Are you afraid of thedark? When I was little once I crawled into bed, I never wanted to get out because I thought the alligators lurking under mattress would chomp on my legs. I wonder if a big brother told me that or if that story rose from my imagination.Fall is a time in the northern hemisphere when darkness takes over as the days get shorter and shadows rule more of our days than sunlight. Who knows what creatures lie in shadowy wait to devour us? So it is little surprise that over the centuries, autumn traditions emerged seeking protection for this spooky time of year.I noticed in our church bulletin last week a reference to this coming Saturday, September 29, being Michaelmas.I don’t think I ever heard of this commemoration before and had fun learning more about it. This feast day of the archangel Michael is seeped deep in history, tradition and folklore. I was fascinated to read some of the stories behind this little known Christian holiday. Here is a bit of what I … [Read more...]
Come Near to God – Lectio Divina
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. James 4: 7-8a (NIV)Is it that simple, Lord?Turn my back on the devil and he is gone?Turn my face only to gaze upon You and You are present?Why do I make my relationship with You so difficult when You purely and plainly instruct me - come near?Come near. Come near. Your intimate and holy invitation.Come near. Be with Me, Your tender call.Come near and we can enjoy each other company.Come near.Lord I stand firm with You, refusing to go along with any of the devil’s evil ways.Come near to God and he will come near to you.I come near and I ask for Your wisdom to know the difference.I enter Your presence needing Your strength to endure his temptations and seductive lures that trap my heart.I seek Your light to guide my faltering steps.Come near to God and he will come near to you.I cling to this promise Lord and run to the shelter of Your wings.I hid in Your shadow … [Read more...]
Learning to Love the Weeds – Quote of the Week = Anthony de Mello
A man who took great pride in his lawnfound himself with a large crop of dandelions.He tried every method he knew to get rid of them.Still they plagued him.Finally he wrote to the Department of Agriculture.He enumerated all the things he had triedand closed his letter with the question,“What shall I do now?”In the course the reply came:“We suggest you learn to love them.”Anthony de Mello … [Read more...]
A Little Fun and Book Spine Poetry/Prayers
Let’s have some creative fun today!Ever play the game with the telephone books? (I wonder how much longer we will have telephone books? Are they a thing of the past? oops, I digress....) I guess you could also play this with a dictionary.You open the telephone book and look at the two words printed at the top of the page. Our minds will attempt to make connections. Our eyes try to find patterns. Read them together for a sometimes-humorous connection. These are actual finds from my phone book that sits on my desk:Bowling BurglarCellular ChurchesCremation DentistsFertilizer FloristsWhen we go looking for just the right book, the same phenomenon occurs. Book lovers often have neck strain - not from reading or writing but from standing in front of bookcases - at home, at the library or in the bookstores - staring at book spines. We tilt our head to the right reading the titles. Awkward, isn’t it?After a time of reading all those titles with a slanted head, the words begin to merge and … [Read more...]
Awesome Wonders – How Great Thou Art
Last Sunday I was blessed.I attend a church that still sings the classic hymns. Though we loosen up occasionally and partake in some modern upbeat praise music, we usually stick to the regular songs in our hymnals.If you are Lutheran I know the question on your mind. Not which hymn, but which hymnal. The cranberry one- Lutherans will understand. But I digress.My daughter, son-in-law and three perfect grandchildren sit with church with us each Sunday. Now there is a blessing, though noisy at times. Kyla is three and the boys (yes twins) are perpetual motion 14 month olds. More on Kyla and this song later.How Great Thou Art:I love this song and it draws me into worship every time I sing it. Powerful words:O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made...Ready for its story?How Great Thou Artbegins with Carl Gustaf Boberg (1859-1940). He was a Swedish pastor, editor, and member of the Swedish parliament. Boberg was enjoying a nice walk when a … [Read more...]
Tame my Tongue, Lord – Lectio Divina
We get it wrong nearly every time we open our mouths. If you could find someone whose speech was perfectly true, you’d have a perfect person, in perfect control of life.A bit in the mouth of a horse controls the whole horse. A small rudder on a huge ship in the hands of a skilled captain sets a course in the face of the strongest winds. A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything—or destroy it!It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell. This is scary: You can tame a tiger, but you can’t tame a tongue—it’s never been done. The tongue runs wild, a wanton killer. With our tongues we bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and women he made in his image. Curses and … [Read more...]
Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast – Quote of the Week – Madeleine L’Engle
Daily BlessingWe must bless without wanting to manipulate. Without insisting that everything be straightened out right now. Without insisting that our truth be known. This means simply turning whoever it is we need to bless over to God, knowing that God's powerful love will do what our own feeble love or lack of it won't. I have suggested that it is a good practice to believe in six impossible things every morning before breakfast, like the White Queen in Through the Looking Glass. It is also salutary to bless six people I don't much like every morning before breakfast.Madeleine L'Engle … [Read more...]
Rut or Rest? – Revisited
Rut or Rest? - RevisitedI mentioned on the last post my confusion whether I was in a rut or in a time of rest. I pondered how to best discern, to hear God in this foggy wandering of my soul.If I have learned anything in my walk with Christ is the fundamental ingredients of discernment boil down to: · Prayer - quiet listening to/for God.· Bible - slowly reading His word, taking it into my heart.· Community - being vulnerable to share my searching with others and with the Spirit’s help, learn from others.· Trust - putting my faith in all of the above that the process will eventually become clear.Since I posted last I have:· Journaled and prayed and spent much quiet time with God· Revisited and slowly savored some of my favorite Bible passages (see below for the one that really spoke to me)· Heard loud and clear from emails and comments left on this blog one consistent and very powerful message:RUT OR REST: GOD IS WITH YOU NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE!(Care … [Read more...]