Genesis Moments

One-on-One with the Biggest Celebrity Yet

January 27, 2012 By Sarah 1 Comment

For a brief second tonight, I actually reconsidered my plans for tomorrow. A thousand chores, duties, to-dos crowded my cranial cavity and in a moment of insanity, I debated staying home.

What I could really use is a little time to sleep-in, a little time to get  caught up. Do I really need this meeting? Do I really need time with THIS person? Will it help my image, my brand, my wallet, my family if I spend my Saturday using my hours THIS way?

Who is this person that I've chosen first over everything else I could be doing? Over everything else going on in my life? Over the needs of my family, over my needs for ME?

Every time you meet someone who is well known, people always ask:

"How did you get to do that?"

And, I always say, half the battle is getting there. The more you show up, the easier it becomes.

But, tomorrow is a special day. One-on-one interview. One-on-one time together to share, to dream, to listen.

Ahh, the best questions are asked from simply listening. A good interviewer is one who can listen and hear and reask. And, you don't always get the answers you think but you take notes and you consider the source and ask more questions which may or may not be answered again the way you think.

I've spent years building to this moment planted squat in the middle of my life (presuming that I'll live to the jolly old age of the women in my family who all lived into their 90s). And, I considered staying home? What?!

Hint: Tomorrow is the Fourth Annual Prayer Retreat for the Presbyterian Churches of America of Metro West Philadelphia.

Okay, I'll spill the beans. I am meeting with the biggest celebrity of them all: God.

Yes, I know, I can meet with God anywhere: at home, in the car, on my way to work, on my way to the college, at the college, in the faces of strangers, in the faces of friends.

But, tomorrow, I will leave all those distractions. I will sit quietly in a space in a church pew or perhaps in the hallway, surrounding by other quiet women having their own one-on-one with their Almighty God. I will read God's love letter to me, The Holy Bible, and quietly listen for the whispering of the Holy Spirit to touch my heart and fill me with His praises.

This IS for me . . .  and for God. I am His creation, made in His image for His purposes. There is no greater calling, no greater place I need to be other than in His presence, quieting listening for His next steps in my life, quietly absorbing His word and praising Him in the company of other women who feel the same way.

There are a lot of celebrities I go out of my way to meet. Other people think I am crazy. I tease that I'm a celebrity stalker when in fact I just love being around intensely creative people and soaking up what makes them the amazing people they are that got them to the place in life they are. Why not make time for the most creative being of all? My creator, Himself.

Our numbers are smaller this year and I am sad because I have failed to get others excited about one of the greatest meetings of all. But, I can see why others say "no." Their lives are full, they are busy. They have their own time for God. They've squeezed Him in somewhere else.

And, yet, I wish I could be more bold: "Come . . . stop your busy lives, rejoice with us, honor God with us, be quiet with us. Let the peace of Christ sink into your bones and fill your heart."

It's late tonight but there's still time. If you want to know more let me know. You can always hold your own prayer retreat too. I am happy to share the scripture pages we created when we started this retreat four years ago. I decided to step down from leading it this year but I have the materials and I am happy to offer them to anyone needing a meeting exactly like this. Actually, we all need meetings like this!