At some point in my younger days, I knew my view and place in the world was all my own. Before this self-awareness, I blissfully assumed that my view of the world was shared with every kid around me. In my awareness that my view was different, the vivid memory was on the conclusion that views brought diversity, not superiority. I had friends who went fishing with their dad. I rode minibikes followed by motorcycles, tractors, scooters, and eventually cars with my dad.
In my childhood, I always knew I was going back to India. I missed many common childhood experiences. I also had a life that most never imagined. As I look back, I see that I was always looking out, looking for what was beyond.
Yesterday’s view from our meeting table was peaceful. It fed my soul. I listened to the languages around me, considering the people living and working in the buildings across the water. The scene took me back even as I was looking forward.
Divinity is everywhere and anywhere we need Her to be. It felt as if God was being boxed and wrapped as I grew up. I have come to appreciate the diverse ways Divinity reaches out to her children. She supports them where they are, in good times and difficult ones. She loves them in their greatest moments as well as when they fail. We are part of a family filled with differences, opinions, and egos.
We choose our destiny. I initially viewed my goal by the measures of status, power, and economic success. I find myself appreciating that these were never the definitions of my destiny. I wanted to be in a place of community, where individuals unconditionally act with care towards every individual within reach.
I hear my calling to serve all on the outside. Echoing Paul, I hear the calling to “priestly and gospel work of serving the spiritual needs of the non-Jewish outsiders so they can be presented as an acceptable offering to God, made whole and holy by God’s Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15.16)
