Categories: australia, spiritual-journey
Date: 24 June 2010 13:17:32
What a day. A new Prime Minister, and Australia's first female PM. While I see some hope for us, Julia Gillard seems very apt for the job in my simple thoughts, my thoughts and prayers are with Kevin Rudd, our previous PM, and his family; the way he was booted out does seem rather troubling, and my great fear is he will be remembered for this and some bad decisions of late instead of his successes. As a child of God, in the image and likeness of God, he, as well all do, deserves respect. Not that I can speak; I have not been too kind in words about our former PM John Howard. 'Physician heal thyself' and all that. But my prayers are with him.
I'm headed to a Carmelite [Catholic] monastery tomorrow afternoon to spend a weekend there under a guided retreat enticingly titled What Does God Want Me To Do? Though I am not expecting an answer from on high, I am sure the answer is "Be as Christ-like as you can in this very moment, for it's where you are and all you have [in the sense you can't change the past nor live in the future].", I am looking forward to a weekend in a holy place and with a focus, I pray, on God and my life in Him.
This week, this fortnight, has been rather emotional and intense; my hope and prayer is that this weekend helps me centre more on God and calm, to some extent, my fears and anxieties on what should I do. As I said, not expecting a vice from the clouds, but who knows?; rather a sense of peace and guidance by an experienced Carmelite. It was he, Fr Greg Homeming, who led the short course I did on St Teresa of Avila and St John of the Cross; so when I saw his name for this retreat I was rather hopeful and inspired to go.
Not sure what it says that I an Orthodox Christian, well, a rather poor-performing Orthodox Christian, is off to the Copts one week and the Catholics the next. I am lost, truth be told. I do not have a spiritual Father, despite the appeal of one being one of the things that drew me to Orthodoxy. I just do not know where to turn. But, some hope and light is appearing on this particular desire; thanks be to God.
May your weekends, whatever you are doing, be blessed.