It’s been a mild winter and cool spring in Virginia, so it seems like the geese in our area took their time departing and returning. Geese in Colorado do not have that luxury. My friend Margo caught the geese as they departed McIntosh Lake in Longmont. All winter and spring I have been contemplating this image. You might expect I am tired of it by now. Instead, my sense of wonder has increased over time. Each of these geese is caught in a different wing position. They are all leaving together in formation, all going to the same place, yet each is not quite the same. As I pondered this image, I thought back to my work over the years. The assignments I cherish most involved teams like these geese. Each of us contributed what we knew best, all working together toward the same goal. We were not in mindless lockstep, all doing the same thing at the same time. Each of our contributions was unique. We respected the expertise of others, precisely because their work was amazing to us. They offered what we could not do, often what we would never be able to do. The result was far greater than the sum of the parts.
Yet there is another similarity to how these geese work together. The geese do not have a set position in the formation. The goose on point is not always the same goose. They take turns leading as one needs a break or perhaps knows a better way. Migrating geese stop at the same places along their journey, just as we chose a place to stop for the night on a long trip. I imagine an older goose taking the lead to find a choice spot for the night, a sheltered and safe place that offers a decent meal and sound sleep. I recall the best leaders invited the experts to take the lead in difficult situations. I particularly recall one general who would walk around the conference room and look each of us in the eye, asking if we were good with the result, asking if we had anything to add.
I have traded conference rooms for a home nestled in a forest. I have gone from being an engineer working on large teams to spending the majority of my time at home alone, praying over the view from my windows, praying over images that stop me in my tracks. Prayer is about this sense of wonder, amazement at the surprising and unexpected ways God finds us. Sometimes there are words, but often words cannot express what our heart pours out in prayer. The most difficult prayers for me involve letting go of what I can do, letting go of my answer, making room for God’s grace and mercy.
Make time today to simply open your eyes and ears to what God places before you .Allow your analytical mind to rest. Let wonder and awe take the point. Let go of whatever overwhelms you to make room for God’s answer. And always remember let go of expectations to make room for hope and faith.
Text by Connie Chintall ©2023, All Rights Reserved
Photo entitled ‘Morning Sunrise at McIntosh Lake’, taken in Longmont, CO by Margot Anthony©2022, used with her permission, All Rights Reserved.
Easter has come and gone and we are working our way through the Gospels concerning Christ’s appearances after the resurrection. I have always had trouble with the scripture in John 20. We find the disciples huddled together in an upper room with the door bolted out of fear. I wonder how far out of the way they went to find a place to hide. Was the staircase to that room like the one in this photo? Were they in an old, abandoned home? Did they seek out the last place anyone would look? Did they dare to climb up old and rickety stairs rather than risk being found out? And where was Thomas that day? Out for a pack of smokes? What if Thomas was the only one who was not afraid, not hiding away? What if Thomas was continuing the ministry? After all, Christ wasn’t there anymore and someone had to do it. He was a hands-on sort of guy. He needed to be in the middle of things, so see and hear what was going on for himself. We all know that Thomas, the one who either doesn’t show up for the committee meeting or can’t sit still while the rest of the folks try to work through the details. The Thomas who says ‘We need to get going, we can figure it out as we go along, why bother planning when everything will change anyway?’. Then one week, something truly eye opening happens at the meeting. The rest of us are excited and try to explain it, but all we hear is doubt. Are you sure it was really that spectacular? Thomas voices his doubts and asks the burning questions that no one wants to hear but must be shouted out. Without that lone voice, the rest of us remain closed off and nothing changes. Thomas spoke out, Thomas got it. That next week he remained with his friends. He saw the risen Lord. Is the end of that Gospel a rebuke or simply a reminder of how Thomas was created? Christ meets Thomas, just as he is, gently reaching out to say your service is great, may your worship be just as great. None of us can root that service in the Risen Lord in isolation. We must root ourselves in community to deepen our faith and fuel our work. Thomas was the man God called him to be. He was the hands and feet of the kingdom. He needed to see and touch to know the Risen Lord. Christ sends him out to be present to those who do not need to see and feel, because those of great faith and less action are no less Christ’s own. Make time today to live into who God made you to be. Spend time with those like you and those least like you, meeting each one where they are. Embrace each and every soul for who God made them to be. And always remember to refrain from judging those who rub you the wrong way, trusting God is teaching you both where you fit into His Kingdom. Text by Connie Chintall ©2019, photo entitled ’Stairway to Heaven’ by Rick Martin ©2018-2019, used with his permission, All Rights Reserved. To see more of Rick’s work, go to 
Seek the Sacred Amidst the Ordinary 