All Is Grace

Good morning, Loved Ones,

Last week we shared a quote from Henri Nouwen's, "Bread for the Journey." Today we share a passage from his Latin American Journal, "Gracias!" may it inspire your gratitude.

“The word I kept hearing, wherever I went was, 'GRACIAS!' Gracias a usted, gracias a Dios, muchas gracias! I saw thousands of poor people, spent many hours with people who do without many material things. But in the midst of it all that word lifted me again and again to a new realm of seeing and hearing: GRACIAS! Thanks! . . . Maybe there would be food tomorrow, maybe there would be work, maybe there would be peace. Maybe, maybe not. But whatever is given . . . money, food, a handshake, a smile, a good word or an embrace is reason enough to say it - - 'GRACIAS!' . . . What I claim as a right, my friends in Latin America received as a gift; what I take for granted, they celebrate in thanksgiving. And slowly I learned what I must have forgotten somewhere in my busy, well-planned and very useful life. I learned that everything that is is freely given by the God of love. All is grace. Light and water, shelter and food, work and free time, children, parents, birth and death . . . it is all given. Why? So we can say gracias, thanks: thanks to God, thanks to each other . . .”

My Gimme Cinco for today are . . .

Thank you, Lord, for an Ash Wednesday begun with Cafe en la Calle, an offering of morning refreshment to day laborers in KCK. "This is the kind of fast I'm after . . . " Isaiah 58:6

Thank you, Lord, for bright sun on another cold day. Let's soak up some vitamin D.

Thank you, Lord, for 12 yr old Mario who held the offering plate on Sunday and said, "God bless you!" when I dropped in our gift.

Thank you, Lord, for people, young and old, who can envision a brighter future even in the midst of crises.

Thank you, Lord, for the food you will provide for me today, the handshakes, the smiles, the good words and the hugs.

Now it's your turn. Let's share our gratitude. Comment on this note below with your Gimme Cinco. What are you thankful for today?

Pastor Rick Behrens
http://gimmecinco.blogspot.com/