King; The Great Stumbling Block

“I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro’s great stumbling block in the stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen’s Counciler or Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate more devoted to ‘order’ than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace of justice; who says, ‘I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I can’t agree with your methods of direct action’; who paternalistically feels he can set the timetable for another man’s freedom; who lives by the myth of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait until a ‘more convenient season.’” —Martin Luther King, Jr., “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” April 16, 1963.

I repeat part of the message from MLK this morning, for this letter from jail still speaks so profoundly to us in another century. We live in a time of paradox that continually shuttles us between “be patient” and “time to act.” How do we know which to do? I think part of MLK’s message is that what is a “more convenient season” for one, is not so for another. Most of us have no idea what it has been like to walk in the shoes of those who have been oppressed for years, even centuries. I also know that in my life, if I wait for the “most convenient time,” that time will never be, never happen.

When is the most convenient time to get married, have children, tell the truth, visit the sick, go to church, write, read, go on vacation, retire? I remember what a friend early in my recovery said at a 12-step meeting many, many years ago: “I am all right as long as I have all my ducks in a row.” Well, my experience is that those ducks never perfectly line up in a row! There is always some inconvenience that will keep us and our ducks in disarray and prevent us from doing any of the things we know are right and that we feel called to do.

We try to find “the most convenient time” to pray, meditate, be silent. There is always some reason that something else should be done instead, especially marking off the other things on our to-do list for the day.

We are called to “make time” for these things by deciding on priorities. We know this, but the doing is the hard part. We want to thank MLK today for putting us in our place, reminding us to listen more carefully to the cries of those who are oppressed, to the parts of ourselves that are oppressed—as well as to the parts of the needy who come for spiritual direction. We are called to listen, listen, listen, and to reach out, even at a most inconvenient time.

Joanna . joannaseibert.com

Book Signing Wordsworth Books

Saturday, November 2, 2019 1 to 3 pm

Just in time for the holidays

A Spiritual Rx for Advent Christmas, and Epiphany

The Sequel to A Spiritual Rx for Lent and Easter

Both are $18. Money from sale of the books goes to Camp Mitchel Camp and Conference Center in Arkansas or Hurricane Relief in

The Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast

Dolphins and Waiting

“So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, of every kind, with which the waters swarm.” —Genesis 1:21.

I wake up too late to see the sun-rising spectacle on the Gulf of Mexico, but it is still quiet with only the blue heron and pelicans and sea gulls stirring about. A lone “Share the Beach” sea turtle volunteer now arrives with her stethoscope to monitor the walled-off clutch of turtle eggs just in front of our condominium. A second turtle volunteer in a green shirt arrives from a different direction. They are conferencing. They think tonight may be the night.

I just want to sit. Something keeps me from checking my email or going over my prepared morning sermon one more time. I just wait. Something tells me to wait.

There are not words to describe what soon happens A white fishing boat motors, then pauses, then motors on the horizon. On either side, in front and behind the boat, are at least five or six dolphins swimming, jumping out of the water beside the boat! My instinct is to yell out to the fishermen to turn off their motors. I don’t want the dolphins to get caught in an engine.

Are these dolphins being trained for some aquarium? They follow so closely. The fishermen don’t seem to be observing the dolphins. This must be old hat to them. I don’t see them throwing fish to entice the dolphins to follow the boat. The boat turns around and the dolphins follow, pursuing the boat until it is out of sight.

The sighting was brief but revealed something I had never considered before. I Google “why dolphins follow boats.” This may not be an uncommon occurrence, but it was new to me. It is called “bow riding” when dolphins surf in the wave created by boats, and “wake riding” when dolphins swim along and surf in the waves created by the back of boats. Google cannot explain it, but suggests the dolphins are just playing and enjoying the surf. What a novel idea. Nature is affirming our need to play.

Later at church I talk to our old friend Chan, who knows all about the sea. She thinks the fishing boat probably was a shrimp trawler, and that after gathering the shrimp, the fishermen throw the rest of the sea’s treasure back. It becomes a feast for dolphins. Dolphins have learned instinctively to follow these boats and wait for the catch of the day. So the dolphin show could have been related to food rather than fun—but could it be both?

That evening at sunset I sit again in silence. I keep thinking about how I was instinctively able that morning to sit by the sea and wait and watch for the dolphins instead of getting caught up in the agenda for the day. Synchronicity, serendipity: the occurrence of events that appear significantly related. Now I don’t know if my expectancy was related to the dolphin spectacle that unfolded; but I am staying open, especially to more sitting and waiting and watching by the sea.

Joanna. Joannaseibert.com

Book Signing Wordsworth Books

Saturday, November 2, 2019 1 to 3 pm

Just in time for the holidays

A Spiritual Rx for Advent Christmas, and Epiphany

The Sequel to A Spiritual Rx for Lent and Easter

Both are $18. Money from sale of the books goes to Camp Mitchel Camp and Conference Center in Arkansas or Hurricane Relief in

The Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast

Surrender

“I abandon all that I think I am, all that I hope to be, all that I believe I possess. I let go of the past, I withdraw my grasping hand from the future, and in the great silence of this moment, I alertly rest my soul.”

—Howard Thurman in Deep Is the Hunger (Friends United Press, 1978).

bernard hermant . unsplash

The first line of this quote, “I abandon all that I think I am,” reminds me of the exchange of rings in the liturgy of the celebration of a marriage. “N, I give you this ring as a symbol of my vow, and with all that I am, and all that I have, I honor you, in the Name of God” (The Book of Common Prayer, p. 317). Of course, Thurman goes even further than the vow at the exchange of rings. This prayer now turns over to God all that we think we are, all that we might hope to be, all that we imagine we possess: our past, present, and future. The result, in the silence of the moment, is that we mindfully rest into our soul, united to the God within us, and find that peace that words cannot describe.

This is freedom. I am no longer in charge. Doing the next right thing but not worrying about the results. Each of us striving to be the person God created us to be, not the person others may be calling us to be. Discerning and then doing what we think we are uniquely called to do. Hoping to find direction through spiritual practices and inner work as we live faithfully in community. Listening. Listening to other people’s stories. Then, at the right time, telling our own story. Learning how to forgive and to be forgiven. Being always grateful. Becoming a servant leader.

This is the life of surrender.

Joanna. Joannaseibert.com

Book Signing Wordsworth Books

Saturday, November 2, 2019 1 to 3 pm

Just in time for the holidays

A Spiritual Rx for Advent Christmas, and Epiphany

The Sequel to A Spiritual Rx for Lent and Easter

Both are $18. Money from sale of the books goes to Camp Mitchel Camp and Conference Center in Arkansas or Hurricane Relief in

The Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast