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Moving!

Hello Everyone! I am packing up my Tumblr and moving to a new website! You can find Notes of Hope and more information at my new website: http://www.hopemoran.com

You can also sign up for email updates whenever I post a new blog post on this new site. We never really got that to work right on Tumblr.

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Advent Notes of Hope December 6, 2020

Where have you seen hope in your world?  That was the question posed in the Advent worship service this past Wednesday evening. 

My reply to this "hope" question was in the squirrels across the street on the church lawn.  They seem to have claimed it all as their parish!  They were scampering around, stopping to bury and cover up whatever they were carrying in their cheeks.  They then had fun chasing each other.  This gave me hope, because those squirrels were hopeful - hopeful that when they return in the dead of winter, they will find the very food supply they had buried.  They are preparing for winter!

The seasons come and the seasons go.  It is a continual cycle.  The squirrels know that and are looking forward with hope to the next season.  It made me wonder if I do.  This COVID season sometimes seems hopeless, even with a vaccine on the horizon.  Can I take another holiday without family present?  How much longer can I sequester myself in this 650 square foot space?  What is hopeful in my life today?

After observing those squirrels and hearing our Advent lessons Wednesday night, I decided there is much for which to be hopeful, especially when I pin my hope on God and not myself or my circumstances.  Isaiah 58 says:  "The Lord will guide you continually."  The word "continually" hit home with me.  Through every season God will guide me, whether it's fall, winter, or even this COVID season!  

In Revelation 21:  "God will be with them.  He will wipe away every tear from their eye."  That gives me hope.  I am not alone in this 650 square foot space. My tears, at times, do not go unnoticed.  Thanks be to God for giving Hope hope!

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Advent Notes of Hope December 1, 2020

The other day I saw my cardiologist for a routine check-up, and all is well.  He spoke to me with great hope about COVID once a vaccine is available.  As he shared his great hopes, he made me more hopeful.  Advent is a time of hope, so this was a very good conversation to have in these early days of Advent.  

Sybil MacBeth, a dancer, a doodler, and a former community college mathematics professor who has authored many books on the subject of praying in color, says:  "Hopefulness is a practiced attitude.  It takes diligence to not be overwhelmed by the violence, injustice, poverty, and sorrow in the world.  God is in the business of salvation and encourages change for the good."  

Let's all practice her hopefulness during this time of waiting in Advent.  Sharing hope with others with our words and actions follows God's practice of encouraging and creating change for good..  How can we do this each day?  For me, one thing will be handwriting uplifting notes to others.  

Romans 12:12 tells us: "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."

These characteristics are contagious.  In God's vast universe, we matter and our actions change the actions of others.  Being joyful and having hope---we need both today.  People need both today.  May we practice hopefulness and share that joy and hope with those around us, just as my cardiologist did with me!

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Notes of Hope First Day of Advent November 29, 2020

Today I watched the movie "It's A Wonderful Life", starring Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed.  I must admit, the only reason I watched it was because my Advent devotion book is based on that movie.  After seeing it, I cannot believe it has taken me this long to check it out. 

After about an hour and a quarter, I will admit, I thought it was the longest, slowest-paced movie I had ever come across.  I even took an intermission break to walk over to get carryout dinner from a small local eatery.  The film's second half, however, had me hooked.  I was ever so thankful I watched it through to the end as there were tears streaming down my cheeks.  What a lovely tale with shades of Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" woven throughout.

So, on this first day of Advent, we must all realize, just as the Jimmy Stewart character did eventually, that all our lives do matter.  Every day we affect people and situations just by our presence, by being there at that moment.  Know that the world is immeasurably better just because you are part of it.  May we affect, and infect, all that comes our way with a generous dose of God's hope, which happens to be the Advent theme this week.   

Psalm 42:5 - "Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God."

