New Post from Guest Author Terry Heislen!

New Fellowship blog post from guest author Terry Heislen!http://umfellowship.site-ym.com/blogpost/1125924/184321/Guest-Post-Welcome-to-Invisibility #FellowshipTransform

Let my blood be a seed...

“Let my blood be a seed of freedom”

“I have often been threatened with death. If they kill me, I shall arise in the Salvadoran people. If the threats come to be fulfilled, from this moment I offer my blood to God for the redemption and resurrection of El Salvador. Let my blood be a seed of freedom and the sign that hope will soon be reality.”

--Archbishop Oscar Romero

Today I am mindful of the 34th anniversary of the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero, a hero and inspiration to millions of people around the world, myself included. I first became acquainted with the life, work, and death of Oscar Romero and the struggles of the Salvadoran people while in seminary. As I came to learn more about this incredible man and his conversion from a politically cautious defender of the status quo to a deeply impassioned prophetic voice for the poor and marginalized, I was so moved and inspired by the brilliance of his witness as he sought to follow Christ into one of the darkest situations in the world.  Indeed, here is a man who is on the same plane as Martin Luther King in the United States, as Desmond Tutu in South Africa, as Dietrich Bonheoffer in Germany, of countless other women and men who have given everything to accept Jesus’ invitation to live a life rooted in the dream of God.

All of these 20^th century saints remind us, in the words of Bonheoffer, that there is a cost of discipleship.

Romero knew this truth well. And yet, his faith and daily spiritual discipline sustained him, nourished him, and encouraged him to live out fully the calling that God placed on his life. Romero, like Tutu, gives us a clear example of how contemplation and action must go hand-in-hand. Working for justice and reconciliation is too difficult and too slow to be sustained without a deep rootedness in contemplative practices.

Is your life similarly balanced, between action and contemplation? I invite you to take a few moments today and ponder this balance (or lack thereof) in your own life.

If you have never had the opportunity to become familiar with his work may I recommend to you reading a collection of his sermons and writings, called The Violence of Love. You can find it on Amazon by clicking the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Violence-Love-Oscar-Romero/dp/1570755353

More immediately, I invite you to click through the link below to an incredible 4:55 film from The Project. This film is part of a project called Martyrs Prayers led by Duane W.H. Arnold and United Methodist Deacon Michael Glen Bell. They have recently released a full-length album based around the prayers of martyrs. The deluxe edition of the album comes with a wonderful information booklet that would be very helpful in learning (and hopefully teaching!) more about the examples of the martyrs. The link will connect you with their beautiful short film and song about Romero.

In their words:

Romero's message of social justice, non-violence and self-sacrifice are needed today as never before.  We're asking you to be partners in spreading that message.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21CN815v2G0

I pray you will!

 

Ah, that little springtime!

"Ah, that little springtime..."

As I walked out of my front door this morning to take my daughter to school I was immediately greeted by a beautiful sunrise and the kind of temperature that is 'spring cool': still chilly but you know spring is coming. Moments such as these around here are often followed by the phrase (uttered by folks who moved to Texas from colder climes) "now this is why I moved to Texas!" It is a sentiment that acknowledges both the beauty of the moment and girds one for the summer heat that will be arriving shortly.

Today is the last day of winter.

Even the earth itself seems to acknowledge the inevitable transition from death to new life.

And here we find ourselves, nearly in the middle of Lent, preparing to walk with Christ through his Passion and then to celebrate his Rising.

Truth be told, my first thought when experiencing this glorious morning was the reminder of a few other glorious mornings I had the pleasure of experiencing eleven years ago this month in the ecumenical community of Taize. The famed quote from Pope John  XXIII, "Taize, ah that little springtime!" carries some literal import for me!

My pilgrimage to Taize during Lent in March of 2003 came at an exciting season in my life as I was transitioning from being a life-long student to preparing to head out into the ministry field in a new community. This was a season of deep transition for me and the opportunity to process parts of the journey in such a sacred space with a gracious community was an incredible gift. 

Perhaps the best gift I received at Taize was the new found ability to embrace mystery, to realize the right relationship between Creator and created. On those beautiful French spring mornings I became more and more comfortable, experienced release in simplicity, even, with the idea that my calling is to be faithful and bold to what God was calling me to do in the world and to trust God with the rest. I still often recall this sensation in times of stress and anxiety.  Those moments continue to empower in me moments of resurrection that are fueled by the Holy Spirit.

I give God thanks for the spring!

Where are you preparing to experience new life in your ministry, in your life?

Dinner an a movie!

The simple pleasures are usually the best. Tonight my amazing wife and I are on a date: dinner and a movie (Catching Fire, to be exact) and I am so thankful for this time. It has been too long! I hope that you find some time to be with friends and family in the midst of this crazy season!

What to do when you can't sleep?

Blog, of course!

It's the "most wonderful time of the year" especially if you are a worship desigener and church musician. The season is filled with possibilities for thin places, sacred moments and ritual beauty. It is also a season filled with overflowing to-do lists and massive stress brought on by a lack of time and resources, unreachable expectations and church and family committments. 

No doubt you have experienced all of this as well.

How do we stay engaged, stay excited, not get overwhelmed and not lose our fire as artists during times such as these?

This question is one I'm working on in my subconsicous at the moment as I've been up, unable to sleep, since 3:00 am this morning. Who needs more than three hours of sleep a night, anyway?!?!

I'm answering the question, today, at least, with knocking out administrative tasks so that when I get fresher, mentally, I will be able to work on score study and design issues with a less-cluttered mind. Since I'm struggling to get back to sleep, I'm about to head to the gym to burn-off some stress while burning-off some calories. Later today I will be connecting over lunch with a dear friend and fellow artist and I'm going to do my best to not let the conversation devolve into complaining. I'm also working on general mental toughness!  Finally, I'm holding on to those quite moments of the season and working on being grateful for every moment.

How about you?