Uphill idealist

There are ways in the last week that I've felt re-rooted and uprooted and I suppose that is just the way life can be. A few weeks ago, I was bothered by a dream that left me upon waking with an overwhelming sense of failure. I was not feeling or sensing this emotion in my waking existence, but somewhere in my subconscious it was lurking the way this kind of feeling lurks in dark corners of the psyche only to find release in REM moments of dreamland. It was a bad dream. I don't remember much of the details, just an oppressive feeling of.. "I really messed up and it can't be fixed." For the most part, I shrugged off this seemingly random dream and went about my life. I was at the NYWC in Pittsburgh, so I had lots of things to keep me busy and occupied. I resumed the pace of life when returning home to my family and my work and planned out the remaining months of the year of youth activities and gatherings without so much as missing a beat. That is until tripping ove...

photo found at Wordpress The time of advent is one of expectation and waiting. Waiting is not something thing that our hurried-need-to-get-what-I-need-done-yesterday culture excels. The scripture readings in Isaiah 63:16-19 and 64:2-7 are filled with examples of people asking God to hurry back to help his servants or hurry and do an awesome work that is unexpected, but greatly needed. While the time that we wait expectantly on God is not easy to live through, the waiting time often provides us the opportunity to grow in faith. A few years ago I went through a particularly difficult and what seemed a long period of waiting for God to care for a need in my life. In the waiting time, there were glimmers of hope in escaping what seemed to be an impossible situation. At times, I was living from glimmer to glimmer, thinking my great escape was just around the corner. So much of that time I felt as if God was hiding his face(Isaiah 64:7) from me. One day, while driving to work I was listening...

The last weekend of November marks the beginning of the Advent, setting time for all of us to expectantly wait for the blessings of the Christmas season. While there are many opportunities this upcoming month to worship, serve and celebrate with friends and family; I’d like to suggest that this Advent season we should consider ways of setting a pace for peace. When researching the word pace, I came across an image of a flag used by an Italian peace organization established in 1961. I discovered that the Italian word for “pace” is our word for “peace”. "The Italian PEACE flag was inspired by the flag of Anglo-Saxon pacifists who marched in Aldermaston for an anti-nuclear protest, led by Bertrand Russell. Mr. Capitini asked some housewives from Perugia, who were friends of him, to sew with all possible speed some colored stripes to form a flag to be shown during the march. The women choose to sew the background of the flag in the colors of the rainbow in remembrance of the story of ...

A few weeks ago, I reconnected with an old friend via Facebook and had enjoyed learning about his life and family. About a week ago, Drew's son Levi had a serious and sudden health scare when having a cardiac arrest in gym class. Over the first few traumatic days in the hospital, Facebook, lit up with prayer request and support for Levi and his mom and dad. It is a miracle that Levi is doing well and apparently has no ill effects from this incident. Go to Levi's news story to learn more. Go to " Become a fan of Levi" - a group on Facebook started by his dad Drew to leave notes of encouragement for Levi in his recovery process. Keep praying! Tara

The bakery of my life has been busy the last few weeks with attending the NYWC in Pittsburgh, PA and settling in at my new church. There has been a great deal of letting go and holding on going on in my life, but I will try to be selective in the ones I share with you for this Monday's sleeping with bread. Some of the things I have been trying to leave behind me are connected to sensitive areas or hurt or loss. Some are connected to my childhood and upheavals in my late adolescence, some are related to my vocation and calling in ministry, but they all prove to be associations or specters of boundaries established by sometimes well-meaning, but short-sighted folks or my own doubting voice. I am trying to uncurl the fingers of past hurt to allow remaining words of doubts, negativity, and fear to be exposed to the light of new opportunity and fresh perspective to provide a healing touch some areas of long-time sensitivity. I sense that even after thinking I've dealt with some thin...

Hey just in case you are attending or have some friends that are attending the NYWC in Pittsburgh this weekend they have a communication and planning network up that is really helpful in making connections and working out your schedule for the weekend. Let me know if you'll be there and we can catch up in the 'Burgh! Here's the link to my profile on the YS site: Tara's YS page. Tara

...On Sunday when I was helping serve Communion for the contemporary service. People were coming up for the elements (bread and wine) and I was saying to them, "This is the body of Christ, shed for you." as they dipped their bread into the cup I was holding. I felt like I was standing in they exact place I was supposed to be standing at 10:37 am Sunday October 26th, 2008. There was a rightness about it that made everything seem surreal for about five minutes or so. In that place of communion with people and God - I felt that was where I'm called to be. It seemed like home.