THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

how often do you talk with the one who loves you

HOLD UP THE WORLD

What if we thought about prayer
as a building block,
as a foundation
which holds up the world?

What if the only reason
the world still exists is
because there are those who pray
and hold up the world with
their faith,
their belief,
and their prayers.

May we hold up the world
each day
by offering up our prayers
for ourselves,
for others,
for our communities
for our countries
and for the world

LIBERATION

A Tibetan meditation master once prayed
“All those I fly over,
may they all be liberated.”
It is comforting to know
that at some point,
he prayed for me.

What if we did the same.
What if we prayed for those
to the east of us,
to the west,
to the north, and
to the south of us?

What if we prayed for all in
and on the earth,
that which is in the air,
temporarily or permanently,
that which is in the water
and or fire?
What if we remembered to pray
for the liberation of
all things,
places,
and people?
How much different
would the world be

THE MIRROR

I look in the mirror
and sometimes I love
what I see and
there are other times
I don’t
However, there has never been
a time when I hated
what I saw so much
that I could slash my wrist
or poison myself
or want to leave this world behind.

When I look in the mirror
what I see is a reflection
of the Divine,
the one who created me,
the one who designed me
the one who tells me
you are beautiful just as you are.

When I look in the mirror
what I see is a reflection
of the Divine
of the one who is love,
is about healing
is about grace
is about wisdom and
is about listening.

When I look in the mirror
I pray for those who
do not see what I see
or feel what I feel.
I pray for those who see
something so painful
that leaving feels better
than staying

When I look in the mirror,
I remember to pray
for those
I know,
those I do not,
those who are whole and
those who are hurting,
those who have asked
for prayer
and those who have not
because we are all
a reflection
of the Divine

STARTING THE DAY

The message keeps coming
Start your day by
giving to God and then
God will give the day to you.

How do you start your day?
Do you start by having
time with God?
Time for your spiritual practice,
spiritual discipline,
devotion,
prayer, or
meditation.

Do you tithe your time to God
before spending the
rest of your time or
do you squeeze God
in at the end?

Start your day by
spending time with God
then know that the time
will be given to you
to accomplish all you
need that day.

I start my day by giving thanks
for my blessings,
for that which inspires me
and that which I intend to manifest.
How do you start your day?

A LEAGUE OF MY OWN

I have been thinking about prayer
and what I pray about.
Then it dawned on me
that when I pray,
I am entering a
space with the Divine.
I am entering
a league of my own.

It doesn’t matter
who I am around
or with
or where.
When I open myself and
pray I am in
a league of my own
being coached by the Ultimate
and being taken
to a higher place of understanding.

I am in a league
selected just for me.
A league of my own,
hand picked and selected
by the Ultimate.
A league just for me.
A league of my own.

SONG OF THE WEEK

This week's song of the week reminds me that we are the masters of our sea. It is our experiences in life, the challenges we have made it through which create our belief system and give us faith. https://youtu.be/7wtfhZwyrcc

PRAYER

http://www.kkgmam.com/gary-dull-joins-nathan-kistler-on-day-15-of-30-days-of-prayer-for-the-nation/

Prayer is not just the words we utter,
It Is also the deeds.
it is the way we walk through life
it is the way we interact with the world
it is the reverence we bring
into our words and deeds.
it is about our awareness,
our ability to see the Divine
to hear the needs and cries of others
it is about our ability to sense God and
the people of God in the world
It is about us knowing God in ourselves
and others

SONG OF THE WEEK

This week's song of the week is so personal for me as it reminds me of all the times I prayed for a dear friend of mine who has gone through several bouts of cancer. I am grateful for the prayers we shared. One of the things I love most about this song, is that there is this upbeat bouncy tune to this heavy subject. It reminds me to stay joyful in all situations. https://youtu.be/SgSC6Kh0N5s 

BE FREE

I sit in my wheelchair and
The plane flies over me
And I pray for them that they
may be free

I sit in my wheelchair and
The plane flies over me
And I hear them saying,
May they be free.

I sit in my wheelchair and
I roll around the block
And I pray that all those who are under me
May be free

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DEVELOP THE INNER VISIONARY

Working on some spiritual practices in our lives is easier then others. It is easy to think about how to practice kindness, gratitude, joy, kindness, or even play. However thinking about practicing vision requires us to think outside the box. So I was excited when I found the writing of Angeles Arrien, in The Four-Fold Way Walking the Paths of the Warrior, Teacher, Healer and Visionary. She offers some concrete steps and things we can do to practice developing our inner visionary. So I thought this week I would share her ideas with you.