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Notes of Hope October 6, 2020

Sunflowers have been extraordinarily beautiful and abundant this year.  As I drove to my friend Dave's house, I had to pull over alongside the road and take this first picture.  That one sunflower, towering far above the rest, made me think about the second picture, also taken with Dave, shot at a state fair. The caption "Outstanding In Their Field" always makes me smile, just as did that sunflower! It's been quite a year.  One that has made many not feel so outstanding in their field. or in their life.  So much has gone on that has not been uplifting, encouraging, or positive.  Many people wish that 2020 would be done with already, and that surely 2021 has to be better.

Maybe we need to reframe 2020 into a more positive year.  What has gone well?  Where have you seen God working for the good of people? for you?  No matter what the year has held so far, we can be sure of one thing:  God believes we are outstanding!  God created us in God's image.  Does not that make us outstanding?  God sent Jesus to redeem us and show God's great love for us. For us!  Does not that make us outstanding?  God walks alongside of us every day and listens to our prayers.  Does not that make us outstanding, right?  We are outstanding not because of our work, our family, or ourselves.  We are outstanding because of all that God has done for us and continues to do for us for eternity.  

Outstanding things have been done through Messiah folks every day and some were highlighted for "God's Work. Our Hands." Service Bingo.  Meals were made and delivered to others who were alone.  Muffins baked and taken to a dear friend.  Mail Carriers received letters of thanks and little gifts of appreciation.  The blessing box was stocked several times.  A mom and her daughters gave clothing to those in need.  Food pantry volunteers gave out boxes and boxes of food.  Friendship Bible Study volunteers had a socially distanced picnic for the students. Sisters took green peppers they grew in their garden to neighbors.  A middle school youth made a pie for her friend.  Cookies were baked from scratch and delivered.  Flags were waved to remember 9/11. Cards of encouragement were sent to some beautiful souls. The list goes on and on and the lovely service projects likely will not end with "God's Work. Our Hands." Day. 

Those acts are outstanding.  The people doing them are outstanding.  You are outstanding.  Not because of what any of us have done, but because of what God has done in loving all people unconditionally. So keep it up.  Keep your spirits up.  Know that you are an outstanding child of God each time you look at a sunflower, lend a helping hand, or gaze in the mirror.  God loves you and so do I! The Bible tells us in I Corinthians 15:58:  "So then, dear brothers and sisters, be firm.  Do not be moved!  Always be outstanding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord."

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Notes of Hope 7/27/20

It was a brief moment creating an enduring memory.  We never seem to know when those moments will occur. 

The other day I ran out of washcloths!  For me, that was difficult.  Personally, I prefer one clean washcloth and two clean towels a day for my shower.  Having put off doing the laundry, dreading hauling it up and down four flights of stairs into that creepy basement, and not planning an "errand" trip, which could have included a stop at the laundromat, I thereby ran out of washcloths.  So, I picked up a clean hand towel and wet the corner of it to wash my face.

This small act brought back wonderful memories of my Godfather, whom I called "Pa", but in reality one Chester Kosmalski.  He loved me as dearly as I did him.  Often after Sunday dinner at his house, he'd pick me up and set me on the counter next to the kitchen sink and grab a dishcloth.  Wetting the corner, he'd wash my face and smile at me!  

That was the memory!  Simple, short, and sweet.  A moment in time when I knew I was loved whether with a messy face or a clean face.  I thank God for my Godfather "Pa" who took me to church each Sunday and showed me the unconditional love he had for me. The same love that God has for me! It reminds me of 2 Timothy 1:4-6 which I have taken the liberty to adapt, yet keeping the same context I believe.  The words in parenthesis, you will notice, are mine.

"Every time I say your name in prayer—which is practically all the time—I thank God for you, (my dear Godfather 'Pa') the God I worship with my whole life in the tradition of my ancestors. I miss you a lot, especially when I remember that last tearful good-bye, and I look forward to a joy-packed reunion.  (And that would be in heaven one day.)  That precious memory triggers another: your honest faith—and what a rich faith it is, handed down from your (family) and now to you!"

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Notes of Hope

July 2, 2020

You can take the city girl out to the country, but you can’t take the city out of the girl!

I am staying in a bare bones cabin at a campground near Monticello, IN, for a week.

