Author Archives: karbly

Finding Peace
Karen Ann Smith of Ludington, MI, USA

Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. -Joshua 1:9

I dreamed I was walking through deep snow. Maybe the snow represented my concerns. Maybe it was because my brother in Colorado has gotten snow these last couple of days, but it doesn’t matter. In my dream I came upon a young mother taking her kids to school. I told her there is no school until further notice. Young families, teachers, para-pros, and everyone whose lives have been disrupted by COVID-19 are on my mind and in my heart.

It’s a very scary, very stressful time in which we are living, but I think of what Mr. Rogers once said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.'”

I look to the helpers, those who are still working in the frontlines of this pandemic, who are still providing essential needs. I look to those who check on shut-ins, who mail postcards and notes, who make checking-on-you phone calls. A musician I know is doing love podcasts and lifting fallen spirits in that way.

God is still in the heart of the people. Look to the helpers and you will see. Be a helper in your own unique way, and you will find peace.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (John 14:27).

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Look to the Future
Grace Andrews of Independence, MO, USA

Do not fear, for I am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. -Isaiah 41:10

The lovely Crimson King maple tree in our back yard, whose trunk had been struck by lightning in earlier years, slowly began leaning heavily to one side dangerously close to our neighbor’s roof. We were crestfallen as we surveyed it sadly one day, finally concluding we would need advice from a tree service.

When the experienced tree man came to our door, we were sad at his diagnosis and solution. He told us the tree would have to be removed before it did any damage to us or our neighbor. Days later, it was almost unbearable as well as fascinating to watch him work. We expected him to saw the tree down from the trunk. Instead, he climbed high up in the tree and began trimming away the small upper branches. He then removed the larger limbs until only the lower trunk remained which he expertly removed at the tree base. He explained, “On difficult jobs such as this, I always attack the easy parts first. Then the rest of the problem becomes simple to remove.”

We learned so much that day from the tree surgeon. Whenever we are stymied by a tough problem, we think back to that lovely old tree with its bright red and purple leaves in fall, and welcome shade in the summer. The tree which we grew to love served us well for so many years. We still reminisce with pictures of that beautiful tree, but we also appreciate the younger tree we planted in its place offering shade and beauty. We think of the wise tree surgeon who advised, instead of trying to cope with the whole problem at once, try to remember to sort it out into little pieces first.

We are reminded that our loving God strengthens and upholds us every day encouraging us to look to the future and better days ahead with new life.

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Broken and Flawed and Willing to Witness
Katie Barber of McKinney, TX, USA

You are a good and faithful people, but sometimes you fail to see the power that is resident in your own story and fellowship. Look carefully, listen attentively, and sense the Spirit among you. Do not be unduly concerned with numbers. Be fervent in your witness, passionate in your discipleship, and vigorous in your labor on behalf of peace and justice. Where two or three such disciples form community, there will the Spirit be. Many will come to see. -Doctrine and Covenants 162:8a-b

At Christmastime, one of the wise men from my nativity scene was smashed to bits. I saved all the pieces, because I felt like the scene would seem incomplete with just two wise men.

Finally, I sat down with the fragments and began to piece them in place with glue. It was quickly apparent that some pieces were never going to go back together perfectly. Several times I looked at this mess of a wise man and almost threw him away. But each time I was tempted to toss him, I stopped myself and went back to work.

When I finished reassembling him as best I could, I looked at my wise man. One arm had gaping holes in the glass and his scars were obvious. I looked at his face. I looked at the gift in his hand. I saw myself. The wise man and I shared some similarities: cracks, flaws, brokenness.

My entire ministry is based on making sure others know their worth. Despite any brokenness and imperfection they see in themselves, the gifts they bring are powerfully important and precious. In contrast, there are many times when I see my flaws and shortcomings that I want to throw myself away, like the broken wise man.

I am keeping my broken wise man to remind me of myself as I come before God and you, broken and flawed yet bearing my gift in love and gratitude and humility.

Beloved friends, I pray God will bless you with a deepening awareness of your inestimable worth, that you will never doubt you were created with great purpose. May you never hesitate to share your gifts and love with everyone you meet. Be bold, my friends, in your witness!

