Friday, February 28, 2003

New Forum


I love blogging (and especially this blog), but this particular forum is limited in that it can offer only the stories and thoughts that occur to me throughout the day. I'd like to hear what you're thinking and experiencing, too. Douglas Tindal, Producer at FaithandValues.com (www.faithandvalues.com), has asked me to host a community forum on their site to help us all explore "the sacred in the ordinary" in our lives. I'm excited! I hope you'll come visit me at that forum (go to http://forum.faithandvalues.com and click Practical Faith) and write in and say hello!

Have a good weekend! :) k

Wednesday, February 26, 2003

The Gift


A friend sent this story to me just a few minutes ago and I wanted to share it with you:
    In a remote village in Central America, the word got out that one of the missionaries who had served their country for many years was about to return home for her remaining years. The nationals desired to honor her for her long service with a public time of appreciation. News of the event spread to all parts of the country where the missionary was well-known. One very old and poor man walked to the ceremony over mountainous terrain for four days to bring his gift to her. The gift consisted of two coconuts, but it was all he had. The missionary recognized the man as he was approaching. "Brother," she said, "I cannot believe that you would walk so far to present me with this gift." He responded: "The long walk is part of the gift."

In our modern, goal-driven world, we want to see the fruits of our efforts, the effect of our labor. We can easily think that the results of our actions--the successful stewardship campaign we led, the wagon we built, the science project we assisted in, the prayers we offered--are the important part. But each moment, each breath, each smile, each step is part of the gift; the gift we offer God, the gift we offer each other, the gift we offer ourselves. Let's live today joyfully! It's a gift we're always sharing. :) k

Tuesday, February 25, 2003

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There Is Peace


This moment, all around me, there is peace. Just outside my window I see sparrows on the branches of the leafless burning bush, chattering to each other and soaking in the sun. The tops of the snow mounds along the walks and driveways in my neighborhood glitter like they've been sprinkled with diamond dust. My sons are at school, well-fed and secure. My relationships are harmonious. Life is good. Peace is here, in this moment, all around me in this world I see, this world I've been given, this world that blesses me. Is it peaceful where you are, right now? In your life, in your mind, in your heart? Let's thank God for it with all we've got. There is peace in this world. And what we pay attention to grows--in the Name of God. So let's agree to love the peace God has placed in our homes and souls so much that it magnifies and instantly extends to embrace the world. Can peace be more than that?

Blessings on your day! :) k

Wednesday, February 12, 2003

A Wonderful Gift


A friend sent this poem to me just a few minutes ago...it's wonderful. I love Rumi (thanks, Chris!). I wanted to share it with you, too. Here it is: :) k

Zero Circle

Be helpless, dumbfounded,
Unable to say yes or no.
Then a stretcher will come from grace
to gather us up.

We are too dull-eyed to see that beauty.
If we say we can, we’re lying.
If we say No, we don’t see it,
That No will behead us
And shut tight our window onto spirit.

So let us rather not be sure of anything,
Beside ourselves, and only that, so
Miraculous beings come running to help.
Crazed, lying in a zero circle, mute,
We shall be saying finally,
With tremendous eloquence, Lead us.
When we have totally surrendered to that beauty,
We shall be a mighty kindness.


--Rumi

Tuesday, February 11, 2003

Increasing Still-ability


This afternoon, right after lunch, I was standing at the kitchen window watching my now-big-100-pound Newfoundland puppy Georgie bound joyfully through the snow in the backyard. I was munching shortbread cookies. As I finished one cookie and started another, I heard myself wonder, "Why am I eating these? I'm not hungry...and they don't even taste good." The answer was, "I'm having trouble being still," and I knew that it was true.

The last few weeks have been an incredibly busy work time for me. I rush through my morning routine--which typically involves 20 to 30 minutes of meditation, reading, and writing in my journal--do a quick version of yoga (which really negates the whole point of yoga), and talk to God on the run, in the car, in-between paragraphs as I write. I don't feel distant from God, but I sure haven't given him the focused attention I usually do. As I stood there crunching cookies, though, I suddenly understood the frenetic cycle I was in...running from one thing to another, tapping my foot and thinking of the next thing, jittering, planning, moving...

The problem with incessant activity is that there's no listening time, no clearing in a mind that rests, no receptivity to new, healed, or blessed perceptions. There's simply a fast management of life as I perceive it, navigating through deadlines, getting the kids fed, trying to plot the fastest way to school with the least traffic. I suspect that making stillness a priority once again--perhaps especially in the midst of such time pressure--will give me focus and rest and a knowing that I miss when I'm running through my days.

So thanks for the cookie, God, and for the realization that went along with it. I'm going to find a clear spot in my afternoon and just hang out with you for a while.

Blessings on your day! :) k

Friday, February 07, 2003

Answered Prayers


A word of encouragement for all of us who pray for peace, for love, for healing in these days, taken from today's entry in God Calling (Jove Books, NY):
    Remember, trembling heart, that with God, to hear is to answer. Your prayers, and they have been many, are answered.

May we all feel God with us today and claim the divine reassurance that our prayers are always heard and answered.

TGIF! Have a great weekend. :) k

Tuesday, February 04, 2003

The Little Things of God


* a smile * a touch * letting a grumpy person go before you in traffic * reassurance * waking up on a cold morning under a pile of warm blankets * being truthful because you believe it's right * being truthful because you know it's healing (for you both) * being truthful because you know God is in the words you speak and carries the spirit of healing between the two of you * letting small annoyances pass * not getting insulted when your kids take you for granted * taking time to listen when you don't think you have it * getting a sudden glimpse of the preciousness of life * being thankful for everything * seeing your friends perfect just the way they are * remembering that everything God created, He named "good" (including you and me) * glimpsing beauty in falling snow, majesty in forceful winds, peace in raindrops, and love--and the need for it--in the faces of all those you see today.

Many blessings on your day! With love, :) k