For the last several years, Saint John's has arranged to set time aside to acknowledge the annual International Day of Peace in September. The Passionate Worship Committee has planned a 30-minute gathering for Wednesday, September 20th from 6:30 - 7:00 pm to pray for peace. It will be held outdoors on the corner of Allandale and Wynona.  

We will gather just outside of the Saint John's Chapel, under a big tree. We will be able to take in the beauty of the Trinity Windows. Our large metal sculpture of the Holy Spirit, created by Gary Flemmons, will also be by our side. Its beautiful, towering presence will be highly inspirational.

We will sing, and we will listen. We will pray. We will discover how important it is that we find concentrated time to pray together for peace.

Rev. Lynn Barton, a former pastor at Saint John's, will lead us in prayer, and speak to us about breathing. He suggests that using the quiet that we experience when we "just breathe" helps us to think, to pray, to hope. Lynn's soothing voice will help to lead us to that place of deep thought, loving concern, and personal strength to face the problems that exist in our lives, and in the world. It is amazing what purposeful silence can do to get in touch with your own thoughts and aspirations.

I spoke with Lynn not long ago about all of this. He helped me to understand the importance of paying attention to our inhale and exhale, especially when we are trying to find a place to be with our thoughts. He let me take my time to find a delicate rhythm in my own breathing, and soon I could feel my head clear, and a real calm came over me. It was not a sleepy calm; it was a quiet energy that allowed me to breathe even more deeply. Clarity. Calm. Ideas. Action. Solutions.

That day, Lynn's lesson was simply to breathe. He suggested that each of us can work within our own personal worlds. He said, "World peace is the ultimate, but sometimes too large of a concept for us to solve." With inspiring words and guidance from Pastor Barton, we might find that we can get in touch with ourselves, and discover enlightened ways to respond to the troubles of the world.

Rev. Barton also shares, "Breathe! Find calm. Find room for peace. Have tolerance for your own unquiet moments. Acknowledge the source of your discomfort. Yes, peace in the world. Sometimes that needs to come from within".

Look to the sky and breathe!

Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me...