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Edward Ellsworth Guy, Human Being of Note
Mark A. Scherer of Independence, MO, USA

[Excerpted from The Journey of a People: The Era of Worldwide Community, 1946-2015, Mark A. Scherer, Community of Christ Seminary Press, 2016, pp. 238-243]

When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” -John 20:19-21

During his years of peace and justice ministry, Edward Ellsworth Guy (Ed Guy) advocated for the poor and dispossessed like few others of his generation. He used his well-honed speaking skills to minister to the needs of downtrodden people in rural Mexico and Central America.

To earn money in preparation for his ministerial career, Guy spent nine summers working for the United States Forest Service fighting forest fires. As a “smoke jumper” Guy parachuted into dangerous burn areas…making 74 jumps.

A tireless advocate for human rights, Ed Guy was an independent minister whose efforts were self-initiated. He was not an appointee minister and did not depend on the church for his employment.

“The church is a catalyst for community development inasmuch as it teaches people to work together, and to be concerned with their own stewardship, and with the welfare of their neighbors,” Guy wrote in 1975.

Ed Guy was less concerned for his personal safety than he was for the spiritual needs of his people. Often he found himself in dangerous urban settings. …Guy taught those around him a rule that said: “Never go alone, never travel at night, and always have a taxi waiting.”

Shootings occurred on the country roads that Guy often traveled. Traveling across Mexico and Central America under such difficult circumstances made him susceptible to many diseases. At different times he contracted malaria, dysentery, and other maladies; but Guy saw these afflictions as opportunities to identify with those to whom he provided ministry.

On Wednesday,13 April 1994, attendees of the World Conference stood to recognize Ed Guy as the first recipient of the church’s International Human Rights Award for Service to Humanity. On Friday, 21 September 2001, Ed Guy died of a heart attack in Guatemala City, Guatemala.

Lloyd Hurshman summarized Ed Guy’s years of service by stating, “Perhaps very few are called to be homeless in order to reach out to the homeless, to be hungry if by that means the hungry might be fed, to sacrifice health and life expectancy that others might live. But to Edward Ellsworth Guy, human being of note, this is the normal course of life.”

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

How Will They Know We Are Christian?
Connie Altman of Jackson, OH, USA

I will sing to the LORD as long as I live;
    I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
May my meditation be pleasing to him,
    for I rejoice in the LORD. -Psalm 104:33-34

I have many Facebook friends from a variety of faiths, all of whom are well meaning. Occasionally someone sends me a story, scripture, or prayer that tells me to send it on and I will be blessed. If I don’t send it on, something bad may happen to me.

It occurs to me that perhaps this is a little like when Satan tempted Jesus by wanting him to prove he was the son of God. “If you are the son of God…” do this, this, and this, and people will worship you. How different from that is, “If you are a Christian, you will send this to 10 people”?

I understand we must be valiant in testimony, but I hope to live my life in such a way that sending out Facebook stories is not necessary to prove I am a Christian. It will take much more determination, faith, and courage to be kind to everyone, even when they are not kind to me, to be courageous enough to stand up for those whom society knocks down, and to be generous with my time, talents, testimony, and treasure with those who are in need.

My prayer is that God will bolster me up when I find it difficult to do these things. God has done it before and I’m sure will continue to be by my side.

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

To Joyfully Fast and Pray
Julie Conway Sword of Gainesville, FL, USA

And on this day thou shalt do none other thing, only let thy food be prepared with singleness of heart, that thy fasting may be perfect; or in other words, that thy joy may be full. Verily this is fasting and prayer; or, in other words, rejoicing and prayer. -Doctrine and Covenants 59:3

My mother-in-law routinely set aside Wednesday mornings to joyfully fast and pray. She not only included family needs in her prayers, but also the needs of those in our congregations, community, and throughout the world. I joined her in this weekly plan. Even now as I perceive current needs through fasting and prayers, I find great joy in situations, conditions, and attitudes that over time can remarkably change. What rejoicing there is in talking with the Lord! God has all power in heaven and on Earth.

