Welcoming grace into our lives

Soon, at tables across this country, family and friends will gather to give thanks and to say “Grace” — will you be one of them?

Grace can take many forms. It may be created from the heart and shared out loud, it may be read to those gathered, offered by children or silently whispered within the soul. It is a ritual that crosses boundaries of faith traditions. Regardless of our beliefs, we all give thanks. Sometimes.

To me, grace is the intimate connection between us and Spirit; it is the offering that recognizes the goodness and the unity between us and the Divine. It is a powerful moment of the realization of our mutual meeting as humans sharing a table — and the planet. It is freely given and cannot, need not, be earned.

During other times of the year we often overlook, deny, refuse or ignore our interdependence on each other and on our God. But

as we come to that moment of “saying grace,” we remember. We are stronger together, we are more alike than not. We are created out of that singular and sacred source of all love.

This moment of grace, this point of connection is easy sitting around a table laden with the fruits of many labors. But grace is bigger than that. Grace is always available, always accessible and always abundant when we need it the most. It is there when we are in pain, when our cup is empty, when the well is dry. It is there in moments of deep despair.

And, in those moments, the table of grace invites us to sit, rest and partake. It is our most sacred companion and table-mate.

So, this Thanks-giving, pause, give thanks, reconnect to the world and to that Holy and Sacred Spirit that will replenish and guide us, if we are open.

I wish you the most blessed of Thanksgivings and I hope we all remember that the world itself is TheSpaceForGrace!