Prayer is not selfish! Whenever I stop and try to pray, I enter into my own heart. But also in some mysterious way I touch the lives of all who yearn for goodness and truth, and who lift up their hearts in prayer as I do. Through my prayer and theirs, the wide expanse of the world is lifted up before God. Some people’s whole lives are spent in this way – for instance, the Carthusian contemplatives portrayed in the 2005 film, Into Great Silence. These ordinary people who have been called to silence and prayer are devoted day and night to the mystery of the living God, and continually raise up the world and its needs before Him.
We each have our part in that great panorama of prayer - for when we stop to pray in the midst of our practical concerns, we enter the Sacred Space domain and are joined to a multitude of praying hearts across the world. In the film the text from Jeremiah 20:7 appears from time to time: ‘You have seduced me, Lord, and I have let myself be seduced’.Such strong language has a particular meaning when applied to the extraordinary location of a Carthusian monk.  But the words can also be applied to myself. When I feel drawn into quiet and prayer, I am being ‘seduced’ by God! Coming before Him, as best I can, with all my poor heart, the whole world and its needs are present as well.

Micah 5:2

Whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.

The Lord Jesus had goings forth for His people as their representative before the throne, long before they appeared upon the stage of time. It was "from everlasting" that He signed the compact with His Father, that He would pay blood for blood, suffering for suffering, agony for agony, and death for death, in the behalf of His people; it was "from everlasting" that He gave Himself up without a murmuring word. That from the crown of His head to the sole of His foot He might sweat great drops of blood, that He might be spit upon, pierced, mocked, rent asunder, and crushed beneath the pains of death. His goings forth as our Surety were from everlasting. Pause, my soul, and wonder! Thou hast goings forth in the person of Jesus "from everlasting." Not only when thou wast born into the world did Christ love thee, but His delights were with the sons of men before there were any sons of men. Often did He think of them; from everlasting to everlasting He had set His affection upon them. What! my soul, has He been so long about thy salvation, and will not He accomplish it? Has he from everlasting been going forth to save me, and will He lose me now? What! has He carried me in His hand, as His precious jewel, and will He now let me slip from between His fingers? Did he choose me before the mountains were brought forth, or the channels of the deep were digged, and will He reject me now? Impossible! I am sure He would not have loved me so long if He had not been a changeless Lover. If He could grow weary of me, He would have been tired of me long before now. If He had not loved me with a love as deep as hell, and as strong as death, He would have turned from me long ago. Oh, joy above all joys, to know that I am His everlasting and inalienable inheritance, given to Him by His Father or ever the earth was! Everlasting love shall be the pillow for my head this night.

The early Christians searched for a word that would express their bondedness with Jesus and with one another. They settled on the word koinonia. It means fellowship or community, and it connotes respect, equality, inclusion and bondedness. Koinonia describes the community established through the work of Jesus. This community is founded in the three divine Persons, and includes each one of us and our neighbour. Because it is founded in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, this community will last eternally. Because it is open to every human being, it offers a vision of universal reconciliation. This community took on visible form 2,000 years ago, in the shape of the Christian Church. It has had an extraordinary history, sometimes glorious, sometimes shocking and disgraceful. However imperfect it is, it is the divine solution, already operating in our world, to the mutual mistrust and dislike that lead to the fragmentation of human community when left to itself.

Images of the life to come must be carefully presented. Older images - of death, purgatory, hell, limbo – depicted God as a merciless judge who demands full payment for our wrongdoings. How can we portray more accurately the truth about God’s limitless love for us? read more...

Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman reminds us that the human mind can do no better than to work with shadows and images until it finally emerges into the full light of truth. ’We see now only dimly as in a mirror’ (1 Cor 13:12). So let’s concede the basic inadequacy of human thought and language to express the mind of God. St Thomas Aquinas, who wrote a million words on things divine, said that we merely stammer in speaking of God, and that what he had written was straw. All images of God must fall short, but they are all we have, so we must use them well. We need not despair of trying to say something helpful about God and the world to come.
Let us take heart from Vatican Two’s image of the pilgrim Church. Pilgrims edge along difficult paths, using all available helps to arrive at their destination. At crossroads they discuss the path that seems most promising, and they turn back if it fails them. A French theologian uses the image of swimming: with each stroke you push a volume of water behind you as you move toward your objective. You move beyond it, but without that water you would never get there. Good images hint at the real thing: they orient us in the right direction. There is a Zen saying about a farmer pointing to the moon with a carrot. It was the best he could do to get others to see this wondrous reality! As we approach the world of divine mystery an amber light glows: it does not forbid entry but warns us: ‘Proceed with caution!

