Endings and Faith

This morning I am thinking of a former brother and sister-in-law after learning that she died last evening. End-stage renal disease was the culprit so this had been a process. She had a deep faith as does her son who let us know through Facebook. Brother Bob has been a part of her faith tradition for forty some years so I suppose he does too. Though their way of thinking about faith and mine are different, that faith must help.

I didn't begin this writing with the intention of writing about faith, but that's what's showing up.

Her son wrote on Facebook to cousins and aunts (of which he still considers me one) that his mother had passed into the arms of her Savior. That provides a beautiful image, one of love and

peace.

I'm more concerned with faith in this moment by moment existence than with the end-of-life faith. I think of them as one. Today is when I need faith in God's love, the Divine Wisdom of which we are all part. Selfishly I suppose, I want my share of that faith and Divine Wisdom.

The Gospel writers all quote Jesus as saying, My love is sufficient, in various ways.

I ask for clearing of the muck that prevents that love from shining through me as part of all my prayers, the openness to let the critical voice go quiet and Divine love pour through. Compassion is the name most often assigned to that Divine love in my world. Faith in that compassion and its striving for the best in all of us is the faith I most need.

I also need faith that the Holy Spirit, my inner voice of that Divine, will show me where and how I'm to use my talents, a way to share Her healing message--if that call is true and not my old self showing up to give me a sense of mission. Faith when the mission doesn't seem to have a path, when the way is unclear; faith to take a step and trust that if it isn't the right one a correction will come before I've wasted too much energy or time--that's faith I need today.

I want to be wrapped in that Divine love now. Is that asking too much?!