Creation Comes Rushing In…
By John Bonney of Springfield, OR, USA
…‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” —Mark 12:31 NRSV
It was a quiet time, a peaceful time. A time which allowed me to receive the rushing entry of creation that comes to the seeking mind. I was walking the neighborhood streets in the dark at 4:00 a.m. Other than the occasional passing car, there was no sound—no frogs, no owls, cats, or rats, just an occasional barking dog.
A car pulled up behind me. I stepped out of the street, but the driver stopped to talk. “Hey, hi, I haven’t seen you for a long time! I wondered how you were!”
I remembered him. “Ah, yes, Robert.”
Robert is enthusiastic and talkative. The few times we chat he is friendly and always wants to know how I’m doing. Of course he tells me how he is doing, too. I recall Robert is either a bartender or owns a bar and gets home between four and five in the morning.
Robert is a 52-year-old single who engrosses himself in physical health issues. On this morning, excited about a new diet he had come across, Robert told me all about it.
Usually my early morning walks prepare me for a visit of the Spirit of creation. Usually it involves sound, some view of the heavens, an animal moving stealthily nearby. I invariably have an “Aha!” moment. But this morning that did not happen, not until I thought further about my visit with Robert.
I doubt he would think of himself as a carrier of the Essence of Creation, but he was, for me, on this day. Within Robert was something that breathed enthusiasm for life—living in the daylight, in the dark, in the bar, or on the street. A blessing of personhood.
I thank my neighbor Robert for being who he is—openly willing to share life with another. So different from me, yet he has much of value to teach me. He arises from the Ground of Being, that fertile location of beginning. I may never see Robert again, but I know on this one small speck of a planet, one human being shared the spiritedness of life with me.
Prayer for Peace
Ground of Being, we prepare ourselves to receive your Spirit, be it through Robert, Barbara, Bill, Sharon or whomever. We will see you in the letter carrier, the checkout clerk, the receptionist, or the teacher. We will hear you in a new baby’s cry, a child’s laughter, a singing bird, the wind in the trees, or a stranger’s voice saying, “Amen.”
Spiritual Practice: Honoring the Worth of All Persons
Read Psalm 139:13–18. After reading, sit quietly and let the words sink deeply into your mind, heart, and body. What thoughts and feelings do you have about being “fearfully and wonderfully made”?
Peace Covenant
Today, God, your Spirit rushing in will not surprise me.