"Strong Tower ".

When I wander through the desert
And I'm longing for my home
All my dreams have gone astray
When I'm stranded in the valley
And I'm tired and all alone
It seems like I've lost my way


I go running to your mountain
Where your mercy sets me free


[chorus]
You are my strong tower
Shelter over me
Beautiful and mighty
Everlasting King
You are my strong tower
Fortress when I'm weak
Your name is true and holy
And Your face is all I seek


In the middle of my darkness
In the midst of all my fear
You're my refuge and my hope
When the storm of life is raging
And the thunder's all I hear
You speak softly to my soul

Ronald Regan On Religion-A Man Of Faith

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=OvN1jTkzXbY

In hard times, it is important to remember that God has a springtime in
store for us and for our tired world. God will make everything new. Beyond all
our shattered hopes and dreams, something wonderful and transformative will
make us forget the tears and pain and drudgery of life. Have we any hint of
what this might be like?

Some years ago, a magic moment transformed a dull day in the Concourse of
the Train Station in Antwerp. The travellers were all going their own way at
the time, busy about their affairs. Some were happy, others sad, or serious, or
worried or relaxed. Suddenly a song from The
Sound of Music fills the Concourse. Actors in ordinary clothes begin to
dance. The onlookers can’t tell actors from spectators, so people stop what
they’re busy about and get in on the act themselves. Children get in first on
the dance, then adults who have the hearts of children. People are drawn out of
themselves by the fun of it all. Some hold their hands to their mouths in
delighted awe, others begin to cry for joy. Eventually the Concourse is full of
dancers. There’s space for everyone, whether they’re coordinated for dancing or
not. Nobody’s looking critically at how you perform your arthritic jig or that
you wave your crutch. The outer circle is littered with bags and coats which
people have shed in order to dance freely. Maybe the coat and the bag will be stolen,
but who cares? Only a few onlookers hold back, but even they are intrigued, and
others coax them in. Cameras flash so that this ecstatic moment can be recalled
and passed on to friends. Laughter and tears of joy mingle with regret when the
music ends.

Will God’s springtime break in on our unsuspecting world somewhat like
that, and happily last forever?

Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble.(Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, NLT)

Then, after seeking God, as I ready myself to put one foot in front of another, my girlfriends rally as my buddy straps and provide prayer support, wisdom and encouragement. When one friend is weak because of life-fractures, it is a blessing for a strong and healthy friend to come along side to help her.
We need each other as Christian women. That’s what Girlfriends in God is all about: women encouraging other women in faith and in life. When Sharon, Mary and I co-founded GiG, it was purposed to spur you toward the heart of God through devotions and conferences. In real life, we are buddy straps for each other. Our lives are filled with as many life-fractures as the next person… so we often rally to speak words of encouragement, truth and hope to one another. At times, we even speak correction. As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another (Proverbs 27:17).
Where does this find you today? Do you have some life-fractures and challenges? Are you the buddy strap to any of your friends who are struggling? Perhaps you’ve got both going on. If so, then praise God. Praise Him for trials – which can grow you in perseverance, character and hope (Romans 5:4) and for His provision of friends in your life that love you, challenge you and cheer you on through the hard times. And praise Him for the opportunity to be a buddy strap in return.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-38, NIV).


Jesus is responding to a question he was asked by an interpreter of the law. I suspect the motive behind the question was far from pure, but Jesus responded with pure truth when He said that the love of God is the “first and greatest commandment.” In other words, our love of God must not only be not sincere but radical. If we love God, we sell out to Him and will naturally serve Him by loving and serving others. Too often, we stop right there and never get to the second most important commandment. Jesus said we are to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.
Yes, there is a self-love that is corrupt, and the root of the greatest sins we can possibly commit. That kind of self-love must die. However, Jesus teaches that we are to love ourselves enough to take care of and be concerned with the welfare of our own bodies and souls. Our body houses the Holy Spirit. Our soul is eternal. We are responsible for the care of both. And we must love our neighbor as truly and sincerely as we love ourselves. That kind of love often asks us to deny ourselves for the good of others because people could care less how much we know, until they know how much we care. Our choice to obey these two commandments will mold our heart and life into something beautiful that honors and pleases God.
The psalmist writes, “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well” (Psalm 139:13-14). You can judge the value and the worth of a product by looking at the one who made it. You are no accident. You were created by God – for God – and even if you were never wanted or planned by human heart and mind, you were planned and wanted by God. So, love your neighbor and while you are at it, love yourself.