There is a wonderful scripture in Isaiah that outlines what is and what is not an acceptable fast (Isaiah 58:4-12). To my surprise this passage outlines the five Mission Initiatives found in the “the Spirit is upon me” messages from Luke 4:18 and Isaiah 61:1. It’s the whole idea of community, of joy-filled, Zionic caring and living. It’s like being part of the “gossamer thread” connecting all our lives throughout the world.

So now we face a time of restricted movement due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In our fasting and prayer (or rejoicing and prayer), we can reach out on our knees for friends, family, and those we know only through their dire needs. We have a great opportunity, symbolic of our willingness to take upon us the name of God’s son and always remember him, that we might have his Spirit to be with us.

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Redeemed
Amanda Grant of Brechin, Ontario, Canada

Mark the blameless, and behold the upright, for there is posterity for the peaceable. -Psalm 37:37

I grew up on a 100-acre sheep farm with my parents. My dad also had an office job at a factory, so our farm was not our only income source. We had a farm because it was what my dad had grown up with. We grew to have a fondness for the lifestyle.

However, because my dad was a businessman, in order to keep the farm, it had to generate some financial profit. Dad made money by going to fall fairs and either setting up a display or taking part in sheep shows where the animals are judged. This meant our animals had to meet specific characteristics to appropriately represent their breed. For example, the color of their nose, face, legs, and how they stood on their feet all mattered. Sometimes things would go wrong with the animals. This meant we had to take them to the market to sell because they could no longer contribute to the farm in a practical way.

During one visit to the market I was overwhelmed by the number of animals I saw being sold that had not yet outlived their ability to be of use to someone. I finally decided if any of the animals were sold at a price I could afford, I would buy them. This desire to change what was happening around me became an “Aha” moment of what it means for God to redeem us.

God did for all of us what I could only afford to do for one. Unlike my dad, God looks at us and sees how we can still be of use, still serve God, no matter our state. The only characteristic we need to meet for God is that we are willing-willing to try, willing to hear, and willing to act.

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Prayers of Comfort
Jim Cummings of Columbus, OH, USA

I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God-what is good and acceptable and perfect. -Romans 12:1-2

As I was preparing for the new year, I noticed my January calendar was busier than usual with responsibilities. Then I became ill the first week of January with infection and swelling of the prostate, which eventually required surgery. Surgery was scheduled for January 31.

I asked family, friends, and brothers and sisters at church for prayers on my behalf. I gained much physical and spiritual strength as a result of their prayers. Not only was I able to fulfill all my responsibilities, I was also asked to officiate at two funerals after being in the emergency room just days earlier. Because I was weak and unable to rest or sleep, I had to depend on the Holy Spirit for comfort and strength. I was made aware of the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.

When I arose on the morning of the surgery, I read the Daily Bread. The devotional was written by Twyla Glassford from Windsor, Ontario, Canada. She had entered a hospital for knee replacement surgery and brought with her a prayer shawl she had received nine years earlier, before another surgery. During the intervening years she had shared the prayer shawl with others who were undergoing surgery, after which it was always returned. When she left the hospital this time, she gave the shawl to her roommate who was in considerable pain.

I related this devotion to my wife, Kathy, and she shared a story she had read that same morning about a woman who was taking her husband to surgery. I believe it was more than a coincidence that both devotionals were about surgeries on the same day my wife was taking me to surgery.

Once again, I felt the peace and comfort of the Holy Spirit as I entered surgery and during the recovery and healing process. I also felt more connected to my family, friends, and brothers and sisters in Christ who prayed for me.

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Unity through Spirit
Sandee Gamet, World Church Common Consent team, co-leader

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. -Acts 2:1-4

One description of the Holy Spirit’s “job” is to connect human hearts. This description has proven to be true over and over as I witness individuals who are deeply listening to another’s life experiences.

We listen to each other in two ways-with our heads and with our hearts. When we allow our hearts to be part of the listening, we hear and understand in ways not possible if we listen only with our heads.

