Wednesday Evening, August 11, 2010, Minute of Exercise

How we struggle and yearn in our human limits to arrive at the joyous moment of embarkation – the momentous launch to action we so long for! Here we are, Lord, wrestling with our so fallible desires for action for setting the course! We struggle to meet that imperative to go forth! Many feel we are on a vessel that is not fully ready, prepared for a charted course. Grant us wisdom to relinquish our expectations, to hand over the helm and to wait for the spirit to lead. We are together for such a brief time, but can we wait? It’s time to go, to go forth.

When we allow ourselves to look into the darkness of our times we cannot deny the outward evils that confront us – environmental disaster impending, wars, and social and economic collapse at many levels. We are all torn and oppressed by these evils, and long to bring both hope and help. And we are reminded that right before us in our neighborhoods and in our communities is the opportunity to speak truth to power, to work for justice, to tend to the needs of neighbors, to build the community we say we want. We need to wake up, open our eyes, to see and understand what is before us. We need God’s grace to acknowledge that there are openings and gifts present within our Monthly meetings enough for every friend. We need the courage to work in our own homes and in our own communities, with and for our neighbors.

But our exercises have not only been in the Meetings to hear god’s call. Our work here has been accompanied by the work in the Anchor groups where we have experienced support and expectations of accountability for our leadings. Many of us report the rich experience of group support and mutual seeking experienced in Anchor groups. And many have made personal commitment to take back to their Monthly meetings for seasoning.

Together, we may have come a long way, but we have still a long way to go on the path God has given us, instead of our stubborn, arrogant resistance of where God is leading us. We need to be holy. We need to wake up to openings for the ways we must let our lives speak. There is revelation; there is the peaceable kingdom but to get there we need to be cracked open. We have no doubt in our minds that you can do this in us. We yearn with our hearts that you will.