The Lord is my Shepherd – What Leader are You Following?
Many references are made throughout the Bible about sheep and about the Lord being the Good Shepherd. There is the famous Psalm 23: “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.” John 10:14: “I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep.” John 10:27: “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me.”
In the United States we understand the reference but it’s rare to see a sheep other than in a petting zoo! On a recent choir trip to Scotland and England, the Bible verses literally came to life along the roadside, pastures and hills.
Throughout the British Isles sheep are a main fixture of the landscape.
Traveling from Manchester, England to Edinburgh, Scotland by motor coach, our tour guide pointed out a flock of sheep that started moving very suddenly. Up until that time, the sheep were either grazing or resting, they were never on the move. He explained to us that when one sheep started to move, that first sheep became the leader and the other sheep would follow. It was really quite amazing to watch. Right in the middle of eating some grass, they saw the leader and took off.
How often do we lose sight of our inner knowing and being guided by God and take off in another direction lead by another voice? It happens all of the time. Jeremiah 50:3 says, “My people have been lost sheep. Their shepherds have lead them astray.”
We can always get back on track. I Peter 2:25: “For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”
Listening to the voice of our true Leader and Shepherd means being still and getting quiet. Meditation is a great way to learn how to be still. If you’ve never practiced meditation, it is a powerful practice to quiet the mind.
Are other voices leading you astray, or are you being lead in the right direction? Your true Shepherd is always there to listen and to lead.
Praise, Worship and Reflection in Scotland and England
I haven’t posted on my blog in a while because I decided to unplug myself from the computer. Initially, it was a tough decision to make. But in my quest to slow down and live in the present moment, I chose not to take my laptop with me on a choir tour to Scotland and England. I did, however, take my camera and a journal.
This was the final day of our trip, singing in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, England.
Bill Stein, our wonderful Director of Music at First Presbyterian Church in Kirkwood, Missouri, orchestrated this trip for our choir to sing at some of the most magnificent cathedrals in the world.
Here’s a small sample of our tour. It was wonderful to worship with others across the world and to experience the splendor of these exquisite structures that were built to the glory of God.
This is the Outside of St. Paul’s.
This is Winchester Cathedral (yes, the song was about this cathedral) – Winchester has the longest Nave (principal area of the church) in the United Kingdom.
The above picture is our practice and below is after our performance.
This is Old Souls on the campus of Oxford University. The sky had changed instantly from rain to sun and the light hitting the buildings only lasted for a few minutes.
Coventry Cathedral was the only cathedral that was damaged during World War II. The cathedral was almost completely destroyed during the Blitz. A modern cathedral was built connected to the remains of the old cathedral. After seeing the devastation, the minister of the church said a prayer, “Father Forgive.” These words are in the ruins as well as the new cathedral. Two cross beams had burned and fallen in the shape of a cross. The beams are on display in the new Coventry Cathedral with a replica outside where the beams were originally found.
Father Forgive
York Minster Cathedral
Singing at York Minister. Seeing the choir in this huge space will give you an idea of the size. The sound in these cathedrals was amazing. When we finished a powerful song the sound reverberated throughout the space for several seconds.
York Minster has the most glass of any cathedral. During World War II all of the glass was removed and hidden in the countryside to protect it.
This is just a piece of Durham Cathedral. It was impossible to get a view of the entire structure. There were no pictures allowed inside. The columns were 22 feet round. It was the first of the large cathedrals on our tour.
This is a view from the top of the tower.
St. Giles is in Edinburgh, Scotland and is the birthplace of the Presbyterian Church. This was our first stop and was very special.
Our director, Bill Stein, had the opportunity to play the pipe organ shown here. He is an incredible musician and the music filled the entire space.
Every cathedral had a place to reflect in prayer and to light a candle. I took an opportunity to light a candle and say a prayer in each space.
This trip was not only a gift in having a wonderful experience but it gave me the gift of how important it is to live in the present moment. It was the first trip that I have ever taken where I forgot what day or time it was. I wasn’t worried or thinking about anything else but being present in each moment.
