Dear Friends,
I was reminded this week of a truth I hold dear: When all of the distractions and drama of life fall away, it seems that the point of it all is simply who you loved and how well you loved them.
It is so easy to get sidetracked and to forget the things that are most important. Whenever I want to do a “spiritual inventory” I begin with the question: To what extent is my life loving? Am I exercising my capacity to love and am I extending grace to myself and others?
Many of us have been brokenhearted at all the pain and suffering around us, and around the world. It is tempting to close off our heart so we don’t feel the grief and loss—especially so much of it this past 18 months—but to be brokenhearted is also to be open hearted. And, though it may seem counter-intuitive, a broken heart can lead to whole-hearted living.
I’ll be wrapping up the Rising Strong series this Sunday and talking about whole-hearted living. I hope together we can begin to use the rising strong process as a spiritual practice.
I want to thank so many of you for your incredible generosity last Sunday as we received an offering for the Haiti Initiative—you gave over $3,000!!!
Peace and grace,
Penny
p.s. I have received several emails this week with concerns about the upcoming recall election in CA. PLEASE vote in this election—either by mail or in person. Inform yourself about the dates and about the process. There is a lot of contradictory information out there—CCSM Board member Sandy McNabb is happy to be a resource to answer questions: sandra.j.mcnabb@gmail.com; 650-594-0742
