Minute Meditations

Pained by opportunities missed,
and the many violations of life,
still we give thanks.

With humility we acknowledge
our general failure to imagine
much more compassionate alternatives to life in these times.

And when at last we realize
we don’t know where to go,
we are ready to be led into brighter days.

Disciples of the Prince of Peace
live in tension between grief for all that’s lost and never can be, 
and gratitude for all that’s given; an overflow of possibility.

—from the book Wandering and Welcome: Meditations for Finding Peace by Joseph Grant

Darkness is necessary. All life germinates in the dark and we spend fully one half of our lives in that state. Without pervasive darkness there would be no need for light, and still there are places and realities that light cannot illumine. Lightlessness also bears different aspects. It is the impenetrable cloak of mystery that hides the Holy and shades our lives with the nuance of not-knowing. Such darkness can both isolate and integrate us under its shadow. When plunged into blackness, our first instinct is to reach out for one another. Should we turn our headlights off, linger long enough in unknowing, and let our eyes adjust to the dimness, we might discover that most especially in dark times we are not alone.

—from the book Wandering and Welcome: Meditations for Finding Peace by Joseph Grant

“By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn will break over us from above, to enlighten those who sit under the dark shadow of death, and to guide our feet onto the way of peace.” —Luke 1:78-79

Are you ready to welcome the glimmer of new beginnings?

With fresh fires and Christmas lights,
we mark the darkest days of the rolling year,
and call to mind how everything and everyone starts in the dark.

Dark days augur alienation and danger
yet darkness also draws us together;
a time for dimming our lights so we can see the stars.

This sacred season of birth pangs and beginnings 
offers time to lovingly look back
over a year of gifts, of losses, and of lessons.

—from the book Wandering and Welcome: Meditations for Finding Peace by Joseph Grant

Amid all the disaster and distress
that wheels around and swirls within us in chaotic times,
there are also always marvels to behold.

Let neither fear nor preoccupation
keep you from being touched
by wonderfully wounded life.

May you find a way in every day,
to share your great-fullness
for all that touches your eyes.

May you refuse to be crushed
but rather, look lovingly upon all with tear-washed eyes,
trained on woundedness, straining for wonder.

As you savor the sweet brevity of your days, 
may passion puncture you, letting out joy,
till warmly you are welcomed; a sight for sore eyes.

—from the book Wandering and Welcome: Meditations for Finding Peace by Joseph Grant

Then shall blinded eyes be opened,

and deaf ears unstopped;

then shall the lame ones leap like deer,

and speechless voices sing for joy. —Isaiah 35:5-6

If we are

not yet astonished,

we are not quite awake!

God-willing, we will be blessed by another sunrise,

to break open our hearts and bring us to our knees.

But none will exactly be like this shining, singular morning.

So, as our world rolls, dawn to dusk,

we contemplate the countless faces,

whose loves and longings sunlight graces.

—from the book Wandering and Welcome: Meditations for Finding Peace by Joseph Grant

In this world darkened by despair and deep division,

we fumble dimly,

to see past self-interest, fears, and endless feuding.

But even looking down we can see beyond,

like the pilgrim seeking clarity

who found a limpid pool,

and bending down

glimpsed the Milky Way

mirrored in the deep.

Then gazing heavenward,

gaped and gasped

at the cosmic show above,

while awe-filled silence taught:

the stiller you become,

the clearer will your reflection be.

from the book Wandering and Welcome: Meditations for Finding Peace by Joseph Grant

If you are about gospel work,

with a head for justice and a tender heart,

it helps each day to cleanse the lens.

We dare not disregard the darkness,

nor turn away from problems and pain;

but face instead each mornings light and bathe our

eyes in mercys rain.

When the world looks always grimy,

when hope and newness are obscured,

then is the time for window wiping.

Cleanse the panes with wonder and lament,

for the tears of sorrow and laughter you share,

let loves light in to dissipate despair.

No matter where your eyes come to rest,

will you look long enough and lovingly,

till light breaks through at last?

from the book Wandering and Welcome: Meditations for Finding Peace by Joseph Grant

Amid all the disaster and distress

that wheels around and swirls within us in chaotic times,

there are also always marvels to behold.

Let neither fear nor preoccupation

keep you from being touched

by wonderfully wounded life.

May you find a way in every day,

to share your great-fullness

for all that touches your eyes.

May you refuse to be crushed

but rather, look lovingly upon all with tear-washed eyes,

trained on woundedness, straining for wonder.

As you savor the sweet brevity of your days,

may passion puncture you, letting out joy,

till warmly you are welcomed; a sight for sore eyes.

from the book Wandering and Welcome: Meditations for Finding Peace by Joseph Grant

If this were your last day, hour, minute, or breath, imagine how you might drink in the daylight, taste the twilight, touch the stars, smell the sunshine, delight at songbirds, listen to the look of your loved ones, bow before the sanctity of a stranger, be carried away with astonishment, and be beside yourself with awe at the wonder of it all. Perhaps we engage life in its fullness when we stop asking if we are there yet and live into the unfolding and radical realization that we are always already here." For it is only here that we can really be, wholly present and fully engaged; and no matter where you go, there you are.

from the book Wandering and Welcome: Meditations for Finding Peace by Joseph Grant