Every day, I open myself to divine guidance and yesterday, mine came in the form of a message from my friend Cass Forkin who asked if while I was in Sedona, I would pick up a bracelet of deep spiritual significance for her from the Chapel of the Holy Cross.  Had she not asked, it would never have occurred to me to go there.  Raised Jewish, Catholic shrines were not part of my upbringing, although I do like going to Our Lady of Czestochowa in Doylestown and sitting peacefully in meditation.  As I drove up the winding road to the site, I found myself taking deep breaths and not just because of the physical altitude. I felt as if I was experiencing spritual upliftment as well. Walking up the path, I noticed visitors from all over the planet who had come to this haven surrounded by energy vortices and it was confirmed when I signed and then perused the guest book. My typically busy mind slowed dramatically and I found my pace did as well; meandering through the gardens and sculpture of angels and St. Francis, a Madonna and Child. Entering the chapel itself, I was delighted that the reverent hush was puncuated by the laughter of a young child.

As I was leaving the gift shop, which carries all manner of interfaith items,  after picking up the bracelet for Cass, I heard a song that had signficance for me. Ordained as an interfaith minister in 1999 from The New Seminary in New York City, this piece was a response to the call to serve. It is called Here I Am Lord. I found myself singing along as time rolled backward and I was in the grand and glorious Cathedral of St. John the Divine on the Upper West Side in Manhattan. Enrobed in white, drenched in sweat on a sweltering June day since the huge gothic structure is neither air conditioned in the summer, nor heated in the winter, I joined my classmates as we walked down the aisle to answer the call. Since that time, I have been honored to join loving couples (same sex and heterosexual), welcome babies into the world, be present at the time of passing and officiating funerals, performing rites of passage. My own spiritual practice is enhanced as a result, as I have learned that everything is spiritual; from washing the dishes and doing laundry, to taking a shower and shoveling snow,  if done with attention and mindfulness. As I was heading back to the car, this image beckoned my attention….flowers that reminded me that since God is always smiling in my heart, it would be my honor to return the favor.

Words and Music by Daniel L Schutte
© 1981

Genesis 46:2
“And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night,
and said, Jacob, Jacob.  And he said, Here am I.”

www.czestochowausa.com/

www.chapeloftheholycross .com

http://youtu.be/EcxOkht8w7c  Here I Am Lord

Here I Am Lord  http://youtu.be/K6fYAiqV-Bs