These birds are driving me crazy! I had hoped to sleep in this morning, but the birds are up by 5am! Caw! Caw! Caw! They are God’s handiwork I kept telling myself. God loves them, then so can I. Maybe by the end of the week, but not right now.

But these birds! Oh my! I am trying to enjoy them. My other problem is bugs. They all freak me out. Hard to believe I was an Assistant Camp Director in South Dakota for fifteen summers.

Oh well All these creatures are just praising God. Psalm 148: 7-10. So will I for them, for a relaxing vacation, but mostly for God being so amazing!

[hopemoran]

Walk of Hope May 16, 2020

Each day we make choices that affect the direction of our lives.  Well, I try to avoid all decisions on Fridays, as I need a day off from those that I continually make at home, at work, and socially all week long.   Anyway, every day when I leave my building for my walk, I have to decide if I'm going right or left.  When I go right I pass by the little flower pictured here.  

This little thing has struggled up through the crack between the sidewalk and the building, and she has bloomed for a couple of weeks now.  Today, I saw a few of her petals are missing, yet she survives and has hope for another day!

At the commencement address at Christian Theological Seminary today, a favorite author of mine, Barbara Brown Taylor, mentioned the grass pushing its way up through the cracks of the sidewalk.  That's when I knew I had to share this flower picture and all of the hope I see in it.  At times we all have to struggle and push our way through things that are as hard as concrete and difficult to break through.  Yet, if we persevere, we do it.  So like this little flower, I encourage you to persevere and hope!

Romans 5: 3 - 5:  "Suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us."

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Walk of Hope May 14, 2020

Indianapolis’ Cultural Trail's Peace Walk is just that---peaceful. In the middle of downtown, it is a wonderful little oasis.

Along the walk there are "Luminaries."  I always thought luminaries were candles sitting in sand in a paper bag lit on Christmas Eve.  From the Peace Walk I learned how people can be "Luminaries" too.  They are people of prominence and personal achievement, but they also light our path and bring us hope. 

Along the walk there is a small garden dedicated to each person, each "Luminary", selected.  There are lights on the ground along with dates and a silhouette of the person.  There is a lit, glass-etched picture of the "Luminary" along with a plaque telling about that person's life and achievements.  And I love the  bench where one can sit and reflect on their lives.  It's a most picturesque setting!

I thought I would introduce you to some of these "Luminaries" on my walks.  Walking from Meridian Street, first comes Benjamin Franklin.  He gave people hope, even all of us alive today, with his discovery of the nature of electricity and, as some of us do get older, bifocals.  He had so, so many inventions, but these two both bring hope and have to do with sight! Just as Jesus brought sight to the blind man, he clarifies our vision showing us that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.  Now that surely is hope!

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Walk of Hope May 9, 2020

Before I spotted them, I smelled them.  My thoughts went immediately to my mom.  Smells evoke more memories than any of our other senses.  As I turned onto the Peace Walk along the Cultural Trail, there they were - lovely lilacs - so many of them, so fragrant, so reminiscent of Mother's Day memories. I stopped to smell the flowers; I allowed the lilac fragrance to envelope me; I closed my eyes in silence---and I thought of my mom!  She gave me hope for a brighter tomorrow by instilling in me the courage to accomplish anything, and be anything I set out to be.  I remember hearing her tell me that, if I could read it, I could do it.  While she was talking about cooking, baking, and crafts, this has proven true in many other areas of my life!

Today, these lilacs bring me hope, just like my mom did.  Hope in the memories that can propel us forward to be the best that we can be!  Hearing her words, smelling the lilacs, walking the Cultural Trail's Peace Walk brings me hope!

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Walk of Hope May 5, 2020

My friend Bob treats me twice a week to a carry out dinner to help support local downtown restaurants, and I totally enjoy it after having cooked more often than I am used to recently.  On the way we passed one of my favorite places - Wheeler Mission.  Their sign, one that gives hope to all who pass by, is pictured here.  

I have been serving at Wheeler almost monthly since I moved downtown over six years ago.  My favorite part of serving is talking with the men who live, serve, and work there.  Their stories are always ones of hope and ones that involve a lot of testimony to the forgiveness and grace of God.  They are not hesitant to share about God's great love for them and for all people.  It just flows and fits into their everyday conversations.