It’s taken me a while to adjust to getting back into the routine of life. The reason, perhaps, is not wanting life to be routine. To be continued…..
Fairy Tales and Happily Ever After
Don’t you just love fairy tales and the promise of happily ever after?
Robert and I just saw the Disney movie, Tangled. It’s the story about Rapunzel, the princess who was taken from her parents as a baby and held captive in a tower until her eighteenth birthday. Along comes Flynn Rider, a dashing, handsome bandit on the run who finds the tower escaping from the guards that were chasing him. Rapunzel schemes to use Flynn to carry out her dream of leaving the tower for a day to visit the source of the lights that she sees every year on her birthday.
As with every Disney movie, good triumphs over evil, dreams are fulfilled and there is always a happy ending with the guarantee of life happily ever after.
Real life isn’t depicted after the closing credits. There is no sequel – Tangled 2 – tangled in bills, making ends meet, and finding energy to remain close long after the relationship begins. Of course, princesses may not have to worry about such concerns. The majority of us have many stressors in “real” live.
Like Rapunzel, we do our own escaping by being entertained for a few hours lost in dreams of fantasy free from worry.
But I got to thinking about happy endings and happily ever after and thought that as Christians, we know the end of our story. We have a happily ever after.
God’s Door is Open 24-7 – Have You Stopped to Think How Important You Are?
Two of my favorite Bible verses are Psalm 121:3 & 4 – He who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. Stated simply, God’s door is always open.
If you’ve never stopped to think how important you are to God, think about this. We have access to God, the Creator of the Universe, 24-7. In business terms, let’s just say that God is the CEO of everything.
Have you tried to get through to a CEO? It’s not easy. There are gatekeepers all along the way. You might have something valuable to say, a good business proposition to offer, but you may never reach the decision maker because of all of the people down the ladder that block access to their door. When we fail to receive a response after multiple attempts, we usually assume that we aren’t important enough to warrant a response.
We have instant access to God twenty-four hours a day. We don’t have to go through a gatekeeper. He’s there ready to listen because we are important to him. We can receive help from God 24-7.
Almost every night when the house is dark and quiet and I lay my head on my pillow, I acknowledge that no matter how late it is, God is there. I find myself going over the happenings of the day with him and asking him for help in areas where I need it. I also remember others who have needs and express those concerns. Most of all, I am grateful to know that while the world sleeps, God is there watching over us.
In Tough Economic Times Count Your Blessings Not Your Money
It’s been an interesting year as our household has gone from two incomes to zero. On one hand, I wouldn’t be telling the truth if I didn’t say that there have been mornings of feeling panic and anxiousness. But on the other hand, those feelings didn’t last long especially when we count our blessings each day and how rich we are – the word rich doesn’t always translate to cash.
We have looked at this tough economic time in our lives as a blessing. Frankly, we were a little unconscious when it came to money. Never being big spenders or living beyond our means, we never focused on a strict budget either. Now our circumstances require that we watch every penny we spend. We have scaled back our spending dramatically. With every purchase we make we now are forced to make a choice. Continue reading
Who Can You Set Free Today by What You Say or What you Do?
Have you been set free or are you weighed down with the burdens of life?
There are some days, weeks, even months when living a life guided by God seems so easy. There is a flow that happens. Joy fills one’s heart. You wake up in the morning and feel a sense of gratitude for everything.
But then doubt and fear can set in. This has certainly been the case with trying to grow a business from the ground up. You’re putting your heart, soul and energy into it, but at the end of the day or week or month, there is no consistent revenue for the effort. It can seem overwhelming. It’s easy to want to give up and go find a “job” and work for someone else.
When we face challenges like this, it is particularly important to lean on your family. In this case, I mean our family of faith. Brothers and sisters in Christ.
That also means having a solid place of worship to attend to be lifted up in the presence of God with like-minded believers. If ever there was a time I needed church, it was last Sunday. I had hit a valley again.
The sermon was called, “The Power of the Spoken Word.” Continue reading
Get Rid of Clutter and Get Organized in Your Mind through Meditation and Being Still
This is the second half of How to Free your Spirit, Clear Clutter from Your Life. The first half addressed physical clutter and this half will address clutter that is in our minds.
