As a nurse I took countless blood pressures, but one man comes to mind whenever I see a cuff and stethoscope. I remember him because he was a medical miracle. I met him when he was in his 90s at the local senior center. I visited there monthly for blood pressures checks and health teaching, so I had the wonderful privilege and opportunity to get to know the folks there and their stories. This retired pastor was diagnosed when he was fourteen with diabetes around 1914. Diabetes was a fatal disease then because insulin has not yet been discovered. People with diabetes often survived only a few years. “My mama saved me. She worked so hard to find the right balance of food to keep me alive. I remember the day about ten years later getting my first insulin shot. What a miracle that was. I finally had hope.” He still struggled balancing his body’s needs and learning how best use this new drug. He sat in front of me that day, blind most of his life due to diabetes, yet … [Read more...]
The Spiritual Practice of Gazing
Gazing is the act of fixing our eyes in a steady intent look with focused attention. Gazing evokes feelings of curiosity, interest, pleasure, wonder and love. One of my favorite quotes and I keep this by my computer is from Anthony DeMello: “Look at God… Looking and you…and smiling.” Ahhh, to be present in the gaze of God, gazing back in mutual love. This is worship. This is being fully entering into the presence of God. This is communion. A moment of savoring and soaking in God’s love and us loving God. May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, Selah – Psalm 67:1 Gazing Gazing has popped up in my reading and listening quite a bit these past weeks. I find God does that when he is drawing my attention to something important. Pay attention – God is inviting us closer all the time if we notice. “The LORD bless you and keep you; The LORD make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, And … [Read more...]
11 Apps for Daily Prayer – Divine Technology
How do you start your day? Me? Coffee, walking, and prayer. All with the help of technology. My coffee is ready when I get up in the morning since I use the timer feature on the coffee maker. What a great way to wake up with the delightful smell of coffee in the air. I am a house walker, walking throughout my house at a fast pace, up and down the stairs, listening to podcasts and working out with the goal of 50 minutes and 6000 steps to start the day. I love my Fitbit for tracking and try to close all three fitness rings on my Apple Watch by the end of the day. I also practice morning prayer and use several apps on my phone to help me slow down, quiet my spirit and thoughts, and hear God in new ways. Technology can be a distractions sometimes but also a help in deepening prayer. Below are some great suggestions to try. I think all use either Apple or android and most links go directly to the app page. You will have to go to your app store to download. … [Read more...]
Languishing and Lingering Lessons
Lingering and languishing are two words murmuring in my mind and heart lately. I haven't heard anyone said these two words out loud, but sense many people feel empty, depleted, and lack the energy even to linger and savor the present time. We fixate on the never-ending pandemic dominating our lives, news, and choices. We then play the "someday when we can be normal again" game, focusing on the future. Languishing "Part of the danger is that when you’re languishing, you might not notice the dulling of delight or the dwindling of drive. You don’t catch yourself slipping slowly into solitude; you’re indifferent to your indifference. When you can’t see your own suffering, you don’t seek help or even do much to help yourself.” Great quote from an article in the NY Times so well written by Adam Grant and titled "There’s a Name for the Blah You’re Feeling: It’s Called Languishing." It opens with this sentence: "The neglected middle child of mental health can dull your motivation … [Read more...]
One Word Journaling
Is one word enough for a journal entry? Using a single word as a writing prompt is amazingly simple, yet powerful. I have notice when studying scripture and being with God, often the small plain words hold as much meaning as the gigantic theological ones. THE Lord is MY shepherd. OUR Father who art in heaven. YET God… My Word of the Year My word of the year is very minimal and down to earth: GO. I have shared on other posts about my word and GO continues to put down deep roots in my spiritual journey this year. Emily Freeman talked this past week about How to Journal Using One Word in her #173 podcast. Well worth listening as she is inspiring and insightful every week. Emily likes to write her word at the top of a journal page. She then reviews and reflects over the past week, month or quarter her using her iPhone photos, her journal, and her daily planner. Paying attention, she looks for patterns or material related to her word. She then gleans insights … [Read more...]
Living as Easter People in Eastertide
Eastertide is living as Easter people every day, not just on Easter Sunday, but as a way of life. In our local church, we start each worship service these next few weeks with this greeting: Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Our traditional Easter greeting. April brings Easter and don't forget Easter isn't celebrating just one day but a full season. In the church calendar, the season of Easter runs for 50 days from sunset on the eve of Easter Day until Pentecost. This year this means we will greet each other from Sunday April 4 until Sunday, May 23. This a seven-week season of the church year is also called Eastertide. Eastertide is the time of new life. We see this reflected as spring bursts with buds, flowers, and nests full of eggs. We hear it in our music. The sun shines longer each day. My spirit lifts in this light and in the Light of New Life. Extending this season gives us time to rejoice and experience what it means when we say Christ is risen. … [Read more...]
What is the Meaning of Holy Saturday?
Holy Saturday waits. During Holy Week, we parade and cheer Jesus onward as he entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. We broke bread and drank wine on Maundy Thursday. We stood at the edges in disbelief and grief as he died on the cross on Friday. According to the gospel writers, Jesus died at three o’clock in the afternoon. The Jewish sabbath began at six. This meant for the family and friends of Jesus, time was not on their side. The clock was ticking, and the body of Jesus needed to be buried quickly. As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. (Matthew 27:57-60) Time stood still between Jesus' death and his … [Read more...]
Four Evening Routine Questions
Do you have an evening routine? Routines help us by saving brain power and time in decision making, give our day structure and either starts my day with healthier habits or helps me unwind at bedtime. Kendra over at the Lazy Genius wrote a great blog post about the value of routines and it is well worth your time reading her wisdom. Much to ponder in that article. Emily Freeman in her latest podcast discusses evening routines and her words made me assess one of the essential tasks I do before falling asleep each night. I ask myself four evening routine questions. Four Evening Routine Questions Previously I rotated between three questions at night to review the day with God. I wrote about this on this post. My routine is based on the ancient prayer practice called the Daily Examen. This prayer is a prayerful reflection on the events of the day in order to detect God’s presence and discern his direction. With this prayer we clearly discover God’s blessing in our … [Read more...]