 |
| Monday |
| January 30, 2012 |
| Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:4 |
| Tuesday |
| January 31, 2012 |
|
Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do; forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. |
| Wednesday |
| February 1, 2012 |
| In him we have redemption through the blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. Ephesians 1:7-8 |
| Thursday |
| February 2, 2012 |
| We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. Romans 12:6 |
| Friday |
| February 3, 2012 |
|
He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. |
| Saturday |
| February 4, 2012 |
| Listen to this; stop and consider God's wonders. Job 37:14 |
| Sunday |
| February 5, 2012 |
|
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. |
| Most Popular Articles |
| The Meaning of Be Still will Surprise You |
| A Prayer for Being Overwhelmed |
| A Modern Day Good Samaritan Story |
What is Spiritual Direction and How to Find a Spiritual Director
What is spiritual direction and what is a spiritual director? I had never heard these terms before until a few years ago. My friend Karen and I share the same philosophy that if we hear about something multiple times in a week, whether it’s a recommended book, movie or advice, that we need to pay attention. Well, this spiritual direction and spiritual director topic popped up everywhere!
One of my friends was retiring. He held an executive position within the Presbyterian Church. At a reception I asked him what he would be doing once he retired and he told me that he wanted to spend more time as a spiritual director. I asked him what that meant and he explained what spiritual direction was, but the room was noisy and we were forced to cut the conversation short to get to choir practice. I didn’t quite grasp the meaning and quite frankly, forgot about it.
That weekend Robert and I took a trip to Wisconsin to visit friends of ours. I showed them my website and what I was doing and Dave said, “You need a spiritual director.” Continue reading
Contemplative Practices – How to Connect to God through Mindless Activities
Our connecting with God and practicing ways to be contemplative aren’t limited to prayer, meditation and writing. While I promote prayer, meditation and journaling as powerful tools, there are many simple ways to feel the love and presence of God every day. By incorporating mindfulness of the presence of God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, or all three, through simple acts we perform, we can bring a sense of peace, wholeness and clarity into our daily living. What do I mean?
Have you ever stopped to think of simple things you do – Preparing a meal, walking your dog, painting, gardening, cleaning your house or apartment, sitting in the presence of a loved one and not speaking, fishing – almost any kind of hobby? All of these activities lend themselves to putting your whole heart into it. We may even call these activities “mindless”. What these actions represent are contemplative practices.
I put house cleaning on the list because it seems so odd, right? 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
The Law of Attraction and the Christian Faith Part II
Yesterday I wrote about The Law of Attraction and the Christian Faith Part I where I shared a true story that happened to me when I attracted a past connection into my life.
I wrapped up that first post by saying that there were two caveats with the asking and receiving process.
Matthew 6:33 says, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
We also need to believe. In the book of Matthew, a man approached Jesus regarding his son. He had first taken his son to his disciples to heal him, but they couldn’t do it. Jesus was, let’s say, a little upset. He rebuked the demon and healed the boy.
The Law of Attraction and the Christian Faith Part I
There’s been a lot of buzz within the last decade about The Law of Attraction. Classes, books, workshops, even a movie have been created to teach people how to harness this law. The Law of Attraction states that what you put your attention on you can manifest into being. By asking and believing you are supposed to receive. The outcome can be good or bad, by the way, depending what you truly believe consciously and unconsciously. But how do you use The Law of Attraction in the Christian faith?
Hmmm, where I have heard those words before? Asking, believing and receiving are words found in a book published way before the popular book, The Secret, was published that defines The Law of Attraction. Matthew chapter seven and verses seven and eight come to mind:
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”
The Law of Attraction works as sure as another law, the Law of Gravity. Don’t go stepping off a ladder or from a high place because you will hit the ground. God created all of the laws of the universe.
I have found that whenever I have put my attention on something, especially if I am deeply emotional about it, I attract what I am thinking about into my life. Let me share a funny, true story of how The Law of Attraction can work. This law works not only in the big things in our lives, but in the little things too.
Writer’s Block? Hit the Creative Wall? Tap Into Meditation, Prayer and Nature
I have to say that I am pretty fortunate as a writer that my mind is constantly spinning with creative ideas. But, inevitably, we all hit the wall – the wall of writer’s block. That’s when you sit down with your pad of paper or plop down in front of the computer and nothing comes.
When that happens, you can’t sit and will your brain to spew out lovely prose. It just won’t happen. In the world of true creativity, you can’t force things. That’s when you have to tap into some Divine creative power.
I took this picture at the Monterey Aquarium. It’s a sea horse. Can you believe it? There were 32 different varieties of sea horses. I rarely watch television, but one of my favorite shows is CBS Sunday Morning. Robert and I watch it before we go to church. One Sunday they featured “Creatures.” I had no idea that there are 1.8 million known species!
While I have always admired God’s handy work in the form of sunsets, clouds, mountains – I had no idea how many species God created. And there are more we haven’t even discovered. This solidified for me the mind and creativity of God. It gave me a new meaning and appreciation of God as the Ultimate Creator.
All writers and artists experience being blocked.
God’s Power Steering – Don’t Let Go of the Wheel – Just Keep Moving
I have to admit that I struggle as I get older with realizing the concept of having less time than in my youth. There are so many things that I want to do. Because I have hit the over half-way mark in my life, I feel a sense of urgency in wanting everything NOW!
The Psalmist says, “Be still and know that I am God.” And James says, “Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” So I struggle with being still and doing.
If you Fall off the Meditation Wagon (or Meditation Horse) – Just Get Back on Again
I officially launched this website just after Thanksgiving. There were a lot of technical issues to resolve and a lot of parts and pieces to get in order. But the website child was finally born!
Of course Thanksgiving is the start of the holiday season. I was determined to not let the holidays steal my joy which they had done every year, so I decided to blog with a new Christmas idea every day.
Having not fine-tuned a daily blogging habit on my other site, the process wasn’t exactly flowing. But by the middle of the month, I was tooling along. The problem was that the month of December was filled with a ton of other commitments: end of the year doctor appointments for my mother and myself in order to take advantage of the deductible for the year, choir practices and concerts, family coming in from out of town and all of the to do’s that come with Christmas – shopping, baking, wrapping presents, cleaning – Need I go on?
I was getting up before the crack of dawn to craft my tip, idea or inspirational thought for the day then flying out the door to take care of my other responsibilities. Something had to give and unfortunately, I let it be my fifteen minute meditation practice. THAT was the one small, chunk of time that I should have protected.
But, my friends, even as one who has dedicated her life to teach and involve people into the practice of meditation, I let myself fall of the meditation horse. Why?
Sometime between the Activities of the Day, Take a Walk or at Least Pause and Enjoy the Most Special of Holidays
I’m sure you’re running around like me today. We are having the entire family over for a turkey dinner. So, I’ll be cooking from early in the morning until late into the afternoon.
There will be unwrapping presents and playing with children. Before you know it, the big, Christmas day we have planned for, shopped for, cooked for and probably stressed out over will be over in the blink of an eye.
Tomorrow will be business as usual.