Greetings!
I was already in bed and then it dawned on me -- I forgot to blog!!!
So I am back up -- blogging with you and checking out the Monday Night Football game...
From Nouwen: "Christian community is the place where we keep the flame of hope alive among us and take it seriously so that it can grow and become stronger in us. In this way we can live with courage, trusting that there is a spiritual power in us when we are together that allows us to live us to live in this world without surrendering to the powerful forces constantly seducing us toward despair. That is how we dare to say that God is a God of love when we see hatred all around us. That is why we can claim that God is a God of life even when we see death and destruction and agony all around us. We say it together. We affirm it in each other. Waiting together, nurturing what has already begun, expecting its fulfillment -- that is the meaning of marriage, friendship and the Christian life..."
We are better because we are walking TOGETHER...
Off to bed...
Guy
Monday, December 7, 2009
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Advent day 8 - 6 December 2009
Greetings!
What an awesome day at the tampa underground [church]...
[check us out at www.tampaunderground.com]
It is a beautiful thing to see the Good News shared with the poor -- especially the hungry, the homeless, the addicted, the transients, the working girls, the thrown away of our society [and other recovering sinners like me] -- those of us who are poor enough in their spirit that they truly realize their need for God...
We are seeing the poor welcomed in -- included in the community -- plugging into our micro churches -- experiencing the lavish love of the Father [and the affection of the other children in the underground family]...
The initial advent of Jesus was precisely for this purpose -- sharing the Good News with the poor...
On the second Sunday of Advent [and most every Sunday] -- we see Jesus coming afresh in the life of our community -- making sure the message gets through to everyone...
To be real -- aren't we all "poor" -- but some of us [unfortunately] have enough material resources that we don't always realize it -- we hide our poverty behind the facade of our prosperity...
Advent reminds me of my poverty -- of my need -- and of God's radical grace...
Advent reminds me that my identity is established by God's love -- I AM HIS BELOVED CHILD -- not by my own performance...
Advent reminds me [as Brian said so passionately this morning] -- Jesus always comes when we cry out -- he shows up in our puddle of tears -- he is always present in the crucible of human suffering and pain...
Do we care enough to weep over the pain of our world?
If we do -- from our heart -- we will see Jesus come afresh...
As for Nouwen: "A waiting person is a patient person. The word 'patience' implies the willingness to stay where we are and live the situation out to the full in the belief that something hidden there will manifest itself to us. Patient living means to live actively in the present and wait there. Impatient people expect the real thing to happen somewhere else, and therefore they want to get away from the present situation and go elsewhere. For them, the moment is empty. But patient people dare to stay right where they are -- WAITING!"
Let's be fully present right where we are and WAIT aggressively...
Blessings!
Guy
Josh and I almost got a dog tonight -- we looked at a Boxer, but the situation did not "feel" right...
What an awesome day at the tampa underground [church]...
[check us out at www.tampaunderground.com]
It is a beautiful thing to see the Good News shared with the poor -- especially the hungry, the homeless, the addicted, the transients, the working girls, the thrown away of our society [and other recovering sinners like me] -- those of us who are poor enough in their spirit that they truly realize their need for God...
We are seeing the poor welcomed in -- included in the community -- plugging into our micro churches -- experiencing the lavish love of the Father [and the affection of the other children in the underground family]...
The initial advent of Jesus was precisely for this purpose -- sharing the Good News with the poor...
On the second Sunday of Advent [and most every Sunday] -- we see Jesus coming afresh in the life of our community -- making sure the message gets through to everyone...
To be real -- aren't we all "poor" -- but some of us [unfortunately] have enough material resources that we don't always realize it -- we hide our poverty behind the facade of our prosperity...
Advent reminds me of my poverty -- of my need -- and of God's radical grace...
Advent reminds me that my identity is established by God's love -- I AM HIS BELOVED CHILD -- not by my own performance...
Advent reminds me [as Brian said so passionately this morning] -- Jesus always comes when we cry out -- he shows up in our puddle of tears -- he is always present in the crucible of human suffering and pain...
Do we care enough to weep over the pain of our world?
If we do -- from our heart -- we will see Jesus come afresh...
As for Nouwen: "A waiting person is a patient person. The word 'patience' implies the willingness to stay where we are and live the situation out to the full in the belief that something hidden there will manifest itself to us. Patient living means to live actively in the present and wait there. Impatient people expect the real thing to happen somewhere else, and therefore they want to get away from the present situation and go elsewhere. For them, the moment is empty. But patient people dare to stay right where they are -- WAITING!"
Let's be fully present right where we are and WAIT aggressively...
Blessings!
Guy
Josh and I almost got a dog tonight -- we looked at a Boxer, but the situation did not "feel" right...
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Advent day 7 - 5 December 2009
Greetings!
I spent all day serving at THE JESUS ENCOUNTER weekend at the tampa underground -- what a BLESSING...
We had about 75 participants -- they were showered with the lavish love of God -- many people testified that they had NEVER felt so loved in all of their lives -- MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!
I gave a talk on walking in spiritual FREEDOM -- I will attach it to the end of today's blog [if I can figure out how -- ha! ha!]
I am so tired -- I have that awesome feeling you get when you are totally spent for a very great cause -- it was worth it tonight and today...
Now to Nouwen...
"The deepest joys come not from the money we earn, the friends we surround ourselves with or the results we achieve. Rather, we are whom God made us to be in his infinite love. We are the gifts we are given, not just the conquests we make. as long as we running around, anxiously trying to affirm ourselves or be affirmed by others, we remain blind to One who has loved us first, dwells in our heart and has formed our truest self."
God's love is a gift -- undeserved, unconditional and unending -- it never comes as a result of our performance BUT as a result of who we are and who God is -- we are the beloved children of the consummate Lover...
Have a great night's sleep...
guy
Freedom Talk
The Jesus Encounter Weekend
The Tampa Underground
5 December 2009
Guy M. Glass
Our FREEDOM in Christ is directly related to our KNOWING and APPLYING the TRUTH in our lives – please close your eyes and listen to several true truths from God’s word…
1 John 3.1: See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God! And that is what we are!
Jesus in John 10.10: The thief [Satan] comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I [Jesus] have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
Ephesians 6.12: For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
1 Peter 5.8: Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
Jesus praying to the Father in John 17.15-17: My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.
Galatians 5.1: It is for freedom that Christ has set us free! Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery…
Jesus in John 8.32, 36: You will know the truth [me] and [I] the truth will set you free…so if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed!
SPIRITUAL REALITY – let’s start TOGETHER in our understanding – these five truths will be our starting point…
1. Jesus wants to reveal the Father’s lavish love to US – Jesus wants US to walk in truth and be FREE…
2. Satan wants to blind us and destroy us – he wants our life to be a miserable existence characterized by frustration and ropes of BONDAGE…
3. There is a spiritual battle going on – Jesus [good] vs. Satan [evil] in the battlefield of our minds – we cannot opt out of this very real war – every human person has been drafted [conscripted]…
4. The war is NOT between two EQUAL yet OPPOSING powers – Jesus is the Lord of all –Satan is already defeated [his only power is in deception] – he entangles us in ropes of bondage through deceiving us with lies…
5. We can be FREE through Jesus – it is God’s will for each of us as his beloved children to be released from habitual sins, soul ties, generational sins, patterns of bondage and a defeated walk of frustration and failure – the ropes can be cut > SET FREE!
KNOWING THE ROPES…
[have the team bring out the ropes and loosely bind the hands of the participants]
By definition: soul ties are ungodly bonds formed between the souls of people for the purpose of control, manipulation or domination.
What begins so simply, and sometimes innocently, can have devastating and lasting impact – leave us feeling hopeless in our bondage…
We open doors to the ropes…
1. The occult – especially inquiries into the future [horoscopes]…
2. New Age indoctrination – Secrets…
3. Addictive chemical behaviors [abusing] – drugs, alcohol, food, prescription drugs, etc.
4. Abortion…
5. Sexual violation – abuse, molestation, incest, trauma, etc.
6. Addictive sexual behaviors – pornography, lust, exploitation, visualization, fantasy, etc.
7. Personal choices – especially rebellion [often lived out through unhealthy relationships and willful / damaging behaviors]…
8. Sexual sharing outside the marriage covenant – the unique sin [power]…
9. Family of origin issues [ideological biases, prejudice, generational sin patterns, nationalism, enculturation, pride, control, bitterness, culture of honor, music, etc.]…
10. Religion [pride, exclusivist, compromise, heresy, manipulation, exploitation, following institutions rather than Jesus, missing the point, etc.]…
HOW did we get roped in???
Satan’s strategy for binding us with the ropes…
1. Temptation: this is such a small thing; it really does not matter…
2. Condemnation: you did what? God will never forgive you of that…
3. Attacks identity: do you really think you are a child of God when you are so sinful?
4. Questions the Father’s love: do you think God loves hypocrites like you? You might as well just give it up!
5. Hopelessness, bondage and fear: who am I? [Paul in Romans 7.24: what a wretched man I am – who will rescue me from this body of death? THANKS BE TO GOD, WHO DELIVERS ME THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD!]
GETTING FREE…
Jesus wants to cut our ropes and set us free from habitual sins…
1. Get honest and confess specifically [agree with God] and walk in community > [confront denial; stop rationalizing; start with the truth no matter how painful; forsake deception > run to the light]…
1 John 1.9: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
James 5.16: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.
2. Submit to God, repent [change of mind] and receive his strength…
James 4.7, 10: Submit yourselves, then, to God…Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
3. Resist the evil one…
James 4.7: Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you.
4. Close the door [renounce the lies / sins specifically; choose truth; seize your authority as a beloved child of the Father to speak release; with the sword of the Spirit, cut the ropes and trust God to break the bondages]…
2 Corinthians 10.5: We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ…
We have the authority, in the name of Jesus, to break these bonds and walk in our freedom as beloved children of God. In the final analysis, this is not so much a POWER encounter as it is a TRUTH encounter!
John 4.24: God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth…
5. Give ourselves fully to God and walk in intimacy one day at a time…
Romans 12.1: Offer our bodies to God as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is true worship! Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will…
My long walk to FREEDOM…
[after my personal story, have the team come forward and cut the ropes with scissors]
I spent all day serving at THE JESUS ENCOUNTER weekend at the tampa underground -- what a BLESSING...
We had about 75 participants -- they were showered with the lavish love of God -- many people testified that they had NEVER felt so loved in all of their lives -- MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!
I gave a talk on walking in spiritual FREEDOM -- I will attach it to the end of today's blog [if I can figure out how -- ha! ha!]
I am so tired -- I have that awesome feeling you get when you are totally spent for a very great cause -- it was worth it tonight and today...
Now to Nouwen...
"The deepest joys come not from the money we earn, the friends we surround ourselves with or the results we achieve. Rather, we are whom God made us to be in his infinite love. We are the gifts we are given, not just the conquests we make. as long as we running around, anxiously trying to affirm ourselves or be affirmed by others, we remain blind to One who has loved us first, dwells in our heart and has formed our truest self."
God's love is a gift -- undeserved, unconditional and unending -- it never comes as a result of our performance BUT as a result of who we are and who God is -- we are the beloved children of the consummate Lover...
Have a great night's sleep...
guy
Freedom Talk
The Jesus Encounter Weekend
The Tampa Underground
5 December 2009
Guy M. Glass
Our FREEDOM in Christ is directly related to our KNOWING and APPLYING the TRUTH in our lives – please close your eyes and listen to several true truths from God’s word…
1 John 3.1: See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God! And that is what we are!
Jesus in John 10.10: The thief [Satan] comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I [Jesus] have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
Ephesians 6.12: For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
1 Peter 5.8: Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
Jesus praying to the Father in John 17.15-17: My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.
Galatians 5.1: It is for freedom that Christ has set us free! Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery…
Jesus in John 8.32, 36: You will know the truth [me] and [I] the truth will set you free…so if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed!
SPIRITUAL REALITY – let’s start TOGETHER in our understanding – these five truths will be our starting point…
1. Jesus wants to reveal the Father’s lavish love to US – Jesus wants US to walk in truth and be FREE…
2. Satan wants to blind us and destroy us – he wants our life to be a miserable existence characterized by frustration and ropes of BONDAGE…
3. There is a spiritual battle going on – Jesus [good] vs. Satan [evil] in the battlefield of our minds – we cannot opt out of this very real war – every human person has been drafted [conscripted]…
4. The war is NOT between two EQUAL yet OPPOSING powers – Jesus is the Lord of all –Satan is already defeated [his only power is in deception] – he entangles us in ropes of bondage through deceiving us with lies…
5. We can be FREE through Jesus – it is God’s will for each of us as his beloved children to be released from habitual sins, soul ties, generational sins, patterns of bondage and a defeated walk of frustration and failure – the ropes can be cut > SET FREE!
KNOWING THE ROPES…
[have the team bring out the ropes and loosely bind the hands of the participants]
By definition: soul ties are ungodly bonds formed between the souls of people for the purpose of control, manipulation or domination.
What begins so simply, and sometimes innocently, can have devastating and lasting impact – leave us feeling hopeless in our bondage…
We open doors to the ropes…
1. The occult – especially inquiries into the future [horoscopes]…
2. New Age indoctrination – Secrets…
3. Addictive chemical behaviors [abusing] – drugs, alcohol, food, prescription drugs, etc.
4. Abortion…
5. Sexual violation – abuse, molestation, incest, trauma, etc.
6. Addictive sexual behaviors – pornography, lust, exploitation, visualization, fantasy, etc.
7. Personal choices – especially rebellion [often lived out through unhealthy relationships and willful / damaging behaviors]…
8. Sexual sharing outside the marriage covenant – the unique sin [power]…
9. Family of origin issues [ideological biases, prejudice, generational sin patterns, nationalism, enculturation, pride, control, bitterness, culture of honor, music, etc.]…
10. Religion [pride, exclusivist, compromise, heresy, manipulation, exploitation, following institutions rather than Jesus, missing the point, etc.]…
HOW did we get roped in???
Satan’s strategy for binding us with the ropes…
1. Temptation: this is such a small thing; it really does not matter…
2. Condemnation: you did what? God will never forgive you of that…
3. Attacks identity: do you really think you are a child of God when you are so sinful?
4. Questions the Father’s love: do you think God loves hypocrites like you? You might as well just give it up!
5. Hopelessness, bondage and fear: who am I? [Paul in Romans 7.24: what a wretched man I am – who will rescue me from this body of death? THANKS BE TO GOD, WHO DELIVERS ME THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD!]
GETTING FREE…
Jesus wants to cut our ropes and set us free from habitual sins…
1. Get honest and confess specifically [agree with God] and walk in community > [confront denial; stop rationalizing; start with the truth no matter how painful; forsake deception > run to the light]…
1 John 1.9: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
James 5.16: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.
2. Submit to God, repent [change of mind] and receive his strength…
James 4.7, 10: Submit yourselves, then, to God…Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
3. Resist the evil one…
James 4.7: Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you.
4. Close the door [renounce the lies / sins specifically; choose truth; seize your authority as a beloved child of the Father to speak release; with the sword of the Spirit, cut the ropes and trust God to break the bondages]…
2 Corinthians 10.5: We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ…
We have the authority, in the name of Jesus, to break these bonds and walk in our freedom as beloved children of God. In the final analysis, this is not so much a POWER encounter as it is a TRUTH encounter!
John 4.24: God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth…
5. Give ourselves fully to God and walk in intimacy one day at a time…
Romans 12.1: Offer our bodies to God as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is true worship! Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will…
My long walk to FREEDOM…
[after my personal story, have the team come forward and cut the ropes with scissors]
Friday, December 4, 2009
Advent day 6 - 4 December 2009
I hid with God today...
It was awesome...
It rained most of the day in Tampa -- and it got much cooler...
It actually feels like winter -- Florida style...
No Nouwen or Rohr tonight -- just one word...
FREEDOM...
I am 50 years old...
I have been a Christ-follower for over 45 years...
I have been a pastor for over 30 years...
But, I feel more FREEDOM now than I ever have in my life...
I think the key has been openness -- honesty with God [fewer facades than ever] and honesty with a spiritual friend I have come to trust...
James 5.16: "Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed" -- it is a liberating experience to be honest with God and with another human person...
I took the risk of "unloading" with my spiritual director this last year -- he did not reject or condemn me in the deep vulnerability of my hideous confession -- he loved me -- accepted me -- prayed with me -- partnered with God in healing me...
The healing brought a new freedom...
A new peace...
I am less afraid...
As Popeye would say: "I yam who I yam" -- the transparency and authenticity -- fewer facades and fronts -- have moved me toward greater freedom and peace...
Our freedom is so dependent on truth -- the truth of God's word -- i am so glad God encouraged me to put this verse to the test...
I hope it rains all night...
Sleep tight...
Guy
I may have found my dog today...
It was awesome...
It rained most of the day in Tampa -- and it got much cooler...
It actually feels like winter -- Florida style...
No Nouwen or Rohr tonight -- just one word...
FREEDOM...
I am 50 years old...
I have been a Christ-follower for over 45 years...
I have been a pastor for over 30 years...
But, I feel more FREEDOM now than I ever have in my life...
I think the key has been openness -- honesty with God [fewer facades than ever] and honesty with a spiritual friend I have come to trust...
James 5.16: "Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed" -- it is a liberating experience to be honest with God and with another human person...
I took the risk of "unloading" with my spiritual director this last year -- he did not reject or condemn me in the deep vulnerability of my hideous confession -- he loved me -- accepted me -- prayed with me -- partnered with God in healing me...
The healing brought a new freedom...
A new peace...
I am less afraid...
As Popeye would say: "I yam who I yam" -- the transparency and authenticity -- fewer facades and fronts -- have moved me toward greater freedom and peace...
Our freedom is so dependent on truth -- the truth of God's word -- i am so glad God encouraged me to put this verse to the test...
I hope it rains all night...
Sleep tight...
Guy
I may have found my dog today...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Advent day 5 -- 3 December 2009
Greetings!
I decided to take a day off from work tomorrow -- I need a day to "hide out" with God -- I can hardly wait...
I want more "space" than I got today -- it was just too busy...
I want to get my heart focused before THE JESUS ENCOUNTER weekend kicks off tomorrow night at the tampa underground -- it will be a great experience for the 75 participants -- I am so excited about serving...
It is late and I am beat -- tonight will be short...
Henri Nouwen speaking about "Jesus' Weakness Invites Us Into God's Intimacy": "People with power do not invite intimacy. We fear, we look up to, we envy people with power. God's power is something entirely different. God does not want us to be afraid, distant, or envious. God wants to come close, very close, so close that we can rest in the intimacy of God as children in their mother's arms."
It's time to go to sleep in God's arms tonight...
Sweet dreams...
Guy
Wish my new dog was jumping in the bed with me tonight...
I decided to take a day off from work tomorrow -- I need a day to "hide out" with God -- I can hardly wait...
I want more "space" than I got today -- it was just too busy...
I want to get my heart focused before THE JESUS ENCOUNTER weekend kicks off tomorrow night at the tampa underground -- it will be a great experience for the 75 participants -- I am so excited about serving...
It is late and I am beat -- tonight will be short...
Henri Nouwen speaking about "Jesus' Weakness Invites Us Into God's Intimacy": "People with power do not invite intimacy. We fear, we look up to, we envy people with power. God's power is something entirely different. God does not want us to be afraid, distant, or envious. God wants to come close, very close, so close that we can rest in the intimacy of God as children in their mother's arms."
It's time to go to sleep in God's arms tonight...
Sweet dreams...
Guy
Wish my new dog was jumping in the bed with me tonight...
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Advent day 4 -- 2 December 2009
Greetings...
A "cold front" is blowing through FL tonight...
Rambunctious squalls are exiting the Gulf and hitting the coastline -- it is raining steadily right now in central city Tampa...
I am sitting on the front porch -- enjoying a slight mist that is lingering in the night air...
I love it!
The rain...
The cooler air...
The turbulence of the storm out there...
The quiet of the porch [nobody else in my crew wants to sit in the mist -- ha! ha!].
The eery lighting of the night in the distance as lightning flashes...
It could not be better [although I do wish it were a little earlier]...
Some reflection time...
I did something nice today because God stirred my heart -- not because I felt compulsed to -- I think I was so moved because of yesterday's reflection and the prayer to the Father that my spirituality would be about DESIRE and LOVE and PASSION, not morose obligation...
I wanted to love out of a loving YES -- a real, deep, authentic and firm YES to God!
I don't want to mislead you -- it was no big thing...
A cup of coffee [cream only] before team started today for our new doc on my hospice team -- Dr Von Rottenthyler [no not Rottenweiler] -- Hugarian born, German reared, USF educated, now LifePath Hospice employed...
A very little thing -- but she was so surprised and so appreciative -- a cup of coffee in Jesus' name goes a long way I guess -- my thrill came from the joy in my heart to serve her...
Did you say a big YES to God today???
For tonight...
Richard Rohr in speaking of the Church in our world today: "I think the Church's numbers, its institutions and traditions have sometimes given it a false sense of power. We think that just because we have the numbers we're influencing culture. Sometimes we're not at all, we're just reflecting the culture. There's a big difference between influencing culture and reflecting it. In many cases the Church tends to reflect the local prejudices and biases much more than influencing and changing them..."
Are we influencing or just reflecting???
Maybe we have been reflecting so long that we have actually lost the numbers and true influence, compromised our spiritual authority and cooled in our passionate and radical love for the people in the world around us???
Henri Nouwen: "The waiting and watching and serving we are called to demands that we become seers, people who discern the coming of God into our midst and in our world. Is there a space in our life where the Spirit of God has a chance to speak or act or show up? Being contemplative means peeling off the blindfolds that keep us from seeing his coming in us and around us, and learning to listen in the spaces of quiet we leave for God...we seem to have a fear of empty spaces. We want to fill up what is empty. Perhaps our fear is that an empty space means that something may happen to us that we cannot predict, that is new, that leads us to a place we might not want to go. I might not want to hear what God has to say..."
Do you hear God's voice calling us to create some space during this Advent season?
Do you sense the need for quiet spaces we leave for God?
I am feeling courage to move beyond my fears -- I want to hear what God has to say NO MATTER WHAT -- this must be God at work...
"perfect love drives out all fear..."
Can you sense his coming afresh in stirring your courage???
What about it -- let's carve out an empty space JUST FOR GOD tomorrow...
I can hardly wait -- I am excited -- both for ME and for YOU!!!
Shalom...
Sleep tight...
Guy
I think my dog would lay out here in the mist with me -- what do you think???
A "cold front" is blowing through FL tonight...
Rambunctious squalls are exiting the Gulf and hitting the coastline -- it is raining steadily right now in central city Tampa...
