Moments of High Resolve

I recently experienced my ordination ceremony at Awakening Ways Center for Spiritual Living. I passed my ordination panel in February of 2020. Three weeks later, the state of California issued an order for people to shelter at home to slow the spread of COVID-19. Thus, my ordination ceremony was delayed until the right and perfect time, four years later, on Saturday, April 13, 2024.

Many say a minister is not ordained until they experience the rite of passage, the ceremony, and the celebration. I now understand why.

I experienced several moments of profound realization of the holy and sacred during my ceremony. One such moment was during a song sung directly to me on the stage. It was a combination of the joy of having my friends, family, mentors, colleagues, students, and spiritual community together to celebrate with me, plus the stunning and piercing voice of the beautiful singer Reverend Michelle Jordan, accompanied by Troy Arnett on keys. I felt the Presence of the Divine so palpably in the room that my heart burst open, my soul purified. The singing washed away all fear, doubt, and worry, leaving only faith and conviction in the Divine. I understood the eternal love the Divine has for me and the love I have for it.

That moment was one of high resolve for me. Howard Thurman was referring to one of those moments when he wrote, “Keep fresh before me the moments of my high resolve.” Moments of high resolve are those radiant moments when we have been touched by the Holy and know who and whose we are.

The moments when the Holy touches you, you recognize that something greater is happening. You are not who you think you are. You are far greater than you imagine yourself to be. You are as eternal and vast as the space that spans beyond the myriad universes. In a moment of high resolve, you get that, or it gets you. It takes hold of you, and everything is dissolved into the moment of pure, loving essence. When we get that we are Spirit in form, it rearranges us. Nothing will be the same going forward from that moment.

Knowing “who” you are means understanding your identity, values, beliefs, strengths, weaknesses, purpose in life, enneagram type, or Myers-Briggs type, and so forth. It’s about self-awareness and having a clear sense of your personality, passions, and goals.

Knowing “whose” you are means understanding your connection to a higher power or the God of your understanding. It means recognizing that you are a beloved child of the Divine, worthy of all the good you can imagine and then some. It means realizing that it is your birthright to live a life that you love and that you are loved and adored by this Presence beyond your wildest imagination.

What are your moments of high resolve? Can you keep those moments fresh before you?

Remember who and whose you are.

And so it is.