I have seen individuals who have felt hurt by each other. Often they come to the conversation ready to protect themselves from further pain. In the midst of the safe space each person has been touched by the Holy Spirit to offer heart space in their listening. Each time I am reminded of the “job” of the Holy Spirit to change people from protecting themselves to being open to the other. Through the Spirit’s presence they have shared their pain, authentically acknowledged each other, and moved toward reconciliation.

I have been part of dialogue groups where diverse perspectives were present. In other kinds of discussions, different perspectives often lead to debate and attempts to discount differing viewpoints. Yet when the participants invite the Spirit to be present, they hear new information and gain a new view of those who hold differing perspectives. They often find ways to remain in community in the midst of those diverse perspectives.

Most recently at World Conference the topic of nonviolence came before the body. Sue Ann Allen and I facilitated two different discussion groups on the first Saturday of Conference. Although strong perspectives of support or opposition to the resolution were present, speakers risked sharing their thoughts because they sensed the security of the Spirit’s presence. Whether I am with one person or many, I intentionally remind myself how powerful the “job” of the Holy Spirit is.

Prayer Phrase

In God we all belong.

Spiritual Practice

Sustaining Our Connections

Many find themselves isolated around the world to protect each other and the most vulnerable during this global pandemic. Spend time prayerfully imagining those people that you might normally come into contact with on a regular basis, known and unknown. Remember all the connections that sustain our lives each day. Even in this time of intentional separation, how are you experiencing deep, intrinsic belonging in God?

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Pentecost and Pinwheels
Gwen Simpson of Lamoni, IA, USA

God is calling for a prophetic community to emerge, drawn from the nations of the world, that is characterized by uncommon devotion to the compassion and peace of God revealed in Jesus Christ. Through divine grace and wisdom, this faith community has been given abundant gifts, resources, and opportunities to equip it to become such a people. Chief among these is the power of community in Christ ex-pressed locally in distinctive fashions while upholding a unity of vision, foundational beliefs, and mission throughout the world.

There are many issues that could easily consume the time and energy of the church. However, the challenge before a prophetic people is to discern and pursue what matters most for the journey ahead.  -Doctrine and Covenants 163:11

“God, where will your Spirit lead today?” I was speaking at a congregation in our mission center on Pentecost Sunday. It had been an interesting week as I made preparation to speak on the coming of the Spirit to those early Christians. All week, as I prayed the Mission Prayer, I was asking myself whether I was really open to the Spirit and ready to respond. Was I really ready for adventure and stepping out in faith? Had my pew become too routine and comfortable?

The songs and prayers that morning spoke to me further as I waited to share my thoughts with those gathered. Just before I was to speak, a lady helped us make pinwheels out of red, orange, or yellow paper. She showed us how to fold the paper and attach it to a pen with a straight pin. I was delighted with the analogy and eagerly made mine. When it was completed, I blew on it to get it moving, only it didn’t move. Then I realized I was holding the pencil with my hand too high. The pinwheel couldn’t move because my finger was in the way.

When I moved my finger and blew into the pinwheel, it spun around. In that moment of insight, I realized that often in my life I tried to plan and order everything well in advance. I like to be in control; after all, I’m much more comfortable that way. Maybe the Spirit couldn’t do its serendipitous work in my life because my finger (control and planning) got in the way. I wanted to do the leading! How often was I wrestling with the Spirit for control of where I was to go that day?

I shared my insight with the congregation and closed my thoughts encouraging them to use the Mission Prayer as a means of inviting the Spirit to guide their lives. I brought my bright yellow pinwheel home, and it sits on my dresser as a reminder to have “courage to risk,” getting my fingers out of the way so the Spirit can guide me into something new.

Prayer Phrase

In God we all belong.

Spiritual Practice

Sustaining Our Connections

Many find themselves isolated around the world to protect each other and the most vulnerable during this global pandemic. Spend time prayerfully imagining those people that you might normally come into contact with on a regular basis, known and unknown. Remember all the connections that sustain our lives each day. Even in this time of intentional separation, how are you experiencing deep, intrinsic belonging in God?

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.