This incredible picture of the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights was taken by Bob King, a photographer from Duluth.

Here is a message I presented in October 2007 to a large group in a ‘recovery’ church, less than a week after a tree fell on my shoulder while playing lumberjack in the woods. I was high on pain-killers and had my arm in a sling. Two of my young adult children joined me on harmonies and guitar.

“Look at six eggs in a mockingbird’s nest
Listen to six mockingbirds flinging follies of o-be-joyful over the marshes and uplands
Look at songs hidden in eggs.”
-Carl Sandburg

Tonight, I come before you with my unique part to play, my song to sing. Last month, I finished recording a CD, my first recording for grownups in over 25 years. My songs have long been hidden in eggs.

I wanted to come to you, full strength, with my rockin’ guitar playing and my voice in fine form. Instead, here I am at about 60% of my emotional and physical strength, with a broken wing, and under doctor’s orders not to play guitar. So as I’m setting out to fly in support of this record, I’m going to need a little help from my children Erin and Charlie and my friend Greg on piano tonight…and mostly a lift from God.

We know that the hardships and trials we each must overcome to ‘sing our songs’-to live our lives wholly-is an inner work of the soul and it is a lifelong process of courageous partnering with God’s transforming work in our lives.

There are many dangers and snares along the way, aren’t there?

Our souls are ‘mortally wounded’ because of the Fall. As we grow up in our family nest and as we learn to fly, it is certain that the enemies of our soul and the snares and beatings of pride and shame will come upon us to try to thwart every new attempt to sing in freedom of spirit.

It is my conviction that the hard work of surrender and healing—to allow the work of God in our lives—to tend to the sufferings, disappointments and grief–will bring us the freedom and humility we so desire.

This is the most important work we choose do in our lives.

The challenge for each of us is to fully sing our song, to speak our truth, to share the love of God. But it is my experience that the deeper we go in this journey, the more fierce some of these battles can get.

I’m convinced the most important work you can do is to peck through the hard shell that keeps you from the freedom that is ours in Christ, to persist and persevere to fully sing your unique song, because only you can play that part. We need you to sing your song and play your part as a child of God. And do not believe the lies of the enemy who wants to take you down.

Do not live in the house of fear, beloved, but live in the house of love.

'songs hidden in eggs' is the name of my album. The songs are pictures of my own intense and prolonged journey to find my voice and sing my song. I am here today, by the grace of God, to encourage you to sing your song, to own your own life. As Parker Palmer says: “Let your life speak.”

That night, I said quite a few other things extemporaneously and freely. I sang several songs, including the one you are listening to: House of Love. I know I talked about how thrilled I was to have my young adult children singing beside me, their beautiful harmonies and humble confidence a testimony to God’s loving kindness. I remember feeling very proud of them and of course, this is another blog entry for the coming days.

I closed my talk with words from the lovely soul of Henri Nouwen:

“God has called you to speak the Word to the world and to speak it fearlessly. While acknowledging your wounded-ness, do not let go of the truth that lives in you and demands to be spoken.”

Oh, to be a mystic...

"Bernard McGinn authored a four-volume study on the history of Christian mysticism. He says mysticism is “a consciousness of the presence of God that by definition exceeds description and … deeply transforms the subject who has experienced it.”

*If it does not radically change the lifestyle of the person—their worldview, their economics, their politics, their ability to form community, you have no reason to believe it is genuine mystical experience. It is usually just people with an addiction to religion, which is not that uncommon, by the way.*

Mysticism is not just a change in some religious ideas or affirmations. Mystics have no need to exclude or eliminate others, or define themselves as enlightened, whereas a mere transfer of religious assertions often makes people even more elitist and more exclusionary.

True mystics are glad to be common, ordinary, egalitarian, servants of all, and “just like everybody else,” because any need for specialness has been met once and for all."

Love (III)
-George Herbert 1593–1633

Love bade me welcome, yet my soul drew back,
Guilty of dust and sin.
But quick-ey'd Love, observing me grow slack
From my first entrance in,
Drew nearer to me, sweetly questioning
... If I lack'd any thing.

"A guest," I answer'd, "worthy to be here";
Love said, "You shall be he."
"I, the unkind, ungrateful? ah my dear,
I cannot look on thee."
Love took my hand, and smiling did reply,
"Who made the eyes but I?"

"Truth, Lord, but I have marr'd them; let my shame
Go where it doth deserve."
"And know you not," says Love, "who bore the blame?"
"My dear, then I will serve."
"You must sit down," says Love, "and taste my meat."
So I did sit and eat.

"All the dubious features of Calvin's doctrine result from the basic failing that in the last analysis he separates God and Jesus Christ, thinking that what was in the beginning with God must be sought elsewhere than in Jesus Christ."
Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics

Ignatius of Loyola: “Take, Lord, and receive … all that I have and call my own. You have given all to me.To you, Lord, I return it. Everything is yours: Do with it what you will. Give me only your love and your grace. That is enough for me.“

(Adapted from St. Augustine’s Confessions, Book VIII: 4)

Come O Lord
Stir our hearts
Call us back
To you

Start your fire
In our hearts
Draw us near
To you

Let us love you
  Let us run to your side
Carry us home
To you.