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Time Apart for My Soul Daily Readings and Reflection For the Christian Year Mary Zimmer Dimensions For Living Nashville Dedication To the people of God known as Crescent Hill Baptist Church Louisville, Kentucky Copyright Information Acknowledgments The Sisters of Loretto Motherhouse and Retreat Center sits among the rolling hills of south central Kentucky. It has been my habit to go there for private retreats for a number of years. Surrounded by tall old trees, calm ponds, and open fields, I have kept retreat journals during my stays. So many of the reflections in this book refer to places and times at Loretto. First, I would like to thank Elaine Prevalete, Retreat Director, and the Sisters of Loretto for their stewardship, which makes such a quiet, nourishing place available. To visit Loretto is to know a strong hint of what is meant by the peace of God. I also thank the ministers and members of the people of God known as Crescent Hill Baptist Church to whom this book is dedicated. Crescent Hill has been the cradle of my adult faith for twenty–seven years in its music, Bible study, worship, preaching, and emotional and spiritual nurture. Solidarity Sunday School Class has been a church within the church for me and my family. I thank Molly T. Marshall, pastoral teacher, sister in Christ, and dear friend for abiding encouragement and support. I thank ministers who are friends and friends who minister to me: Bill Rogers, Bill Johnson, Ron Sisk, Bobbie Thomason, and June Hobbs. I thank my brother–in–law, Craig Hamilton, whose gift of a computer made the writing possible. I thank Steve Zimmer who offered steady support. I thank my sons Jacob and Michael who cheer my heart everyday. I thank my God for all of you. Introduction I dwell in Possibility-A fairer House than Prose-More numerous of Windows-Superior--for Doors-Of Chambers as the Cedars-Impregnable of Eye-And for an Everlasting Roof The Gambrels of the Sky-Of Visitors--the fairest-For Occupation--This-The spreading wide my narrow Hands To gather Paradise-The author of the poem, Emily Dickinson, withdrew voluntarily what we would consider the normal relationships of family and community life. Out of that solitude and social isolation, she wrote hundreds of lyrical and evocative poems, which established her as one of America's premier poets of the nineteenth century. Few of us would choose that level of withdrawal. The great majority of us accept the real limitations of our commitments in exchange for relationships and personal growth. But there comes a time for all of us to withdraw from the everyday schedule in order to seek God's presence in our lives. We need the solitude, which is the wide–open, spacious house of possibility in prayer. Sincere prayer is always open to the inbreaking of the Holy Spirit and thus prayer is always a place of possibility. This place of possibility is not infinite. We are finite human beings; and thus are limited by our imaginations, our personal history, our current responsibilities, and the degree of our willingness to be open to the Holy Spirit in prayer. But a heart open to the Spirit of God is a heart open to possibility. Whatever we long for, whatever we need, whatever we hope for can be brought into the realm of prayer because prayer is the spiritual gift and discipline in which we are encouraged to fervently seek the providential grace, mercy, and love of God. Dickinson describes possibility as a dwelling place; prayer is also a dwelling place. It is the place where we dwell with God, where we know the companionship of God, and where our devoted friendship with God is nurtured. Prayer is the dwelling place that lets us question God, as well as thank and praise God. In our questions and in our seeking is possibility. Prayer always offers the possibility of growing a deeper, more vibrant faith, of wrestling with our doubts, even d