THE GIFT OF LIMITS

| ANNE WILLIAMSON | 

I see an America confused at its limits. After centuries of take, take, take, we're (slowly) waking up to the reality that this planet is not infinite. Earth has limits. Where once wages increased with productivity, now it's poverty, and millions suffer under the golden calf called the bottom line. People have limits too. And, even for the relatively wealthy, baked in a culture of more, more, more, we're beginning to wonder, "Are all these things and activities worth it? Do I have more joy? Do my neighbors?"

Instead of resisting these limits - hanging onto a familiar but crumbling model -, what if we embraced them? What if we chose to see them as the spiritual lesson they are? Time and resources and energies are limited. Maybe this is okay. Maybe it's even a gift. LEARN, LISTEN, LOVE...

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JESUS, THE ACTIVIST

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

There's this Jesus scene in the Bible that used to scare me and now I love. In it, Jesus enters the temple in Jerusalem during Passover and begins overturning tables, driving out the money-changers and sellers of doves. (Yep, that was a thing.) He's angry, proclaiming, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer'; but you are making it a den of robbers." 

As a teenager, I didn't find Jesus' behavior very "Christ like." Ironic, I know. Where were the children on his lap, healings, and words of peace? Why was he so angry? LEARN, LISTEN, LOVE... 

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GOD OF SURPRISES

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

I recently read an article by James Martin, a Jesuit priest, about the benefits of being both spiritual and religious. In it, Martin is honest about the many sins of religion. He also asks us to consider the benefits. Particularly in contrast to spirituality, he sights community and the wisdom of religious tradition. To this end, he shares a great story...

"One of my favourite images of God is the ‘God of Surprises,’ which I first encountered in the novitiate. My own idea of God at the time was limited to God the Far Away, so it was liberating to hear about a God who surprises, who waits for us with wonderful things. It’s a playful, even fun, image of God. But I would have never come up with it on my own.

It came to me from David, my spiritual director, who had read it in a book of that same title, by an English Jesuit named Gerard W. Hughes, who borrowed it from an essay by the German Jesuit Karl Rahner."

I love this story. This kind of exchange of ideas, opening of perspectives, is one of the main reasons I'm passionate about faith communities too.

However, I couldn't help but notice Martin's teachers in this story were all white, male Jesuits. Of course, their perspectives are of value, but I find myself wondering... What other beautiful images may have come Martin's way in the novitiate had his teachers been from other religious traditions too? What wisdom may have arisen from being part of a community that did not mostly look like him? 

I love religion. I think it can be a beautiful, spirit-filled experience. I also think it can close us off... to other people and perspectives, yes; but, also, other ways of imagining religion, other ways of imagining communities of faith. If we truly believe in the God of Surprises, then shouldn't we be open to all possible imaginings? As Martin expressed, new images can be liberating. Perhaps new models of religion and spirituality can be too? LISTEN, LEARN, LOVE...

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HAVE I REALLY STOPPED TO LISTEN?

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

On Sunday, WAYfinding folks and friends got together for a sensory nature walk through a local park. The kids involved received a scavenger hunt list - things to touch, hear, see and smell. One of these items was to hear a bird. As my daughter and I took off, we felt rough and smooth bark, saw light streaming through the trees, heard friends laughing, but no birds. I remember thinking to myself, "Well, this is too bad. It must be too cold for the birds this morning. None of the kids are going to be able to complete their list." 

We went on like this for maybe 25 minutes when a question appeared in my mind's eye, "Have you really stopped to listen?" I had not. So, I scooped my daughter up, used the universal sign for "shhh," and asked her to close her eyes with mommy. And, there they were: the beautiful trills and chirps of birds high in the trees. It was a graced moment - one all too quickly interrupted by my daughter tapping my face and saying "no sleepy" - but a moment full of grace all the same. I simply had not stopped to listen.   

Does this ring true for you too? How often do we think we're listening - to our friends, kids, partners, even God - when, in fact, we're not? Because we haven't truly stopped... the external movement and noise, and internal chatter. LISTEN, LEARN, LOVE...

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QUESTIONING FAITH?