What a mighty God we serve

Me (in a tizzy) : God, can I ask you something?


GOD: Sure.


Me: Promise you won't get mad?


GOD: I promise.


Me (frustrated): Why did you let so much stuff happen to me today?


GOD: What do you mean?


Me: Well I woke up late,


GOD: Yes


Me: My car took forever to start,


GOD: Okay....


Me (growling): At lunch, they made my sandwich wrong and I had to wait


GOD: Hmmmm..


Me: On the way home, my phone went dead, just as I picked up a call


GOD: All right


Me (loudly): And to top it all off, when I got home, I just wanted to soak my feet in my foot massager and relax, but it wouldn't work. Nothing went right today! Why did you do that?


GOD: Well let me see..... the death angel was at your bed this morning and I had to send one of the other angels to battle him for your life. I let you sleep through that.


Me (humbled): Oh...


GOD: I didn't let your car start because there was a drunk driver on your route that might have hit you if you were on the road


Me (ashamed): ............


GOD: The first person who made your sandwich today was sick and I didn't want you to catch what they have, I knew you couldn't afford to miss work


Me (embarrassed): Oh.....


GOD: Your phone went dead because the person that was calling was going to give a false witness about what you said on that call, I didn't even let you talk to them so you would be covered


Me (softly): I see God


GOD: Oh and that foot massager, it had a short that was going to throw out all of the power in your house tonight. I didn't think you wanted to be in the dark.


Me: I'm sorry God.


GOD: Don't be sorry, just learn to trust me.........in all things, the good and the bad


Me: I WILL trust you God


GOD: And don't doubt that my plan for your day is always better than your plan


Me: I won't God. And let me just tell you God, thank you for everything today.


GOD: You're welcome child. It was just another day being your God and I love looking after my children


Scriptural References: II Samuel 22:31, Proverbs 3:5, Hebrews 2:13


"The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.. ." (Proverbs 11:25)

In all things give thanks. 1 Thes 5:18
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A balanced life is focused on right things. Focus is always found at the feet of Jesus. Mary lived out this truth. In fact, Mary, more than any other person in the New Testament is associated with sitting at the feet of Jesus.


What does it mean to “sit at the feet of Jesus”? We must first stop. Now that is a novel idea for most women. Mary stopped what she was doing - helping Martha in the kitchen - and came to sit at the feet of Jesus. Of course, Martha immediately began complaining that she had been left to do all the work while her sister wasted time sitting at the feet of Jesus. I have discovered there will always be someone who will misunderstand or complain when you choose to do what Jesus told Martha was “the better part.”


Luke 10: 40-42 “But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.’ But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.’"


Mary made a choice and so must we. Choosing to sit at the feet of Jesus requires decisive planning, purposeful scheduling and a willful determination. Every day, God wants relationship building time with us, which means that time at His feet, in His presence must be our highest priority. Jesus gently rebuked Martha because she had forgotten what was really important.


It is amazing to me how I can squander away the best part of my day, leaving Him with the leftover scraps of time and then have the audacity to complain that my life is void of power and purpose. Distractions come from every side. Some of those distractions are good and wonderful things, but they are all still wrong things if they keep us from stopping to spend time with God.


Every day, we choose where to invest our time. We plan everything from committee meetings and church activities to lunch appointments and choir practice - but fail to schedule the most important activity of all, spending time with God. Are you desperate for the peace and balance only He can bring? Then it’s time to stop, take inventory of the demands upon your time and begin investing the best part of everyday sitting at His feet. Being wrapped up in God’s work can easily become a shabby substitute for being wrapped up in His presence. And we can only be wrapped up in God’s presence when we learn to wait on Him.
Waiting robs me of control and forces me to face the unknown. But waiting on God brings priorities into a right focus and releases the catalyst that may very well change my life course. Waiting is not a passive use of time. Waiting is active spiritual obedience. In each waiting room of life, He is at work preparing me for the circumstance and the circumstance for me. Psalm 5:3 (NLT) “Listen to my voice in the morning, LORD. Each morning I
Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.” From those still, quiet moments of waiting and seeking comes a balance and focus that takes root and grows. It is through the choice to wait on God that the seeking heart – the expectant heart finds every need met.


