Devotions Archive Archive: 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 Search Archive Print This Article Reaching for the stars Wednesday, February 10, 2016 Psalm 51:3, 7, 12 I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me ... Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow ... restore unto me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit. I have been reading about the days before death. We lose control of our bodies, yes, but even more we lose control of being in control. Grant me a willing spirit, O Lord. I choose to breathe, but nothing happens. Panic ensues. This is not OK. But the panic changes nothing. I'm not in charge anymore. When Breath Becomes Air, what a marvelous book just now published. Its truth touches the experience we all will have. What comes after the panic? Surrender. Sometimes called "sweet surrender." And what comes after that? The joy of my salvation. From what I can tell from reading (before my own experience), these things are like dominos and they will happen to us all. Today we put our ashes on. Today we set out on the 40-day journey through Lent. Today is the first day of the rest of my life. Today. For tomorrow I die. Grant me a willing spirit, O Lord. Let me participate in my own paschal mystery and carry my own cross, and keep my eyes open. Break bondages in my mind and body, and help me point my eyes toward where your light shines. Morning has broken. "; Add      Edit    Delete