I am sitting on the front porch -- enjoying a slight mist that is lingering in the night air...
I love it!
The rain...
The cooler air...
The turbulence of the storm out there...
The quiet of the porch [nobody else in my crew wants to sit in the mist -- ha! ha!].
The eery lighting of the night in the distance as lightning flashes...
It could not be better [although I do wish it were a little earlier]...
Some reflection time...
I did something nice today because God stirred my heart -- not because I felt compulsed to -- I think I was so moved because of yesterday's reflection and the prayer to the Father that my spirituality would be about DESIRE and LOVE and PASSION, not morose obligation...
I wanted to love out of a loving YES -- a real, deep, authentic and firm YES to God!
I don't want to mislead you -- it was no big thing...
A cup of coffee [cream only] before team started today for our new doc on my hospice team -- Dr Von Rottenthyler [no not Rottenweiler] -- Hugarian born, German reared, USF educated, now LifePath Hospice employed...
A very little thing -- but she was so surprised and so appreciative -- a cup of coffee in Jesus' name goes a long way I guess -- my thrill came from the joy in my heart to serve her...
Did you say a big YES to God today???
For tonight...
Richard Rohr in speaking of the Church in our world today: "I think the Church's numbers, its institutions and traditions have sometimes given it a false sense of power. We think that just because we have the numbers we're influencing culture. Sometimes we're not at all, we're just reflecting the culture. There's a big difference between influencing culture and reflecting it. In many cases the Church tends to reflect the local prejudices and biases much more than influencing and changing them..."
Are we influencing or just reflecting???
Maybe we have been reflecting so long that we have actually lost the numbers and true influence, compromised our spiritual authority and cooled in our passionate and radical love for the people in the world around us???
Henri Nouwen: "The waiting and watching and serving we are called to demands that we become seers, people who discern the coming of God into our midst and in our world. Is there a space in our life where the Spirit of God has a chance to speak or act or show up? Being contemplative means peeling off the blindfolds that keep us from seeing his coming in us and around us, and learning to listen in the spaces of quiet we leave for God...we seem to have a fear of empty spaces. We want to fill up what is empty. Perhaps our fear is that an empty space means that something may happen to us that we cannot predict, that is new, that leads us to a place we might not want to go. I might not want to hear what God has to say..."
Do you hear God's voice calling us to create some space during this Advent season?
Do you sense the need for quiet spaces we leave for God?
I am feeling courage to move beyond my fears -- I want to hear what God has to say NO MATTER WHAT -- this must be God at work...
"perfect love drives out all fear..."
Can you sense his coming afresh in stirring your courage???
What about it -- let's carve out an empty space JUST FOR GOD tomorrow...
I can hardly wait -- I am excited -- both for ME and for YOU!!!
Shalom...
Sleep tight...
Guy
I think my dog would lay out here in the mist with me -- what do you think???
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Adent day 3 -- 1 December 2009
Greetings!
How did your celebration of personal weakness go for you today???
Pretty uncomfortable???
Me too, but...
I received a gift this afternoon from one of my patients who is dying of cancer -- she is enjoying what she believes to be her sister from MA last visit with her...
They played cards on Monday night until "way past our bedtime" -- "I really overdid it -- I almost could not get out of bed this morning -- I was so tired..."
"But it was a great decision -- it was worth it -- the interaction was well worth the fatigue that followed -- plus I beat her badly!"
AJ [her initials] has embraced her weakness, limits and finitude -- as a gift -- through her battle with cancer [and a difficult life]...
She gave me hope today -- in my aging process, I too have the opportunity to embrace my weakness, finitude and limits -- a gift of wisdom / aging gracefully...
Before we prayed and thanked God for his blessings -- yes, even the gift of our frail and fragile humanity -- we read the words of Jesus from 2 Corinthians 12.9...
"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in your weakness..."
When my weakness opens me to the strength of Jesus -- that is when I am strongest!
Moving on to Tuesday...