We not only must stop and be still in order to sit at the feet of Jesus, we must learn to listen. Time spent seeking God and listening for His voice is vital. Deuteronomy 30:19-20 (NIV) “Now choose life…listen to his voice, and hold fast to him.”


Countless voices clamor for our attention. The key to a balanced life is training our hearts toward God and teaching our spiritual ears to listen for His voice above all others. I taught third grade for several years while my husband attended seminary. My class was one of seven third grade classes, which meant that the first few days of school were chaotic. The PE teacher was a welcome sight when she appeared at my door to take the students outside. It was the responsibility of each teacher to pick up her students when PE was over. Seven teachers trying to get the attention of over two hundred students was especially interesting on the first or second day of school when the teachers didn’t know their students and the third graders didn’t know their teacher. However, after only a few days, an amazing thing happened every year. When the teachers lined up, it took only a word or two for the students to come running. They quickly learned to recognize the voice of their new teacher above all the rest because they listened to her voice all day long.


The voice of God comes to us in many ways but every voice must be held up and measured against His main voice, the Word of God. To sit at the feet of Jesus, we must learn to stop, be still, and listen for His voice and then rest. Rest will not come until we have heard His truth. However, when we have learned and applied the truth of God we can then rest in Him and our world falls into perfect balance. Resting in Him requires trust.


Truth is always the basis for trust and trust is always the basis for rest. We rarely take time to stop, be still and listen, allowing His truth to soak into our hearts and minds where trust and faith grow strong on a steady diet of truth. As a result, our faith is weak and rest is hard to find. When we learn to sit at the feet of Jesus, we will know Him better, trust Him more and find the rest we so desperately crave. Clarity of purpose and a right focus will come. And that, my friend, is the cornerstone in a life of balance.

Is there not a certain springtime in all prayer? Maybe we breathe easier with the passing of winter and its coldness. The time we spend in prayer refreshes both our bodies and our spirits. While all times and seasons are God’s and we can never limit God’s working, yet springtime can enliven us with the youthfulness and newness of the Creator each day.
Spring does not always come easily. For the trees which prepare to blossom afresh, there is pain for the wood as the bud breaks through. Sometimes too there is a bud that doesn’t make it. read more...


Prayer engages us to deepen our welcome and our openness to God. That is its task. Sometimes this will be easy: at other times it will painfully challenge us. Does not all challenge in the name of love have its own special sweet bitterness? There is a letting go of something we treasure in order to make space for something better. Any openness to love is an openness to the immense blessing of the Creator God. Like the spring our prayer brings a certain gentleness and warmth to us, the gentleness and warmth of God. Those who pray are being secretly nourished from within. The sap of divine life runs freely through them. It enables them to cope more generously with the demands of loving.
.

WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T LOOKING

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you hang my
first painting on the refrigerator, and I immediately
wanted to paint another one.


When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you feed a
stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind
to animals.


When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make my
favorite cake for me, and I learned that the l ittle
things can be the special things in life.


When you thought I wasn't looking I heard you say a
prayer, and I knew that there is a God I could always
talk to, and I learned to trust in Him.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make a
meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I
learned that we all have to help take care of each other.


When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you take care
of our house and everyone in it, and I learned we have
to take care of what we are given.


When you thought I wasn't looking I saw how you
handled your responsibilities, even when you didn't
feel good, and I learned that I would have to be
responsible when I grow up.


When you thought I wasn't looking I saw tears come
from your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things
hurt, but it's all right to cry.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw that you
cared, and I wanted to be everything that I could be.


When you thought I wasn't looking I learned most of
life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and
productive person when I grow up.


When you thought I wasn't looking I looked at you and
wanted to say,'Thanks for all the things I saw when
you thought I wasn't looking.'
Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply.
Speak kindly.
Leave the rest to God.