In this Season of Lent, it is comforting to realize that the Cross was not for nothing…true to His word, Jesus, after his death, sent the Holy Spirit.
John 14:16 New International Version (NIV). And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever…
I’ve always believed it to be the Holy Spirit who is the wind beneath my wings. I still do. Happy Sunday.
It is a well known fact that no one has ever seen God…or is it? Sometimes I get caught up in the whys and hows of the Bible and have always been intrigued by Genesis 1:27 about God making man in His image. 27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
The Bible then goes on to describe how God is in us. The following scriptures taken from the NIV (New International Version) attest to just that:
No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. 1 John 4:12
If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. 1 John 4:15
Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst? 1 Corinthians 3:16
Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you...2 Corinthians 13:5
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? 1 Corinthians 6:19
On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. (Jesus) John 14:20
No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God. 1 John 3:9
And finally:
New Living Translation
But Jacob insisted, “No, if I have found favor with you, please accept this gift from me. And what a relief to see your friendly smile. It is like seeing the face of God! Genesis 33:10 (Jacob speaking to his brother, Esau)
Here’s looking at you, God!
Happy Sunday.
Do Not Worry – Matthew 6:25-27 NIV
25“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
Reading the above scripture led me to repost the following formula for easy living. Happy Sunday.
Drink the living water – (John 4:10)
Eat the bread of life – (John 6:35)
Wear the full armor of God – (Ephesians 6:11)
Rest in Jesus – (Matthew 11:28)
Breathe in the Holy Spirit – (John 20:22)
Give up the worry habit – (Matthew 6:25) (This one really taught me a lot!)
Laugh often – (Proverbs 17:22)
Every once in awhile a song comes along that can move us to tears…joyful or otherwise…in my opinion this is one of them. How fitting for this time of Lent. How wonderful to believe. Thank you, Jesus.
Some people will read no further than this title thinking that because of the word “thee” it will be of Biblical content. Not so. It is actually from the poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861)…How Do I Love Thee? Let Me Count the Ways. However, I am going to put a new spin on it because I am moved to do so.
How do I love you? Let me count the ways.
I love you with compassion in your thoughtless ways.
I love you when your ire is up and when your guard is down.
I love you for infrequent smiles that are your very own.
I love you in the times you let your inner bully win.
I love you more for times when you reign that bully in.
I love you in the many ways that you appear aloof.
I love you when uncalled for, you offer up reproof.
I love you though these things are not the you you’re meant to be.
How do I love you? Unconditionally.
Has the time come for all people to come to the aid of our world? Can we do with unconditional love whatever is in our capacity to do to heal our brokenness? Can we ask with Elizabeth Barrett Browning, “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.”
This is the way I learned about Christmas as a child, and I never tired of hearing it. No longer a child, I still love to read and reflect on this age-old story from the Gospel of Luke, chapter two, verses one to twenty in the NIV (New International Version) Bible. It’s what keeps me grounded to what Christmas really is while I’m enjoying the worldly pleasures of the season.
2 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while[a] Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
21 On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived.
This version of the birth of Jesus has inspired many Christmas carols which most of us enjoy today: Away in a Manger, Silent Night, Oh Little Town of Bethlehem, Joy to the World…to name a few. They are a reminder that unto us a Child was born…the true meaning of CHRISTmas.
On Friday, I attended a memorial for yet another of our church members. This man was relatively young…under seventy. Unlike other memorials we’ve had, this was very sparsely attended, because Andy tended to be somewhat of a loner since his parents died a few years ago. He was devoted to his parents and especially his mother after his father passed. He brought her to church every Sunday, wheeling her up to the front of the church where she could see and hear everything, even though she was far from understanding anything. You see, she had Alzheimer’s Disease. But that didn’t stop Andy from being the attentive son he always was. His parents were the only family he had here in Canada, though I’ve been told there were a few cousins in Holland.
Although none of us at the service felt we knew the man very well, in his meditation, our Pastor made it possible to get a glimpse into Andy’s lonely life. He spoke of his dedication as a teacher, his political affiliations, his generosity, his devotion to his parents. Andy donated and dedicated several hymn books to the church in memory of his parents. I opened one on Sunday with his name in it. Even though Andy’s ashes were in plain view, awaiting interment in our cemetery, it was Andy the man who occupied my mind during Friday’s ceremony.
I could see him sitting in a back pew or even in the Narthex, slightly disheveled, but attentive. Very seldom did he mingle after service for coffee or tea as most of us did. He came, he worshiped, he left…or so it seemed. (In case you’re wondering how I could see him sitting at the back of the church, I’m in the choir facing the congregation.)
There is a a saying that someone can be conspicuous by their absence…that was Andy on Friday, and the weeks previous to his death. He died peacefully in his sleep one night and save for Jesus, he died alone.
