Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamott

I discovered Anne Lamott quite by accident quite a few years ago. One of her books was on a sale table at a new Barnes and Noble somewhere in the general vicinity of my sister's house. It was one of those sales where you had to pick up a certain number to take full advantage of the sale. It was her book on writing, Bird by Bird, and I loved the title. Loved the book, too. Enough to buy several others of hers, including this one. I don't think I ever got around to this one, because I started with one of her novels - and kept getting interrupted. I think my daughter read it, though.

Forward ten or fifteen years. Sunday morning the preacher was gone - off to somewhere or other for the birth of a grandchild - and the DS preached. I think DS stands for District Superintendent which sounds to me more like public utilities than anything ecclesiastical, but I didn't grow up in this denomination. Be that as it may, her name is Jane and she preached a right workmanlike sermon, certainly had more meat and metaphor than our regular preacher. He is lively and entertaining, but I frequently suspect that those attributes primarily serve to cover a certain lack of depth.

And by now you are surely wondering where this is headed. The DS actually cited Lamott, this particular book, in her sermon. I remembered - and looked for the book - couldn't find it - I love my kindle.

She discusses how she came to faith and how it has saved her repeatedly. This is no fluffy, fantasy "upbeat" little story - this is real stuff. She tells how she had to learn the lesson over and over again. She explains how and why she fought against it - and some of those episodes are pretty grim.

She explains that her two basic prayers are "help me, help me, help me" and "thank you, thank you, thank you." One of my favorite bits was her feeling that Christ was pursuing her - like a little stray kitten. She was alcoholic, drug addicted, and barely functional, but she knew that once she let that kitten in, it would never leave and her whole life would have to change.

She makes clear that her conversion was no instantaneous miraculous happily-ever-after. She still had battles to fight with her self-destructiveness. Battles that had to be fought over and over again until she began to tell herself the truth.

This is a powerful piece of writing, but not for those who find inspiration in the usual sanctimony of Christian writing.