This picture shows a very cluttered room. It can also illustrate our minds, but instead of furniture and stuff, think of these items as thoughts that cram into our brains. The thoughts include our to-do lists, worries, doubts, fears, work tasks, family commitments, preoccupation with appearance, age, abilities – you get the picture. It’s stated that we have upwards of 60,000 thoughts a day and we’re bombarded with 5,000 advertising messages a day. That makes for one cluttered mind. So how do you get your mind organized? You clear some of that clutter out. How? Through meditation or simply catching your breath.
How to Free Your Spirit – Clear Clutter from Your Life –Part I Clearing Physical Clutter – Eight Tips
When was the last time you thought about the impact clutter can have on your life? If you are feeling overwhelmed, clutter can be a culprit.
Our world is made up of energy. Clutter stops the flow of energy in its tracks. You can see the difference in these two pictures. One was taken of my basement with clutter…. Really. And the other picture is taken after I cleared the clutter.
(Before picture)
When Robert and I got married almost six years ago, we merged two households. There wasn’t room in Robert’s cottage that I moved into to accommodate all of our stuff, so the majority of my things went into the basement.
As with any move, it was a frenzy of activity with the movers constantly asking, “Where does this go?” Most of the – unmarked – boxes went into the basement. There was hardly a place to move. But it wasn’t a problem because it was only in the basement.
The years went by and I quit my job in Corporate America to be a consultant working out of my home. All of a sudden the basement was weighing on me like a heavy weight around my neck. I was beginning to feel stuck. I knew that I couldn’t get unstuck until I cleared out the basement.
(After picture)
The task was so overwhelming that I hired professional help. My consultant explained that the basement was filled with all events from my past life, meaning old jobs, business ventures that failed, clothes that no longer fit me. All of this energy was weighing me down and I needed to clear it away. Continue reading
You May Think Prayer Is a Small Thing? Don’t Underestimate the Power of Prayer
All it takes for one to believe how powerful prayer can be is to see one’s prayers answered. But what if you are praying for someone and you don’t know if those prayers are answered?
There is a book that a friend gave to my husband years ago. When we were clearing out some clutter (a future blog post to come) I came across this book. It’s a daily devotional guide written by “two listeners” as God speaks to them. The book is God Calling. I have reread this book for the last three years because I believe it contains simple but powerful wisdom.
One of the day’s writings is called – Rule the World. It has to do with the subject of prayer. Since praying is so easy to do, we may think that it’s such a little thing. After reading this writing, prayer is one of the greatest powers that we possess.
There is the saying, “strength in numbers.” The Bible says in Matthew 18:30, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” I believe that we can gather as the children of God, even if we aren’t physically together. We can combine our strength to make our requests known.
I’m quoting a couple of sentences from God Calling Continue reading
Maneuvering Through Life’s Troubled Waters
Robert and I embarked on a week-long adventure in the state of Arkansas. We rented a condo on a lake and plotted a week’s worth of hiking trails and other nature-based excursions.
One of our outings included taking a canoe trip down one of the many rivers located around the area where we stayed. Since we could both count the number of times that we had been canoeing, we told the park ranger that we wanted to go canoeing, but we needed to have a river that was not challenging with lots of rapids since we were pretty much novices.
He enthusiastically recommended a river where the cub scouts and boy scouts went floating. He assured us that the trip would be uneventful. Hah!
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| Monday |
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May 14, 2012 |
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But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it. |
| Tuesday |
| May 15, 2012 |
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And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. |
| Wednesday |
| May 16, 2012 |
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Finally, brethren, rejoice, be made complete, be comforted, be like-minded, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. |
| Thursday |
| May 17, 2012 |
| Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. Hebrews 12:1 |
| Friday |
| May 18, 2012 |
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Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. |
| Saturday |
| May 19, 2012 |
| For the Lord takes delight in his people. Psalm149:4 |
| Sunday |
| May 20, 2012 |
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Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. |
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