Countertops, Cupboards & Craniums - Black

Bomp! Ouch! A short while later: Thud! Oochsh! "Man, not again – that hurts!"
Just a brief sound-scape, occurring with fair frequency, when a certain cranium comes in sudden painful contact with overhanging cupboards – especially in kitchens.

Most houses we’ve lived in over the years have had these cupboards handily located, yet out of the line of vision when someone’s head is inclined and the gaze directed towards the workspace of the counter-top. Problem is, I get so absorbed in what I’m looking at on the counter that I forget the cupboards are there above me, then when I straighten my back and lift my head I get a swift and painful reminder that they are indeed still there.

What’s this got to do with Holy Week, Good Friday, and Easter – or inspirational things in general? Well, nothing, really. But, maybe – sort of. This period affords a wonderful opportunity for us to look closely at our lives and at the heart of our faith; to look at the counter-top of grace and see the provisions God our Father in Heaven has prepared for us. And yet, the effect of it will be to elevate our gaze. We can look up and see the treasures through open cupboard doors – as it were – with clear heads and full hearts, in worship and praise to God for the Son He has given, our Saviour and Redeemer, and the price that was paid for our eternal redemption.

To help us do that, a good exercise is to read the latter chapters of the four Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (especially in John from chapter 11 and on), and follow Jesus through the later scenes of His earthly life and ministry, to His crucifixion, burial, and resurrection, and to meditate on these things. Nowadays, it can be difficult just finding the time or even a few minutes' peace and quiet to concentrate – let alone meditate! However, it needn’t take a whole lot of effort to elevate our mental eye-level and tune-in our interior ears. Just takes a little thought, an opening of the mind, and a breathing space of relative solitude. Sometimes it helps to flick off a few switches for fifteen or twenty minutes on several lines of information, communication, and noise, such as radio, tv, Internet, personal music playback device, cell-phone, or even the house phone, et cetera.

Some people work their way through these gospel narratives during Holy Week to focus on each of the Stations of the Cross. Others take any one of those scenes each time, and seek a deeper insight into its significance, while yet others in their quiet times will mull over a verse or two, or statements Jesus made during the closing days and hours of this period, including His words spoken from the cross.

As we do whatever is helpful to us with love, faith, and sincerity, we may well find ourselves becoming quite absorbed in this noble theme of God’s love for us demonstrated in Jesus Christ. But, don’t worry about getting a bomp or thud on the head; rather, anticipate receiving an elevated focus, a feast of good things for the spirit, and a gentle, comforting glow in the heart.

Peter Black
Author of Parables from the Pond published by Word Alive Press
"Written for kids - read and enjoyed by grandmas and grandpas too!"
This piece adapted from P-Pep! column by P. A. Black published in The Watford Guide-Advocate, April 13, 2006.

The Thrill of the Chase

Writing is such a thrill isn’t it? It’s full of highs and lows, thrills and disappointments, agony and ecstasy. In a moment, our hopes and dreams become devastation and nightmares before turning once again to joy and exhilaration.

Ever since my first book of meditations, Prayer Companion, was published by Anglican Book Centre in 2001, I have pursued my dream of another such book on the shelves. That was six years ago and God has been leading me ever since towards the goal of Glorious Autumn Days: Meditations for the Wisdom Years.

Not only has God led me to this goal, He has taught me many new things along the way. The manuscript that I began in 2001 had only the bare bones of the book that was just published in March, 2007. It evolved, through daily living and spiritual growth, into the place where it can now help others to come more fully into a relationship with God.

It is true that I had hoped to be published once again by an established publisher but I got tired of waiting. Though I had always said that I would never self-publish, never is a long time. After being rejected by my third publisher in December, 2006 and being told, as if by a miracle, of a print-on-demand publisher on the internet a couple of weeks before that, I decided to put my faith in God and just do it.

I researched www.lulu.com to the best of my ability and it seemed to be a legitimate company and one that I could work with. However, I decided to publish a small poetry book as a test run to see how it worked and if I could master the technology that was needed to make a professional looking final product. The poetry book, a second edition of Grapes from the Vine, was quite satisfactory but I realised that my meditation book would benefit from a better formatting job.

I searched for and found a book formatting wizard that I could download for a price and though it meant that I would have to also buy a more advanced Microsoft Word program than the one I had on my computer, I felt it would be worth it as I would then have it for any future publishing ventures.

I now have my beautiful meditation book, Glorious Autumn Days, in hand. And with the assistance of Carmen Leal’s book, You Can Market Your Book, I am progressing at a slow and steady pace, learning as I go, to market my book to others.

My website, www.judithlawrence.ca is up and running; at N.J. Lindquist’s invitation, I write a regular blog here; I am putting myself in the way of media interviews and local speaking engagements and, all in all, I am very excited about the way God is leading me.

I have also assisted two other people to publish their books on www.lulu.com and I know that I will be publishing more of my own work in this way. All glory be to God for His enabling power and joy.