In my younger and more arrogant days, I was quick [and severe] in my chastisement of those "simpletons" of faith [according to my judgment] who were always talking about the second coming of Christ.
And singing about it...
And shouting about it...
And testifying about it...
NOT ME -- they were the ones with the theological "problems"...
Escapists!
Pie in the sky extremists!
Run away from today and hide in the "blessed hope" of the future...
I am rethinking now...
The blessed hope is really quite blessed!
The older I get the more blessed it gets!
I cannot celebrate his first Advent without joyful expectation of his Second Coming...
I am feeling a deep love for his appearing...
Henri Nouwen: "We should desire not only the first coming of Christ in his lowly human gentleness but also his second coming as the judge of our lives..."
And I would add, the judge of all culture and history...
The second coming epitomizes HOPE for me at this stage in my journey...
What does Jesus' coming again mean to you tonight???
Richard Rohr [on the "virtue of obedience"]: "I do think that all Christians have to practice saying YES before they dare to say NO..."
Tomorrow, let's do the right things because of our DESIRE to say YES to God -- not because we OUGHT to be good and holy [or else!!!]...
I am ending my night -- on the porch -- a cool wind blowing -- a glass of wine in hand -- opening my heart to meditate on what it means to say a BIG YES to God...
What will saying YES to God "look like" as I walk through Wednesday???
Wish you were here feeling the moment with me...
Shalom...
guy
I am also meditating on how my very own dog would draw me closer to God...
How did your celebration of personal weakness go for you today???
Pretty uncomfortable???
Me too, but...
I received a gift this afternoon from one of my patients who is dying of cancer -- she is enjoying what she believes to be her sister from MA last visit with her...
They played cards on Monday night until "way past our bedtime" -- "I really overdid it -- I almost could not get out of bed this morning -- I was so tired..."
"But it was a great decision -- it was worth it -- the interaction was well worth the fatigue that followed -- plus I beat her badly!"
AJ [her initials] has embraced her weakness, limits and finitude -- as a gift -- through her battle with cancer [and a difficult life]...
She gave me hope today -- in my aging process, I too have the opportunity to embrace my weakness, finitude and limits -- a gift of wisdom / aging gracefully...
Before we prayed and thanked God for his blessings -- yes, even the gift of our frail and fragile humanity -- we read the words of Jesus from 2 Corinthians 12.9...
"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in your weakness..."
When my weakness opens me to the strength of Jesus -- that is when I am strongest!
Moving on to Tuesday...
In my younger and more arrogant days, I was quick [and severe] in my chastisement of those "simpletons" of faith [according to my judgment] who were always talking about the second coming of Christ.
And singing about it...
And shouting about it...
And testifying about it...
NOT ME -- they were the ones with the theological "problems"...
Escapists!
Pie in the sky extremists!
Run away from today and hide in the "blessed hope" of the future...
I am rethinking now...
The blessed hope is really quite blessed!
The older I get the more blessed it gets!
I cannot celebrate his first Advent without joyful expectation of his Second Coming...
I am feeling a deep love for his appearing...
Henri Nouwen: "We should desire not only the first coming of Christ in his lowly human gentleness but also his second coming as the judge of our lives..."
And I would add, the judge of all culture and history...
The second coming epitomizes HOPE for me at this stage in my journey...
What does Jesus' coming again mean to you tonight???
Richard Rohr [on the "virtue of obedience"]: "I do think that all Christians have to practice saying YES before they dare to say NO..."
Tomorrow, let's do the right things because of our DESIRE to say YES to God -- not because we OUGHT to be good and holy [or else!!!]...
I am ending my night -- on the porch -- a cool wind blowing -- a glass of wine in hand -- opening my heart to meditate on what it means to say a BIG YES to God...
What will saying YES to God "look like" as I walk through Wednesday???
Wish you were here feeling the moment with me...
Shalom...
guy
I am also meditating on how my very own dog would draw me closer to God...
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