Bright Moments

Beauty, God, Joy 0

It’s tempting to dismiss these bright moments as merely flashes of serendipity, of coincidence. I contend that they are limited only by our response to them. We’ve already considered that hallowed moments are often found in small things and small places and that God does not have a habit of appearing to us in spectacular ways. Rather, we note God’s presence when we take time to observe the humble, everyday miracles and, now and then, the bright moments. These will not make the newspapers, but they should surely hold space in our private journals.

–Tracy Balzer, A Journey of Sea and Stone, p. 81

Photo: Sunrise, South Riding, Virginia, March 7, 2025

Living in the House of God

God, Joy 0

Recovering this sacramental ontology is the next big step toward enchanting our faith in this skeptical age. This is a one-story universe. So let’s stop going through the day living as if God doesn’t exist. God is everywhere present. God isn’t that mysterious neighbor living in the apartment above you. God is closer than you can imagine. The signs and sacraments are all around you. Christ is playing in ten thousand places. The world hums with sacred electricity. Listen for the laughter and follow your joy. You are standing at the gateway to heaven. You are living in the House of God.

–Richard Beck, Hunting Magic Eels, p. 90

Photo: Burg Grafendahn, Germany, June 18, 2024

Start with Joy

Beauty, God, Joy 0

As Paul says, “He has not left himself without witness.” God’s voice is heard in the rain and in the harvest. God is close where there is good food and the laughter of friends. God has been with you this entire time, declares Paul, “filling your hearts with joy.” Start with joy if you’re looking for enchantment. Let gladness be your guide to the gateway of heaven.

— Richard Beck, Hunting Magic Eels, p. 90

Photo: South Riding, Virginia, January 11, 2025

Gifts of Grace

Grace, Joy 0

It may be that we have lost our ability to hold a blazing coal, to move unfettered through time, to walk on water, because we have been taught that such things have to be earned; we should deserve them; we must be qualified. We are suspicious of grace. We are afraid of the very lavishness of the gift.

But a child rejoices in presents!

— Madeleine L’Engle, quoted in Glimpses of Grace, collected by Carole F. Chase

Photo: South Riding, Virginia, January 20, 2024

Always On Time

Joy 0

Do not turn away joy — even if it arrives at an inconvenient time, even if you think you should be grieving, even if you think it’s “too soon.” Joy is always on time.

KEEP MOVING.

— Maggie Smith, Keep Moving, p. 105

Photo: South Riding, Virginia, 1/17/2022

Joy as Antidote

Joy 0

Of one thing I am sure. Complaining is self-perpetuating and counterproductive. Whenever I express my complaints in the hope of evoking pity and receiving the satisfaction I so much desire, the result is always the opposite of what I tried to get. A complainer is hard to live with, and very few people know how to respond to the complaints made by a self-rejecting person. The tragedy is that, often, the complaint, once expressed, leads to that which is most feared: further rejection. . . . Joy and resentment cannot coexist.

— Henri J. M. Nouwen, You Are Beloved, p. 170 (from The Return of the Prodigal Son)

Pockets of Relief

Healing, Joy 0

You are not betraying your grief by feeling joy. You are not being graded, and you do not receive extra credit for being miserable 100% of the time. Find pockets of relief, even happiness, when and where you can.

KEEP MOVING.

— Maggie Smith, Keep Moving, p. 38

Photo: South Riding, Virginia, December 2, 2020