Heavy Heart

Good Morning All....

I have a bit of a heavy heart this morning, as I have learned that one of my dearest friends is facing a difficult illness.  For many, many years, he's been a source of everything from sound advice to immense laughter in my life.  Please keep him and his family in your thoughts and prayers.  I would also ask that you remember three more of my good friends who are facing losses and battles in their lives.

I'm also feeling QUITE anxious about my adopted Rectory family in CT and the Hamptons in North Carolina.  It looks as though Irene's course is set, but I pray that she softens her blow as she approaches the coast!!

After a very busy week spent in many different places, I think that today will be a day of quiet reflection.  Life can literally turn on a dime, often with little or no warning.  And so often we find that the things that we spend most of our time worrying about matter the least, as we look backward.    As I've journeyed into the 'new normal' over these last three months, I've wondered several times, 'How did I get here?', and perhaps more importantly, 'WHY??'.  It's the 'why' that seems to perplex me the most....and today I'm especially stuck in the 'why' of it all!  God certainly does keep us on our toes!    As we travel through the storms....the real ones and the figurative ones.....it's sometimes hard to feel His goodness, but our faith assures us that it's there.  People often say, 'God has a plan'....I've said it countless times!  I DO believe that God has a plan, but it's hard for me to believe that He PLANS things that frighten us or make us sad.  However, I know without a doubt that He often uses those things that frighten us or make us sad to teach us lessons or to reveal His goodness.  So, Lord, give us the patience and the resilience to relinquish all of this to You and the faith to find Your goodness when it seems so hidden from us.  And please keep all of us safe!

Love to All!
Julie