When day twelve of this twenty day inspiration assignment arrived with its challenge to critique any piece of work, I wondered what on earth I was going to write about; and then on Sunday, a member of our church choir sang a solo. I’m not going to critique him, but the hymn, although I was quite moved by Ed’s beautiful rendition of “Because He Lives”.
It is another one of those hymns whose words implant themselves into our psyche (if we are so inclined) and are there to inspire, uplift, encourage, and increase our awareness of just how much it means to have the most famous man who ever lived, live today in the hearts and minds of those who answered His call. The song was written by Bill and Gloria Gaither. I hope this hymn does for many what it has done for me over the years…let me face many uncertain tomorrows because He lives.
Click on the title to hear this beautiful, uplifting hymn.
As promised yesterday, here is the second part of Inna Segal’s internet article on spirituality.
People who say that as you become more spiritual, life becomes more serious; have a lack of understanding of real spirituality. The more connected you become to the spirit within you, the lighter things get, as you develop an ability to laugh at yourself more and to recognize that this world is a playground for exploration.
You also realize that joy, happiness, fun and laughter are integral parts of your life and are necessary for your overall wellbeing.
I would often say that healing has to be fun for it to work. The more fun something is, the less resistance we have to experiencing it. When there is no resistance, life, wellbeing, joy, wonderful opportunities and abundance can flow effortlessly into our lives.
The more spiritual you become, the more freedom you feel to be yourself and to allow others to be themselves. Your need to criticize others, dramatically decreases and compassionate understanding takes its place. You will also become softer with yourself and the people around you. You may even find yourself drawn to people you would usually have little interest in. Thus, you unlock the gates to the most fascinating, expansive, delicious connections with others and love, care and sweetness you could only dream of. Synchronicities become a regular phenomenon and life becomes a real adventure.
How fantastic would it be to wake up every day and know that anything is possible? You may meet a person who will change your life, receive an amazing job offer, discover an important piece of information, receive a positive surprise or have a deep spiritual experience.
There is a well-known saying that ‘spirit works in mysterious ways.’ Wouldn’t you want to be part of the mystery, knowing that everyday holds an opportunity to transcend the ordinary and enter the realm of the extraordinary? The most beautiful thing is that you don’t have to work out how things will happen, just be open to amazing opportunities entering your life.
As you come into a spiritual communion with your Divine essence, you begin to attract people into your life, who will have a deeper connection and an understanding of who you are and what is important to you. Thus, you may expand your circle of friends, from people who are close to your age and your experience of life, to people from all walks of life who will offer different perspectives than what you know.
Integrating spirituality into your life is a unique process, which requires time, connection with yourself and deep and profound exploration.
A way that you know that you are moving forward in your life is that you feel that you are growing and expanding.
“I believe in God, but not as one thing, not as an old man in the sky. I believe that what people call God is something in all of us. I believe that what Jesus and Mohammed and Buddha and all the rest said was right. It’s just that the translations have gone wrong.” ~ John Lennon
As I said yesterday, I believe we can glean little nuggets of learning from other people, no matter what path they are on. It is one of my pleasures in life to explore spirituality.
There is an abundance of things to write about but they don’t always come to mind when a writer needs them. So we go searching for something to write about. Or, like me, sit in a chair and say, “Okay, Muse, let’s write something.” God, Spirit and Jesus also get this request from me on many occasions. Yesterday I went searching, and found the following.
It is about spirituality in our everyday lives, which came about by researching this topic. Following is an article I found. It is on the Internet and was written by Inna Segal in December, 2013. Some may think I am straying from my Christian principles here but I believe everyone has some nugget of worth to teach and as long as we remain open-minded and true to our beliefs, each nugget could enhance our spiritual lives in some way. The article is called “The Benefit of Integrating Spirituality into Your Daily Life”.
“In order to experience everyday spirituality, we need to remember that we are spiritual beings spending some time in a human body.” ~ Barbara de Angelis
Exploring your spiritual, deeper, more mysterious side can be one of the most exhilarating experiences of your life. Spirituality can give you clarity, vision, and guidance where you had confusion, disappointment and lack of purpose. It can awaken your senses and arouse your intuition.
Spiritual truths can answer many important questions and give you the ability to see things beyond the surface. Everything begins to take on a deeper significance and your choices no longer stem from ignorance of the universal spiritual laws.
Rather than blaming everyone and everything for what you do not have you begin to examine your thought patterns, emotions, behaviors and overall ways of relating to the world. You become aware that as you shift your perspective, your experience of the world can transform speedily and drastically.
I think this is a good start and tomorrow I will post the rest of her article. I think you’ll like it…or not.
My own spirituality does, and always has come from the “still small voice” of God, through prayer, scripture and worship…and I never know from whence that voice will come.
My Precious Life 