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

Have you heard of Jimmy Fallon's "Do Not Read" list? In this "bit," he humorously draws our attention to books we seemingly would not want to read because they're obviously too boring or unappetizing. The problem is I've wanted to read a few - not "The Complete Book of Exercise Walking" or "The Joy of Uncircumcising," but admittedly, I was somewhat curious about "The Natural History of Vacant Lots." I don't know, maybe it's the dormant urban planner in me or environmentalist. It doesn't really matter; the point is, it's a problem. It's why I have 6 partially read books and another handful of magazines on my nightstand at all times. My curiosity runneth over!

Curiosity may not lead to magazine-ready bedsides, but in my opinion, it does lead to the best kind of faith. When we wonder silently and aloud, ask our questions, read, study, discuss - especially with a range of voices - our faith becomes informed not just by our own listening or a minister's but by a communal wisdom. When we question faith, we open it up to a universe, a God, who is still "speaking," still trying to reveal Herself through His many expressions, still trying to draw us to peace. 

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THIS KIND OF LIFE DOESN'T JUST HAPPEN

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

We invite people to all sorts of things all the time. Some of us find it easy; others hard. It seems to depend a lot on who and to what we’re inviting. For many of us, there is something particularly uncomfortable about an invitation to a religious or spiritual experience. It doesn’t even seem to matter whether we’re the inviter or invitee. Why is this? What is it about faith that makes us resist its particular brand of invitation?

For me, part of the answer lies in why, over the years, it has gotten easier for me to invite others into spiritual spaces and conversations: I finally understand to what I’m really inviting them. It’s not an invitation to “the truth,” to having God all figured out or faith or life. It’s an invitation to a way, a process, a lens – to see the world as chockfull of grace and meaning, and intentionally lean into it. I resist less these days because I have experienced that this kind of life doesn’t just happen. It’s not baked into our culture. It requires intention, and for me, for most I think, the space and the diverse voices and the kind accountability of community. 

This is why I created WAYfinding and why it’s (mostly) easy for me to invite people to it.

What about you? What do you think spiritual invitation is really about? What do you think others think it’s about? Do you generally resist it or welcome it? Why? LEARN, LISTEN, LOVE… and join us this week in WAYfinding as we explore these questions and others:

Tuesday, 12:00p - 1:15p
Wednesday, 7:00p - 9:00p
Wednesday, 7:00p - 9:00p (Mom's Group)
Email me for locations. All in Broad Ripple/SoBro area. 

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WHY THE JESUS STORY MAKES ME HAPPY

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

Did you know only 10% of long-term happiness is based on the external world? 90% is how our brain processes the world we find ourselves in!* 90%! It's quite a staggering number, and a number that begs the question, "How can I train my brain toward happiness?" 

This week in WAYfinding, we're asking this question and exploring its connections to faith, to spirituality. One key connection is through something I call our "belief narratives." At WAYfinding, we are open to all beliefs. But, this has never meant we think beliefs are neutral or don't matter. We think they matter a great deal! Perhaps the main reason why is this: our beliefs shape how we process the world; they are the narratives that play "on loop" in our head, shaping our joy (or lack thereof) and actions.

For me, I've always been a fan of the Jesus story. Specifically, I like the resurrection. Now, understandably, you may be sarcastically thinking, "Real original, Anne" or "Oh, here we go, she's finally going to tell me how Jesus saves my soul." But, bear with me, because that's not my point at all. I like the resurrection story best because it shapes my thinking on pretty much everything; it is my central "belief narrative." However bad things get in my own life, however absurd the world seems, the resurrection story reminds me this day is not the end. It doesn't much matter whether it's a "true" story - at least not for me - because, for me, either way, it points to the nature of God, the universe. It says to me that with God there is always tomorrow and tomorrow is a resurrection story.  

This is my belief. It's how I process the world, my life, and because of this, I'm ultimately optimistic, internally resilient. I believe God is for me, for you, for the whole world, that God desires our resurrection - in my mind, just a fancy, theological word for our healing, wholeness, spiritual unfolding.

