It's nice

It's nice, in this era of economic uncertainty, to have a certain amount of stability. No matter what the situation is, Republicans in Congress seem hard-pressed to have any response besides "we can't spend more money." Here's the latest article with said typical responses.

There are a few dependable exceptions, of course: tax cuts for people in the top income brackets, wars, and other times when they're in power.

In some ways, I think the Republicans are doing a very good job as a party of opposition - it's nice that the stimulus bill got some trimming. On the other hand, I'm very glad they're not the ones in charge of the basic approach. We did tax cuts and deregulation for 8 years, and here is where we ended up!

/end rant

Like a Ripening Apple


When I was ordained, one of the spiritual disciplines I took on was reading from the Bible every day. I have a book (an ordination gift) that has daily readings and the church's weekly readings from the Bible, and then a selection of readings from the compilers' favorite authors.

A quote from Thomas Merton out of one of last week's readings for reflections sticks with me: "How does an apple ripen? It sits in the sun."

I think the unpredictability of prayer life - sometimes it feels fruitful, sometimes it feels dry - is part of the larger experience of being acted upon by God. It's paradoxical in a way - prayer is something people do, of course - but at the same time, prayer is something God does to and with us.