A Step Along the Way - Joan

 As mothers, it often feels like we should be able to be better: worry less, protect more, cook healthier, drive slower, recover faster...the list is never-ending. Many of us have tried to do it all, to the point of feeling insecure or unfulfilled, overwhelmed or just plain exhausted. It's easy to give up and give in to what can seem to be a tsunami of information and suggestions, rules and recommendations, ostensibly all aimed at making us better mothers. We want our children to be happy, to be kind, to be successful, to be passionate - as if we are in control. The best part of being a new grandmother may be the perspective that the most we can do as parents is to offer love and support, doing our best with all the rest. After all, parenthood is a job that will never be perfect, nor complete. It takes effort to learn to find joy and fulfillment in the celebration of milestones both large and small.

          As Mother's Day approaches and in thinking about motherhood, I thought about the powerful experience I had recently when I attended an intense two-day Board of Trustees meeting. As usual, the agenda was opened with a prayer. But this time it was a prayer we had never heard before. As the wise words of the prayer unfolded, our restlessness ceased and you could have heard a pin drop as each Board Member held their breath wondering what would be spoken next. It was a startling and unexpected moment of pure acceptance and grace. When the prayer was finished, we felt renewed, empowered to tackle the complexity of the task before us and face the individual steps necessary to head down the path of successful planning for this inner city school.

          Though at times many jobs may threaten to overwhelm us, this is what we are all called to do, whether it is through the challenges of our parenting experiences, our responsibilities in the communities where we live and work, or in other aspects of our daily life. It is a reminder to forge ahead, as Meb says, "Doing what we can, when we can." The words of the prayer that spoke to me that day of the retreat are attributed to Archbishop Oscar Romero, SJ. They are particularly poignant in light of his own passion to pursue the defense the downtrodden while spreading the word of God. As he says, "We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs, and prophets of a future not our own." As I heard his prayer, I wondered if he knew how prescient he was of his own subsequent tragic murder and the positive steps toward equality it prompted. It is a message I sometimes forget when I try to be all things to all people; taking the long view saves us from being discouraged and giving up, reminding us instead of the future.

          The Miracle Chase was always about empowering each of us to think about our lives differently. Similarly, Archbishop Romero's prayer empowers us as well, to recognize, as parents must, that we are called to do our best, not to resolve every ill, but to find joy and a sense of accomplishment in what we can achieve and in planting the seeds for future generations. It's an important point to remember this Mother's Day.  (Joan)

A Step Along the Way

It helps, now and then, to step back and take a long view.
The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts, it is even beyond our vision.
We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God's work. Nothing we do is complete, which is a way of saying that the Kingdom always lies beyond us. 
No statement says all that could be said.
No prayer fully expresses our faith.
No confession brings perfection.
No pastoral visit brings wholeness.
No program accomplishes the Church's mission.
No set of goals and objectives included everything.

This is what we are about.
We plant the seeds that one day will grow.
We water seeds already planted, knowing they hold future promise.
We lay foundations that will need future development. 
We provide yeast that produces far beyond our capabilities. 
We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that.
This enables us to do something, and to do it very well.
It may be incomplete, but is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord's grace to enter and do the rest.
We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.
We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs.
We are prophets of a future not our own.