. How you think, how you feel and how you live.
When the one man heard wisdom in the answer, Jesus said “you are not far from the kingdom of God.” Sounds like a mile marker to me. How the man approached the question and reacted to Jesus’ response, showed something about his heart.
So we have been doing some sprucing up of our home, and with each new task completed, we are more and more comfortable. (Really…we have only been here 13 years!) Our latest venture was bringing some interest to a kitchen wall, over the counter where we keep the coffee pot. (Or our coffee shrine as I call it)
This year was kind of funny because Lent started on Valentine’s day. Not coming from a liturgical background, I have only started following this tradition. (In my own made up way) So a couple days ago, I was reading a blog written by a young Catholic woman, and she made the connection between Valentines day, the whole “love” thing, and Lent which prepares us for the remembrance of the greatest act of love ever. I thought that was kinda cool. Up to that point, the only connection I had made about the coincidence was to tease my friend that she may need to celebrate Valentines on Tuesday. 
Well, this isn’t the bay area, where there are plenty of museums, venues, and events, but that doesn’t mean that there is nothing to do!
I think it is going to be an interesting year. There are things that I am looking forward to, but I also feel a little concerned. Why? Well it all comes down to themes. When I read or see things, sometimes themes appear. So far this year, I have seen this thread of beauty through pain, and it has caught my attention.
Cheryl Mendoza 