"Processes and Reminders: Important Practices to Develop the Inner Visionary

"1. Spend at least fifteen minutes each day in walking meditation. Record your experience in your journal or create a special meditation log.

"Walking Meditation
Accessing the Inner Creator
Accessing the Quality of Creativity

"Purpose

"The purpose of walking meditation is to honor sacred time. This is a time set aside for introspection, contemplation, discovery, and honoring the sacred or divine.

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UNTIEING THE KNOT

So, this month has certainly been filled with adventure and challenges. I have come to remember that achieving unity with someone is not always easy. Sometimes our ways of working towards the common goal are so different. This week a collaborator asked me to prayerfully make a commitment to do something. Reading the request left me with mixed feelings. On the one hand, I wanted to be able to say that what they wanted me to commit to would happen. At the same time, I realized that what they wanted me to commit to involved so many more people and situations then I had control over. I also realized I was feeling this pressure to do something from someone who had always said they would never pressure me to do that. As I repeatedly read the request, I realized the pivotal word in the request was prayerfully.

Prayerfully. That was what reminded me that you had the answer to all that I needed to be in unity with this person. So, thank you for allowing me to speak my truth in love. I know that in your time I will achieve the goal that we would both like to see me achieve, which is also a part of her goal. However, I also know that this is about you and your timing. So, I will continue to commit to being the best me I can be each day and know that you will continue to open doors and remove obstacles and create ways out of no way.

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PRAYERS AND PRETZELS

Today is National Pretzel Day. I am always amazed at how many foods have their own holidays. Growing up my father loved pretzels, just about any kind, hard or soft, sticks, twisted, large or small. My favorite are the soft ones which are twisted and look like what in my mind is a pretzel. As a child, I would hold them up to my face and think they reminded me of a face. Two holes for the eyes and one for the mouth and the nose was the space where they came together.

As an adult, I was amazed when I learned that the crossing of the pieces was linked back to the ways people used to hold their arms when they were praying, crossed. Today we hold our hands together in prayer. However, in the 600’s people crossed their arms in prayer. The three holes were representative of the Holy Trinity (the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit).[1] Learning this gave me a new perspective on what is one of my favorite treats, the pretzel, especially the soft ones that I love to eat.

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FOCUSING ON THE JOY

It has been a challenging few weeks and I know there is more to come. The awesome thing for me is that I know that even when it may feel like you are not there for me, you really are. Over the course of my journey with you, I have learned a few key lessons for which I am truly grateful. Maybe the first is about where I put my focus. It is easy when I am going through to focus on what is going wrong and what you are not doing for me.

The reality is that even when I am going through, you are doing things for me.

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TRUST IN __________

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin captures an important aspect of faith in these lines from a prayer.

Breathing in: Trust in . . .
Breathing out: the slow work of God.

How many of us remember to trust in the slow work of God?  Last year, one of my students said to me, “It sure would be nice if God could answer your prayers in the same amount of time it takes to get a Happy Meal.”  I had to stop and remind him that Happy Meals do not always make you happy, at least not in the long run, and that they are not always healthy. However his question got at an important point. How often do we expect God to hear and answer our prayers instantaneously? Do we only trust in God when they are answered quickly or do we trust in the slow work of God?

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

HAVE YOU TAKEN YOUR VITAMINS FOR THE SOUL TODAY? IF NOT, TAKE A MOMENT TO NOURISH YOUR MIND, BODY AND SOUL. LET'S BE INTENTIONAL ABOUT KEEPING OURSELVES HEALTHY

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

WHAT IS PRAYER TO YOU?\

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

WHAT IS PRAYER TO YOU?

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

HAVE YOU LEARNED TO TRUST IN THE LIGHT?

WHO IS OUR NEIGHBOR?

As I watched this video, it reminded me of a scripture from the New Testament which said there were two commandments we are to follow, First, “the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these" (Mark 12:30-31). Other spiritual writings teach a similar lesson; we are to love God and we are to love our neighbor as ourselves.

That raises a question similar to the one raised in the video. Who are our neighbors? Who are they? 

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