Don’t Force the River

As Giving Voice’s new Communications Coordinator, I am elated to partner with young women religious as they discern God’s path for them in community and in the world. I’ll tell you this: these young sisters have contagious energy to build a better church and world! I am blessed to be a part of the journey.

Like so many others, this fall brought with it a time of transition and change. While it’s a joy to be in this new role, “popping the hood” to get a look at the intricacies of a new organization takes time and patience. Get organized. Feel productive. Gain access. Feel a rhythm. Embrace the new beginning? I’m hopeful about what it can offer, what it can teach, and the energy and wisdom it brings.

That’s to say nothing of learning the “sister lingo” and feeling comfortable in the world of women religious. That’s likely to take more time. While I am familiar with it from afar, this is my first immersion into the culture and practices of my sisters in faith. Time to listen. Time to learn. Repeat as necessary. Embrace! 

Through it all, I am mindful you can’t force the river. New beginnings, transition and change flow forward in unexpected ways. Sacred in-between moments, liminal spaces open up and evolve into something new. I trust it will be wonderfully good. As much as I might try, as much as I might want to, there is no forcing the river. The wise and discerning currents are too wise and holy to control. Isaiah reminds of this: "Behold, I will do something new, Now it will spring forth; Will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, Rivers in the desert.” (43:19). May it be so.