Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Horizontal prayer

I've had a big meeting to go to, a bad back, and a bad cold.  Ugh.  Monday was for me a day of vertical prayer.  When so much stuff happens at once, I get into my "dark place" and start whining.  For me, all there is to do is to be simply with it all.  Ignoring the details, the voices that want to pull me under, just sitting with it, letting it be, trusting that the darkness will not over come me.  And it passes.  sort of.

Though the back still hurts a bit, and the cold is fading, I'm back into the thick of things at work.  It's going to be a long week.  It's not a question of keeping one's head above water but of how to snorkel.

Maybe I'll have something of interest to post next time.

Monday, November 08, 2010

Thanks for all the responses on retreat ideas.  Keep them coming!

I've been watching some of the It Gets Better videos.  They are so touching, moving, sad, happy, and glorious.  One of the LA Gay Men's Chorus singing True Colors moved me to tears (as so many of the videos have).




I think for many of us, there is much stored-up grief.  Tears always help me let it out.

Enjoy.  And weep.  And celebrate.

Saturday, November 06, 2010

Your Ideas and Suggestions are welcome (and needed)

This working-for-a-living thing is for the birds!  Ugh.  Only kidding.  I am thankful to have a job, and a great one, at that.  Hectic it has been. With my back still hurting some, it means I'm moving a little more slowly than I'd like.  But I'm hanging in.

Bear with me and help me out, folks.  I've gotten myself in to something, and I'm not altogether sure what I'm doing.  Your ideas and suggestions are welcome (and desperately needed).

The Basics:  If you were to go on a church-sponsored weekend retreat for GLBTQ people, what would you want to happen?
  • What would you want to talk about?
  • What activities, topics, ideas/
  • Music, worship ideas?
  • It will be drawing from basic Christian tradition, but I'm sure a wide variety of spiritualities will be discussed and practiced.
  • What would you want to hear from "the Church"
Realizing that no one (not even the pope) speaks for the whole Church.  And no one can even speak for a particular denomination.  But hang with me, go with the flow, try to think what you'd want.

Something like what I've talked about (a weekend retreat) will happen the first weekend of April 2011.  And I'm to be involved with it.  Who could imagine such?  Why me Lord?

Help me out.  You can post a comment, or email me directly:  beartoast@gmail.com

Cheers. 

Photo credit to BG, again.  I didn't mean to close my eyes. If you embiggen it, it gets scary!