What about you? What stories, what belief narratives, play "on loop" in your head? Are they ultimately helpful, opening you to joy and love? Or, not? LISTEN, LEARN, LOVE below and join us this week at WAYfinding:

Tuesday, 12:00p - 1:15p
Wednesday, 7:00p - 9:00p
Wednesday, 7:00p - 9:00p (Mom's Group)
Email me for locations. All in Broad Ripple/SoBro area. 

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COMMUNITY: WHAT'S THE POINT?

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

The fall round of WAYfinding starts this week, and we're kicking things off with a discussion on community. Namely, what's the point? Why do we choose to do life with others? What does a community do for us - individually and collectively? What should it?

Maybe we gather to share a drink and a laugh? Or prayers? A listening ear? Maybe it's about service and the collective good? Or networking? Or worship? Or alternative perspectives? Accountability? Advice? Growing in love? Or...

Then, there's the question of principles - which ones matter? And, who's at the table? The list goes on. The key, I think, is to wonder and to ask. Not to fall blindly into community as it's always been simply because it's always been. Maybe there is a better way - a way that leads to more peace and wholeness, more joy.

What do you think? LEARN, LISTEN, LOVE... and consider joining the conversation at WAYfinding this week. Contact me for group times and locations.

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PERSPECTIVES

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

It had been an exhausting week: busy work schedule; sick toddler; midnight power outage and accompanying loud, electricity workers; packing. I thought I'd feel relief when finally on the plane to Seattle; instead, I was homesick. Strangely, I longed for the familiarity of my day-to-day life, however chaotic.

Fast forward 2000 miles and 24 hours. I've slept and woken up to Mt. Rainier, showered, and am now eating delicious food with my husband, sister and her fiancé. I feel almost giddy. The energy of a new city and a vacation without a certain (beloved) child has sunk in. Life looks different and me in it. 

Such experiences remind me, remind us, new perspectives are vital to seeing clearly. Stuck looking at life from one vantage for too long, and we forget. We forget parts of ourselves, that we once saw the world differently, and therefore, might again. We need these experiences to remind us that the kaleidoscope turns and is beautiful here too.

The same is true of faith. If God or the Divine is ultimately a mystery to us - and I would argue this is necessarily the case - then trying to traverse this Mystery from one perspective is too limiting (not to mention hard). We need others to lend us their perspectives, to reach up and turn our kaleidoscope. 

This is exactly what we try and do for each other every week at WAYfinding. It's not perfect. Community never is. But, maybe, it's necessary. Maybe to see a true image of God, we have to engage in God talk with people of diverse perspectives. In the absence of perpetual travel, we have to find a way to new perspectives ourselves.

What do you think? LISTEN, LEARN, LOVE...

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THE SHAPE OF MY HEART

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

One of my favorite books to read my daughter is The Shape of My Heart by Mark Sperring. It runs through a series of shapes and their role in our lives concluding with, “And this is the shape I love you with. This is the shape of my heart.” So sweet. 

Lately, though, it’s become more than a heartwarming children’s book for me; it’s become a question: how do we form the shape of our hearts? How do we? How do we actually become more compassionate, more loving? 

There are a thousand stories every day – personal and not – that pull us to explore this question.  But, recently, none has pulled my attention like the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO. (You may find a timeline here.) The analysis of, and responses to, this event and its aftermath has been so diverse, it begs the-shape-of-our-hearts question. How is it that we feel so differently? 

Perhaps it is because we’re not actually practiced in changing the shape of our hearts? The reason being: to really change the shape of our hearts requires deep discomfort. It can’t be achieved through loving someone you find easy to love. It comes when you expose your heart to that, to who, you struggle to understand, you struggle to empathize with, you struggle to love, and then say to your heart, repeatedly, as many times as it takes, “Open.” Whether a spouse we know intimately or a young urban black man we don’t know at all, we change the shape of our hearts by, as Jesus said, loving the “enemy” we perceive in them.

It is my belief this is the work of real spiritual growth. Whether we call it “salvation” or “enlightenment” or “nirvana,” it is not a destination but a process of changing the shape of our hearts. It’s a process where, instead of hoping to love some people well, we, in time, shape our hearts into a form where there is nothing but love… for all. 

