We all have triggers: sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touches, that can mentally and emotionally instantly catapult us back into a dark time in our past. Suddenly, we're THERE again, caught up in a vivid memory, struggling, weeping, suffering, sinning, all over again. It takes a burst of unbelievable energy to push us, staggering, back into the reality of today.
It takes the energy of telling ourselves again: What happened is done. Over. In the past. We're healed now, enough to move past it. We're in recovery. We've learned from it, we're stronger, we're capable of living in the light of present joy.
We are the ones who have the power. We can give power to the devouring darkness that wants to suck us into living always in the dark episodes of our past. Or we can give power to the Light of Joy.
We need to hold on to the experiences of joy that we're having right now. The Light of Joy envelops us and protects us with the truth that yes, all those bad experiences and choices we made truly happened, but they don't have to define the totality of who we are today, in the present.
Our Risen Lord, Jesus, doesn't define us by our pasts, or even one single experience. Jesus doesn't look at us and call us "addict" or "adulterer" or "gossip" or "faithless friend" or "cheat" or "cancer or heart patient" or "veteran" or "victim with PTSD" or even "grieving parent or child or widow or widower." Jesus looks into our eyes and into our lives and sees so much more. He sees the vast panorama of our lives, all our passionate hopes and dreams, successes and failures, loves and hates, even our smallest words and deeds.
Jesus calls us by name, His personal Name for us, a Name that encompasses the total reality of who we are - a person who can live in the joy of the Gospel because Jesus has set us free from darkness. He died for us, rose for us, forgives our sins, and heals us emotionally and spiritually hour by hour so that each day is a resurrection for us into new life.
Today we choose to live in joy. We bask in the warm sunlight of God's love, pouring over our bodies, penetrating into our souls. We breathe in the perfume of flowers in our yards, or pick the lettuce and tomatoes, and herbs, the results of our patient gardening. We embrace the people who seek us out because they see the good in us and love to affirm us. We cuddle the pets which give us simple devotion. We embrace the jobs and ministries which make us feel wanted and useful. We listen to the music which soothes us and energizes us. We read the magazines and books that feed our souls with others' journeys of the heart.
Most of all, we pray. We open ourselves to God's Presence. And we acknowledge the gift of Jesus' wounds, the wounds He shows us as he showed His apostles and disciples when He appeared to them as their Risen Lord. He tells us He understands all that we've gone through and are going through. He forever intercedes for us with God our Father as both God and man, one who suffered in the flesh. "For we do not have a high priest (Jesus) who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin." (Hebrew 4: 14-15.)
Jesus gives us our deepest, everlasting joy: the joy that God has become one with us, saved us from our sins, and freely and lovingly gives us the gift of eternal life. If we believe in the Resurrection of the dead, given to us by and through Jesus, - how can we NOT live in the Light of Joy?!
Dear Readers,
I will not be doing blog posts from Sunday, July 5 through Friday, July 10 because my husband and I are going on retreat. Please pray for me as I will be praying for all of you! And - as always - please share this meditation with a friend.