Midweek Faith Lift
December 3, 2025
Faith, Hope & Life-Advent
Rev. Deb Hill-Davis
Spiritual Passage
November 24, 2025
A group of students were asked to list what they thought were the present "Seven Wonders of the World." Though there were some disagreements, the following received the most votes: 1. Egypt's Great Pyramids. 2. Taj Mahal. 3. Grand Canyon. 4. Panama Canal. 5. Empire State Building. 6. St. Peter's Basilica. 7. China's Great Wall. While gathering the votes, the teacher noted that one student had not finished her paper yet. So she asked the girl if she was having trouble with her list. The girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind because there were so many." The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe we can help." The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the 'Seven Wonders of the World' are: 1. To See. 2. To Hear. 3. To Touch. 4. To Taste. 5. To Feel. 6. To Laugh. 7. To Love.
"Our birth is but a sleeping and a forgetting. The Soul that rises with us, our Life's Star, hath had elsewhere its setting, and cometh from afar: Not in entire forgetfulness, and not in utter nakedness, but trailing clouds of glory do we come from God, who is our home."
- William Wordsworth
Yesterday, I was alone in my home, listening to music. When I heard the song, "Come From the Heart" (by Susanna Clark), I was inspired by the lyric, 'Dance like nobody’s watching.’ I took that invitation to heart, dropping my inhibitions and danced in my living room with the wonder and energy of a child. But, it turned out that my neighbor was watching, and she said she thought I was being attacked by bees.
Affirmative Prayer for today: Infinite Spirit we embrace the animating spiritual Power of Life that says Yes! to all that our heart desires. We embrace with wonder the mystery of life that animates our souls and gives energy to our dreams. Amen.
This is the first Sunday of Advent which begins the story of Mary who on this day says yes to the power of Life. The story begins with Mary saying yes to the Angel Gabriel when she is told that she is pregnant with Jesus and she is not yet even married! This is a violation of all the known rules and protocols for a good Jewish girl in first century Palestine. She is even told what she is to name her son by the angel Gabriel and she says yes to that as well. None of this is normal or typical for a young Jewish girl, and yet she says, “Let it be with me according to God’s will!” Mary is saying yes to the mystery of human life and she is also saying yes to the Spiritual Power of Life that is present as Jesus, the Christ.
When we think of life, our first thought is of our human form, our human body which is an expression of this animating power of spiritual Life. There is no doubt that while we understand what it takes for conception and the birth of a child to happen, it is also a profound mystery as to how this life comes into form as a human being. It is in this animating Power of Life that in our humanness, we touch the Divine, it is this Life that gives rise to the body. It was the mission of Jesus to make real the human/divine energy that is who we really are, human/divine beings and to wake us up to that spiritual Truth. When we pause and reflect on that reality, we embrace the perspective that while our life has a time line, a birthdate and a deadline, the larger energy of the Power of Life is eternal. It has been present long before we came into form and will exist long after we leave our human bodies. When we say eternal Life, we are acknowledging the Spiritual Power of Life which is, was and ever will be.
To speak of Life eternal is saying a lot, and it is not about Heaven as it is often described in the Christian tradition. Heaven is treated as a static state, a place to go and continue living a blissful human-like existence. Notice how that concept is a bit like all the 7 Wonders of the World that the students first identified: the Pyramids, the Taj Mahal, the Grand Canyon, the Panama Canal, the Empire State Building, St. Peter’s Basilica and The Great Wall of China. All of these are static, complete and not about life, except for perhaps the Grand Canyon which is a part of nature. The rest of these “wonders” are the manifestations of human creativity, imagination, inspiration, but they do not embody the Wonder of Life because they are non-living.
The answer from the girl the teacher thought needed help is actually right on! It is a wonder of the Spiritual Power of Life that we can see, hear, touch, taste, feel, laugh and love. All of these are invisible and yet incredibly powerful as part of our human/divine experience of life. They are dynamic energies which support the animation of the Power of Life in each of us. Life is in constant motion, both within us and all around us. As humans we participate in what Rev. Linda calls “intelligent life” which derives its energy, force and direction from the consciousness behind it. She writes, on p. 189 of Divine Audacity:
Life derives its intelligence from the consciousness behind it. A consciousness tuned to unifying love, intuitive wisdom and trusting faith engages the animating power (of Life) with these qualities uppermost in awareness, building a life experience that out-pictures these qualities.
Our challenge with this spiritual Power of Life is to raise our human life to the vibration of energy that like that of Mary, who says Yes to what Spirit is asking of her, even when she has no idea what it will mean for her human life. We are called to say that same kind of Yes!
What does that kind of Yes look like for our human self? Well, let’s hear from Ted Lasso:
"I read a quote by Walt Whitman, ‘Be curious; not judgmental.’ And it hit me: all them fellas who used to belittle me – not a single one of them was curious. They thought they had everything figured out. So, they judged everything and everyone. And I realized that their underestimating me had nothing to do with who I was. Because if they were curious, they would have asked questions." - Ted Lasso character
Thank you, Ted Lasso, for illustrating what the animating power of Life stirs within us! Curiosity, an indication of the presence Life! We have access to the 11 spiritual powers we have already explored and claimed so that we can lean into and embrace this higher consciousness, this higher experience of Life that is greater than our human understanding. It is worth noting that the animating power behind the success of Ted Lasso was his sign in the locker room: “BELIEVE.” His wisdom told him that the power of faith could take this team much farther than their human faith and understanding ever could.
To embrace Life, we remain curious, ask questions and walk in Faith. This animating power of Life is a call to access a higher life, a higher vibration of wholeness and harmony. Jesus told us repeatedly that he had come to this earth so that we could have “Life and have it abundantly!”
In John 10:10 he states: 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
The invitation is to embrace this larger dimension of Life and release all that steals, kills and destroys our joy, our dreams, hopes. Our challenge is to give ourselves fully to that within us that wants to fully live. As Rev. Linda notes, the opposite of Life is not death, it is stagnation. She writes about the currency of Life on p. 191 of Divine Audacity:
The currency of life is divine ideas, the limitless possibilities that we either quash or set in motion. GOD doesn’t give life in the way that you and I give each other presents. GOD is life and you give life….to your dreams and intentions. Remind yourself: I give life to my dreams. The dreams I give life to live!
We engage the spiritual Power of Release so that we can let go of all that is stagnant within us because it steals our joy and it diminishes our life, both in the human and Divine experience of Life. We embrace love, self-love and radical compassion so that we can open to this larger than life experience of Divine Life.
I leave you with the words of Sue Patton Thoele, who writes:
"One of our soul's major purposes is to know, love, and express our authentic selves - to live the life we were meant to live and be the person we were created to be. However, our true selves will only emerge when it's safe to do so. Self-condemnation, shame, guilt, and judgment send your true nature into hiding. It is only in the safety of gentle curiosity, support, encouragement, and self-love that your soul can bloom as it was created to do." - Sue Patton Thoele, The Mindful Woman
May we say Yes to Life and have it abundantly!
Blessings on the Path,
Rev. Deb