It has been on my list of things to do, but still I find myself the night before pondering what angle I might take. The lectionary readings from last week are heavily influencing my thoughts. In Hebrews 12 there is an image of removing what is shaken so that what is not shaken may remain. In my message on Sunday I talked about giving the tree of our faith a good shake, letting all the dead leaves fall to allow for new growth. Giving the tree a good shake makes us vulnerable, but brings freedom. There is, perhaps, a level of self indulgence if I decide to pursue this image for my reflection. Life seems to be a constant cycle of feeling heavy laden, giving life a good shake and having the space to grow and bear fruit. At present, I am feeling the burden of the weight of life. I could use some time to sit, be quiet and discern those things that can be shaken.
This leads me to think about another possible angle. Freedom is found when we know who we are, whose we are and live our life accordingly. Identity and integrity, for me, are key aspects of being free; free to be me. We live in a world that tells us who we should be, what we should strive to be and how we should not be. Stripping this away helps us to find freedom.
In some ways it doesn't matter which tack I take for my reflection. The most important part of tomorrow will not be any words of wisdom I may manage to concoct, but the space, the stillness, the sitting in the presence of the divine. It will be a time to remember where I belong, who I am and that which needs to be shaken. My hope is that I will leave knowing a little more about freedom.
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