a spirit of curiosity

What would you notice or see if you approached the world with a spirit of curiosity?

Ruth 2:10

Then she bowed down, face to the ground, and replied to him, “How is it that I’ve found favor in your eyes, that you notice me? I’m an immigrant.

I live in Texas, a state where matters of immigration are often at the top of news reports. This state has created a narrative that immigrants are the enemy, and that their desire for a better life is criminal. It is disgusting.

In my work, one of my responsibilities is to support immigrant spiritual communities. These are vibrant, enriching, exciting expressions of faith that are driven by an undercurrent of joy and gratitude. Recently, an immigrant leader thanked me for visiting with them and for fully participating in the invitation to embodied worship. This leader was humbled by and grateful for my presence and I realized that people who look like me are not often celebratory of worship in communities like this. I thanked the leader for a morning of worship that left me energized instead of bored, and asked when I might visit again.

And I wondered, where else have we missed life, energy, excitement and hope because we have failed to notice or acknowledge it simply because it might look or feel different?

 What would you notice or see if you approached the world with a spirit of curiosity?

—Pepa Paniagua