From Competitive to Contemplative
Michalina Bartlett of Gainesville, FL, USA
Collectively and individually, you are loved with an everlasting love that delights in each faithful step taken. God yearns to draw you close so that wounds may be healed, emptiness filled, and hope strengthened. Do not turn away in pride, fear, or guilt from the One who seeks only the best for you and your loved ones. Come before your Eternal Creator with open minds and hearts and discover the blessings of the gospel anew. Be vulnerable to divine grace. -Doctrine and Covenants 163:10
After bounding from its crouch, the cat streaks into the chase with its gaze intent on the terrified mouse. The teeth of the mouse have a viselike clamp on the cheese. Nothing is more intimidating than the focus of a predator, and nothing more fear-driven than the escape of the hunted. And, between the two, there is nothing more narrow in vision than this interplay of pursuit and escape.
Myself, I want out of this mad race and into the peaceful contemplation of the Divine. Pondering the image of cat and mouse, I can see how much time I waste in competitive living. In the end, it succeeds in nothing but a selfish result. By being the winner, and perhaps being right-or the loser, and perhaps being wrong-both lose. Both are egoistic and shortsighted.
Why involve ourselves in this struggle at all? Hindered by the blinders a shortsighted goal creates for us, we can’t see anything beyond what is before our faces: the need to control, be right, and win.
I would rather know I am reconciled to God and divine truth. This is a more expansive and creative way to live. I would choose to live without the blinders that ego pursuit and pride create. What would happen then? The more I consider the alternative, the more I see myself choosing Christ’s peace. There are no losers in the pursuit of what matters most. There are only winners in Christ’s mission of evangelism, compassionate ministries, and justice and peacemaking.
Prayer Phrase
“Led by the Holy Spirit, we work with God and others to restore peace (shalom) to creation” (https://www.cofchrist.org/enduring-principles).
Spiritual Practice
Embodying God’s Shalom
Find a way to express and embody God’s shalom. Begin by prayerfully listening to your longing for peace and wholeness. Become silent and imagine you can hear the groaning of the Earth’s people, nations, and creatures. Prayerfully open yourself to God’s yearning for peace and the divine vision of shalom.
What images, feelings, and words come to you? What prayer for peace comes to you from your time of listening? Speak or write this prayer. What act of justice, kindness, healing, or peacemaking does God invite you to consider this day?
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.