It is interesting that on our walk there, we pass by restaurant after restaurant on Mass Avenue where thousands of dollars have been, and will be again some day, spent on meals.  The meals served at Wheeler cost substantially less, and are mostly donated.  The dichotomy of the situation is even seen in this picture I took:  the expensive gold building above and behind Wheeler's old, well-worn building.

These men at Wheeler have their bellies filled just like the people at the restaurants, when they were open at least, and these men do not hesitate to show God's love.  The clientele of both are hungry and all are fed. Yet, not all share their gratitude to God for what they have been given.  My hope is that the pandemic will help me, and all of us, be as grateful and as expressive with our gratitude to God as the men at Wheeler Mission.  They are my inspiration! They most definitely give me hope!

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Walk of Hope May 2, 2020

My friend Kayleigh is a gifted photographer.  Yesterday she went on a walk and took these three lovely pictures.  Do please stop and take a few moments just to enjoy them!  The colorful trees shared by Kayleigh's gift are truly one of God's gifts as well! Her mom said that the beautiful trees pictured here tell us that life will be normal again.  The trees are doing their normal God-given thing:   budding, flowering, leafing.  There is something so calming and soothing seeing anything normal in these abnormal times!

God helps us get through the abnormal, walks along with us during these times, and sometimes we see the hand of God shape our lives as we pass through those difficult times.

God is with us at all times - when the trees are budding, flowering, leafing, and going dormant. Zephaniah 3:17 "The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing." Thank you Kayleigh for these beautiful pictures and for this reminder of our God. Now that is truly hope!

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Walk of Hope May 1, 2020

Such a beautiful day!  I am a true fan of 68 degree, sunny weather. As I walked to my car parked for free, yes parked downtown for free, on Talbot Street behind my apartment building, I was looking for a robin's nest.  Although I did not find it, I was taken aback by this picture of the vibrant green of the trees against the bright blue sky.  Green is not my favorite color, however, this green so beautiful.  Green does bring a sense of new growth, new life, new hope! In our church, the color green is the predominate color during the church year. When we return to our worship space, green will be seen in the paraments and Pastor Erik's stole and chasuble for many months. This color symbolizes a time of growth in the Christian faith through the study of Jesus' life and teachings. Seeing these trees thus reminds me of church and being in community there.  It also reminds me of growing in Christ.  And finally it reminds me of a dearly loved song my dad used to sing:  Louis Armstrong's "What A Wonderful World". The lyrics say: “I see trees of green, red roses too, I see them bloom for me and you, and I think to myself, what a wonderful world!”

How fortunate we are to have a God who created such a wonderful world for us. In spite of our pandemic fears, economic woes, and isolated loneliness, we can exclaim:  "what a wonderful world!"

Genesis 1:11-12:  "Then God said, 'Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.'......And God saw that it was good!"  Now, indeed, that gives me new hope!

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Walk of Hope April 29, 2020

Where did I see hope on my walk today?  Might be more like where did I "feel" hope on my walk today.

Hope today came in the form of this special mask a friend made for me.  This mask is so me:  the black background and vibrant colors.....the cat theme.....the way the ties were made to go around my ears in an adjustable way.  I love it!

Wearing a mask makes me sweat and feel like I have trouble breathing.  Plus, I am a bit vain about my face and how it looks.  Yet, I wear it because my friend made it for me, and it helps others.  It gives me hope because of her.  She has the hope that these masks will stop the spread of COVID-19.  That is why she makes them:  to protect her friends and those they come in contact with, hoping that none of them are infected with the virus .

Her hope give me hope.  Sometimes we need to lean on others for our hope!

Exodus 14:14 says:  "The Lord will fight for you, you have only to be silent." Sometime all I can do is be silent and lean on my friends and on my God.  That's my hope today!

[hopemoran]

Walk of Hope April 25, 2020

The weather again was lovely today along the Cultural Trail.  I stopped at Prairie Modules 1 and 2, located at Alabama and North Street, very near Old National Center, which some I know, like me, still call the Murat Shrine Temple.  These Prairie Modules are unique and beautiful structures that are pictured below.  

