A Psalm For traveling along the Way

The path winds before me
Curving, hidden in parts
So I do not see where it turns.
And how easy it is to fear I will
Stumble or take a wrong turn.

Yet lifting my eyes upward,
Above the trees I see the sky,
blue and sun-tipped.
And in the dazzling brightness,
I step out in faith
Knowing I will not stumble for long.

Knowing that God is at my right hand
And at my left foot.
Above me as the dazzle.
Below me as the humous.
And when I walk with God
I never walk alone.

What's Coming Next?

At the beginning of January, I had dinner with a half-dozen women friends. Afterwards, with some fanfare, our hostess handed out magic markers and small white tiles, each about an inch and a half square.

“What is your word for this new year?” she asked. We were to write the word on our tile and keep it with us for the next 12 months. Various words were selected--”trust” “focus” “patience” “faith” “success”--but the one I liked best is the word NEXT.

Depak Chopra once said, “What happens in life is neither good nor bad, it is simply next.” In years past, I was too quick to call an event “bad” if it didn’t match what I had hoped --or expected -- would happen. But I’ve learned that even painful experiences can take on transformational meaning over time. So this year, I'm willing to be surprised. I'm going to open my eyes and my heart to whatever comes next.

What about you?