What do you think? LISTEN, LEARN, LOVE…

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WHAT WILL MY VERSE BE?

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

Robin Williams has died. Like me, you probably didn't know him personally. Consequently, my grief, our grief, if that's what it is, moves a bit strangely: real but detached; from empathy for him and his family and close friends to reminiscing on acting roles.

What are your Robin Williams memories? I remember, as a kid one summer, the Good Morning, Vietnam soundtrack, including Williams' comedic monologues, played almost nonstop in my dad's car. Then, there came Hook, the genie in Aladdin's bottle and Mrs. Doubtfire. On my first date with my husband we saw The Birdcage, and the first time I thought I loved him came after watching Jumanji - odd, I know.  And, of course, there's Good Will Hunting, Patch Adams and others.

My favorite Williams' movie, though, is Dead Poets Society.  Being only 8 when it was released, I discovered it years later. I loved it; it was serious and sad, but also funny, inspiring and hopeful. It was life. I've shared one of my favorite scenes below. For me, then and now, this scene speaks to vocation - a spiritual word meaning what you are here to do, where you are uniquely called to love the world. Though grammatically I must put a period after its definition, for most of us, really, it needs a question mark. That is, we don't yet know what we're here to do, where we're called to love. And, even if we do, it's ever-evolving and hard, requiring faith and courage. This topic, among others, will be explored this fall in WAYgroups around Indianapolis; if you're interested, let me know. For now, though, let's LISTEN to and LEARN from Wiliams' words and begin to LOVE together. 

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ACCEPTANCE

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

Anyone who knows me well - and now, anyone reading this blog - knows I struggle at times with depression. My fear gets the better of me, and I sink. Thankfully, I always rise too; but, in the moment, depression sucks.

Recently, when in a depressed state, I pulled out my Bible and found myself reading in Matthew I should love my enemies. Having no human enemies, I felt deeply I was to love the "enemy" within: the depression. So, I did. I got still and started sending love to my fear, love to my depression. The best way to describe the result is expansive. I felt my heart soften and open. Instead of the exhaustion of constant resisting and fighting, I began to fall into loving acceptance. In so doing, I felt the fear recede, as if it too had received what it needed.  

What do you think about the idea of acceptance?  Take a moment to write down your thoughts. Then, LEARN, LISTEN, LOVE...

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RESPONDING TO THE WORLD'S PAIN

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

The truth of this world is sad and unjust situations are happening all the time, every second. Sometimes I feel very removed from them - and honestly, it is necessary to; we cannot sit in pain perpetually - but sometimes, I feel them deeply.  Whether Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, the ground offensive in Gaza, immigrant children suffering on the U.S. border, a Facebook post of both mother and child fighting cancer, our broken prison system, or a close friend in pain, this has been a week for feeling it.

When this happens, what do we do? How are we to respond? LEARN, LOVE, LISTEN...

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SPIRITUAL MUSCLE TRAINING

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

I love to garden. No, that's not broad enough: I love all yard work. I do. I love being outside, digging in the dirt and listening to nature. I love the physicality; sawing off a dead limb on a tree makes me feel strong and capable. And, I love its tangible results; spend a few minutes and that bush takes shape; spend a few hours and that garden bed is alive with new colors. It's satisfying. Me + it = something I can see, a project done. 

I love spirituality too, but hardly because it behaves similar to gardening. The nature thing is there, but often it's incredibly frustrating how head and heart and intangible the whole thing feels. Whether your chosen path to connect is meditation or chanting or "accepting Jesus" or whatever, you + it doesn't always = peace, enlightenment, you name it. Changing the shape of our hearts and minds, our lives, the world, is slow work, satisfying often only in time.   

This is why I'm starting to think it takes real practice and discipline. Why "they," whoever they are, were wise folks when they named the methods we use to connect and grow in love exactly that: spiritual practices, spiritual disciplines. I'm presently smack dab in the middle of a 21-day meditation challenge, and I can hear my spirit saying, "This is what is required, if you want peace." Not necessarily meditation, but a commitment to train my "spiritual muscles," a commitment to practice until and through new habits or ways of being take shape. What do you think? LISTEN on, LEARN, LOVE...