The sign by the installation says the structures "invite visitors to immerse themselves in an alternative landscape which marries elements of rural Indiana - covered bridges and prairie grass - and urban Indiana - interstate underpasses, green roofs, and solar arrays."  It all makes me think of the city mouse and the country mouse - both very important, although both very different!

It is in that diversity that I find so much hope as I look at this creation.  John Lennon, in his song "Imagine", talks about "...when the whole world will live as one."  My hope is that one day we will not even have to use that word "diversity," because we will all only see one people: God's people!

Galatians 3:28:  “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”  May we all work toward being one in Christ.  That is what brings me hope!

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Walk of Hope April 24, 2020

What a great weather day!  Perfect temperatures with clear skies and little wind.  My walk took me on the Cultural Trail for only a short distance. My destination was the grocery store in Lockerbie Square.  Upon exiting, I saw a woman sitting on one of the park benches.  With it being a beautiful day, I sat on the bench across from her and we began to talk.  

This is an unusual occurrence these days.  This virus has occasioned six feet of social distancing.  It has also caused a lack of conversation and eye contact.  Socially being distanced, you might say.  It was very pleasant to talk with someone whom I had never met before.  

Her name is Tracy and her sister's name is Stacy.  Yep!  They are twins, turning 50 on Sunday.  She rides the bus from the far Northeast side to this grocery store downtown, not because it is close, but it is easy to get to by bus.  For 28 years, Stacy has worked at the same childcare center.  She loves the little ones she cares for, these days calling the children and their parents often.  She encourages them to take a pause in their day and do some creative exercises she comes up with, such as stopping to look out the window together on a rainy day and point out the things they see.  That pause sounds wonderful!

I told her about my Walk of Hope posts and that I was interested in hearing her hopes; where she sees hope in the world today.  She sees hope in the acts of kindness she hopes will continue far beyond this pandemic.  As she lives alone, she sees the kindness of people calling to check in on her.  She shares kindness by calling all those little ones and their parents.  Today I saw hope in the face and voice of Stacy!

On my second walk, to pick up a Bazbeaux' pizza, I saw the sticker pictured here on an electrical box, which shares a great but simple reminder about hope!

1 Corinthians 13:4:  "Love is patient and kind." Stacy represents patience and kindness.  I saw love in Stacy's actions and for that I am grateful.  That truly begets hope!

[hopemoran]

Walk of Hope April 22, 2020

There has been so much going on between work, learning new technology, the pain in my hip (that is now miraculously gone!), cooking all the time, and cleaning up after the cooking (that's the harder part), that I am tired.  My brain and eyes are more tired than my body.  Maybe you have been experiencing some of this as well?  Today I took my Walk of Hope to help with that brain drain.   Following the Cultural Trail once again, I came upon this relaxing installation, pictured here, not far from my apartment building.  The sign says:   "Bush Stadium Seat Salvage". The seats are a remnant from Indianapolis' former minor league baseball stadium, one replaced by a gorgeous new downtown stadium a number of years back.   What could have been trash   are now a hopeful sign of re-purposing and rest along the Trail. As I sat in one of these seats, my thoughts turned to "The Beverly Hillbillies" TV show and its closing theme lyrics:  "Set a spell, Take your shoes off. Y'all come back now, y'hear?"  It feels good to 'set a spell,' to feel the hope these chairs convey: that our lives, though always changing and being re-purposed, do have significance!  We are important to God!

It is also so good to just 'set a spell'.  Have you been doing that much? Just being?  Just sitting there?  Not being productive (which I think is overrated)?  Not being busy (also overrated)?  Just being?  These chairs provide that on a downtown street that usually is teeming with traffic.

In Matthew 11:28, Jesus calls us to rest: "Come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest."  In that rest we regain hope.  It brings hope into our lives! Matthew 10:29-31 says: "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows"  Just as these chairs are important, even so, we are more important to many people, and to God.  And now that brings real hope!