On your right

Acedia is kind of a spiritual sloth and I'm guessing just about everyone goes through at various points, some more than others. I've been kind of going through acedia light lately, finding it difficult to pray and be attuned to God.

I'm in Waterloo, Iowa, now visiting my dad and stepmother. He just moved here as he's taking over as pastor of Kimball Avenue United Methodist Church. Waterloo is also right next to Cedar Falls, home of the University of Northern Iowa and the birthplace of Christian T. Coon. He and his wife live on the edge of town very close to the Cedar Valley Nature Trail, a bike/hike path that goes from Waterloo to Cedar Rapids. I ran over there this morning and ran along the path, a very lovely trail that takes you through residential and farm areas. I came upon a gazebo that overlooked the Cedar River and decided to plop down on a bench and have some 1-on-1 time with God. I literally had an out-loud conversation, expressing my hopes, frustrations, anxieties, fears. I got up and started heading back, still in my own little world when all of a sudden...

(One of my favorite movies to draw from in sermons is "It's a Wonderful Life." I've never used the every-time-a-bell-rings-an-angel-gets-its-wings scene, though. Smart People may smile at that, but we know, of course, it's not true. Don't we?)

...Ring-ring! I literally jumped as a woman came past me on her bicycle. Ring-ring! went her bell. "On your right," she called as she came by me. That scene from "It's a Wonderful Life" came into my mind. I don't know if an angel got his or her wings at that moment, but I did feel as though I did.