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LISTENING TO DEATH

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

I'm not someone who generally thinks a lot about death. But, lately, I've been thinking about it more. Having a child started the ball rolling, with its accompanying SIDS and baby proofing and writing of the will. Then, a young family friend died suddenly, and I officiated the wedding of another family friend whose father almost died. Neighbors have or are in the process of saying goodbye to their beloved dog, and shootings are rampant in the city. Death is here; it is an unshakable part of life. 

Maybe, then, it's worth thinking about. Not all the time, but sometimes and not just when it is thrust upon us. I don't wish for death - for myself and more so for the ones I love, for the ones anyone loves. But, I also don't want to live in fear of it or miss its lessons. LISTEN, LEARN, LOVE... 

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A CLIMATE ACTION PLAN FOR INDIANA

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

My internet has been "acting up" today. I'd love to find a way to blame this on climate change, as it would serve as the perfect introduction to today's topic; but, alas, I'll have to be content to keep cursing AT&T. (And, look, I found a way to use it and publicly vent my frustration anyway!)

As it turns out, though, I'm "in luck," for according to the National Climate Assessment Report released on May 6, there are plenty of other, far worse problems to blame on climate change: extreme heat and humidity, decreased agricultural productivity, increased health risks due to reduced air and water quality, invasive species, flooding and damaging thunderstorms, and this is just the Midwest. Our climate is changing and not for the better.

This, of course, worries and saddens me. I think about my daughter, who will inherit a world she did not create. I think about the poor, who consume less stuff but disproportionately ingest more bad air, water, food, etc. Animals carry this burden too. And, I think about the Earth, the home we depend on and yet destroy.

Under the weight of these thoughts, I feel my spirit ache. I don't believe this is the way we're called to live and be. I believe we're called to better vision, greater consciousness: to see the connections and interdependence, and live accordingly. I believe we're called to love better.

Spend the next few minutes LEARNing and LISTENing to your own spirit, to the Spirit. What do you feel? Hear? What's stirring? Then, consider actively LOV(E)ing by adding your name to the below petition for Indiana to create a climate action plan.

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CENTERING PRAYER

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

Returning from vacation is never easy. It's been especially hard for me this week. I've been emotionally chaotic and physically stagnant; the worst of combinations in my book. Sure, it's also brought about some blessed conversations and insights, but I can't help thinking, if only I'd taken the time to center and listen, I could have kept the "a-ha's" and skipped the drama. 

Hence, my offering to you today is what I offered myself this morning: Centering Prayer. LEARN, LISTEN, LOVE...

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EUREKA! A WATCH

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

In the last few weeks, I have started wearing a watch again. I had read somewhere it can help you check your smartphone less frequently - which I want to do - so I decided to give it a try. And... it helps. It really does. Of course, I still reach for my phone much more than is necessary - it's an easy avoidance and procrastination tool, and mostly it's habit - but even if the watch cuts five 2-minute tap-and-scroll-throughs from my day, it seems worth it. That's five more opportunities to stay present, to feel, to be.

The watch I'm wearing now was my maternal grandmothers. In thinking back, I don't have a single memory of her moving quickly or multi-tasking. Her movements always seemed to say, "We've got time and I'm right here," even if her words did not. Maybe it was the watch. LISTEN, LEARN, LOVE...

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THE WHOLE PSALM

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

As a teenager, I loved Psalm 139. Because I struggled with depression, verses such as 11 and 12 - "If I say, 'Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night,' even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day..." - were deeply comforting. I felt hopeful and connected to something bigger when reading it.

That is, until I got to verse 19. You can read the whole psalm here, but to give you an idea the next few verses include, "O that you would kill the wicked, O God... Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?... I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them my enemies." Such anger and violence. Ideas that did not sit well with my image of God. I wanted to take a giant red pen through them... and so I did. For many years, anytime I read or shared Psalm 139, I simply skipped over verses 19 - 22. I did this until it stopped working for me... LEARN, LISTEN, LOVE...

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