View from the Plaza Prayer Station: Don't You Fret

Today's stint at the prayer station reminded me of the line from Eponine's song in Les Mis, "Don't you fret, m'sieur Marius... a little drop of rain, can hardly hurt me now."  Also, the beginning of Psalm 37, "Fret not yourself."  I was fretting.  All week I've fretted.  Not in a losing sleep, pulling hair out kind of way, but in a "doggone it, I don't want to miss the prayer station" way.  Rain had been in the forecast all week, and I still hadn't figured out exactly where to be because I can't take the sign out in wet conditions or the ink will run.  Even taking it to another building wouldn't work.  So I was fretting and trying to figure out what I would do and where I would try to go.  I hoped that the rain would come over night, but no such luck.  90% chance.   

However, as I arrived on campus, there was no rain.  It had been raining, but it stopped.  So, I decided to take the sign over to the David Student Union where I put it in a dry spot just outside the doors.  When I got back with my chairs and bag of leftover Halloween candy and such, I discovered that it wasn't raining, so I spent the first hour just in front of the columns where I was quite visible.  When the rain started back up, I was able to tuck in between the columns under a bit of an overhang, and squeezed in another hour.  In a dry moment I carried the sign back to the chapel, and though the ink ran a bit, it wasn't too bad.  A few minutes later the rain started coming down in earnest.  I swung by my car, picked up my umbrella and headed into the coffee shop where it was warm and dry.

See, I didn't need to fret.  It all worked out.  And I'm so glad it did because I love being at the prayer station.  Today I got to have a chat with one of the Canterbury students about a cool sounding class called "Page, Stage, and Image" that will be offered next semester and involves Shakespeare.   I also enjoyed a conversation with my friend in Admissions who told me about her husband's mission trip to Uganda.  Several students who have asked for prayers before waved and smiled on their way to lunch, and one called out, "There's my favorite Reverend!"  It feels good to be recognized.  Once the rain had started, a student settled in for a good chat and left saying that his day just didn't suck so much anymore.  Sometimes that's a real bonus - having your day suck less.  He also suggested I learn to tweet, though I'm going to take a little more convincing. 

Time takes time, right, and a little drop of rain can hardly hurt me at all.  God provides.  It feels good to start being recognized on campus.  It feels good to provide a place of peace for various members of the CNU community.  It feels good to help people's days to suck a little less.  It feels good to have my own day brightened by my conversations and interactions with the students, even when it's raining.

Yesterday at SpiritWorks we learned of the death of a young man named Jason.  He was hit by a train in Williamsburg a couple of weeks ago.  Though I did not know him well, I had met him a few times.  He had a sweet spirit and a happy outlook on life despite being in and out of shelters   Addiction is a terrible and deadly disease, and it breaks my heart to see its impact, especially on young people.  I don't know how he came to be on a train track on the evening of October 23, but I do know that he will be missed, and I grieve his loss.

So today it was good for my soul to be present at the prayer station, not doing but being, listening to young people and praying for them, and being immersed in the life of a busy campus.  It was good to have time to be still and pray. 

I don't need to fret.  A little rain won't hurt the Plaza Prayer Station.  And truly, a little rain can hardly hurt Jason any more.  He doesn't feel any pain.  God's got him now. And rain will make the flowers grow.

View from the Plaza Prayer Station: Minds Fixed on God

O God, you will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are 

fixed on you; for in returning and rest we shall be saved; in 

quietness and trust shall be our strength.    Isaiah 26:3; 30:15

 
I arrived at the Prayer Station in a terrible mood.  Events of the morning, which do not need to be detailed here, had caused both sadness and disappointment as well as some pretty intense anger.  As I hauled my sign out to the Plaza, I was not feeling the love.  I won't say that steam was literally coming out of my ears, but I felt as if it should be.  As I sat down I knew I had to do something to get centered and come present to where I was.  It didn't seem like offering prayers in anger would be my best course of action.  I texted a friend and asked her to pray that I might find some love in my heart.

This past weekend at St. Stephen's Oktoberfestival, a parishioner's sister had given me a beautiful Anglican rosary with a fairy stone cross and green beads.  I took it out and hung onto it like a safety blanket, using the stones to ground me (pun intended.)  Starting with the Lord's Prayer, I began to pray and realized my mind was not settling down.  So I pulled out my trusty BCP (Book of Common Prayer) and turned to the noonday devotions for individuals and families.  The words of the opening Psalm started to calm me down, but it was the short passage from Isaiah that moved me to a place of serenity:  "O God, you will keep in perfect peace those whose minds arefixed on you; for in returning and rest we shall be saved; in quietness and trust shall be our strength."  I breathed deeply as I recognized the words from the Prayer for Quiet Confidence, one of my favorite collects in the BCP.  Keep my mind fixed on God.  That's where I'll find peace.

Before I could finish reading the rest of the short devotion, a student came up and asked if I was the person who worked at St. Stephen's.  He said he was interested in coming to a service on Sunday but didn't have any experience of the Episcopal Church.  So we sat down and chatted about the structure of the service and what he could expect if he came.  It was one of the quickest answers to prayer I have ever experienced.  It never ceases to amaze me how I can pray and pray and pray about one thing and not seem to get an answer but then in a moment of need in a different situation, an answer comes almost before I can finish saying, "Help me, help me, help me."  As I turned my attention to the skateboard dudes and others who came over to chat, I was able to let go a bit of my frustration and anger.  Isaiah's reminder to keep my mind fixed on God was timely.  I know I've read this devotion at other times, but I had forgotten that was the scripture reading in it.  My job isn't to worry about other people's business; my job is to keep my mind fixed on God, and if I do, I will find peace.  Also, asking God to smite people probably isn't the best way to keep my mind fixed on God!

It's Homecoming week at CNU.  The Plaza was lined with signs that campus organizations had made in honor of the week.  On Saturday Episcopal Campus Ministries will be tailgating for the first time.  One of the skateboard dudes said he'd come by to visit us.  He also asked me to tell him the next time I'll be preaching at St. Stephen's because he wants to come listen.  It was a good day at the Plaza, and I'm grateful that I didn't let what had happened earlier ruin it for me.  I'm glad I had the sense to open my Prayer Book when I needed some help.  I'm delighted that the students continue to hang out with me and share their lives.  Mostly I'm grateful that God brought that promised peace and reminded me that my best choice is always to fix my mind on my Creator.