Shining Spirit

I wish I had a nickel for every time someone says to me:  “I’ve tried ‘silence’ but it doesn’t work for me.”  They usually go on to say something like:  “Yea, my phone alarm went off, reminding me that I should take time for silence, so I put the barbells down and found a corner of the gym where I could sit on the floor and I tried to be silent for about twenty minutes.  I gave up at fifteen.  Doesn’t work.  I think I’ll go do some situps next.”

Read the sign on the left door very carefully.  I think it means ‘enter the Silence in silence’.  Preparation is part of the prize.

It is frustrating and disappointing to flip the “Silence” switch and expect deep quiet to come on like a light bulb.  The journey to the center of the soul starts before you sit in a Lotus position or in your prayer chair or some other special place that is conducive to reflection and meditation.

Sneak up on Silence.  Tiptoe, don’t run.  Enter the Silence in silence.  Then, in time, you will know the joy of walking through the other door.

May it be so for you.

These pews are as hard as stone!
(It had better be a short sermon.)

This church is too cold in February
and too hot in August!  Why can’t
they do something about that?

What is that moving under that bush?

Wouldn’t you think they could put up an awning!
The sun is right in my eyes.

So, where’s the organ?  We can’t sing without
an organ!

I spent $175 on these shoes and I have to
walk on gravel!

But isn’t this a beautiful church!
Don’t you just love it!
(Did you bring my cushion, Sam?)

When I feel weak I look to the sacred mountain
who reminds me that for centuries he has
stood in spite of circumstances and
changes in the world’s
temperament.

When I feel regret because of life’s inevitable changes,
reflected in my body and my mind, I sit with the
sacred mountain and he points to the rocks and
boulders that have fallen away and found their
homes on the rugged slopes that drop down
into the valley below.  Everything changes.
Everything.

I find great encouragement and comfort in my
conversations with the sacred mountain. Simply
sitting with him in a quiet moment often brings
clarity and perspective.  It is a blessing to have
a special friend who can sort through the
rubbish and find the diamond.
Yes, it’s there.

So, I was walking around in my backyard the other day and I had
the distinct feeling that I was being watched.   The yard is enclosed
by a traditional stucco wall and, given the elevation, no one could stand on
the other side and peek over.  Well, maybe with a ladder.

I could find no evidence of an intruder hiding behind the roses bushes, nor
under the Anonymous Plant in the corner…strange, ugly plant.
I was alone.  Until I glanced at the east wall and found the culprit.
Who invented “smiley faces?”

I told him to go away.  He stayed.   (Could be she)
I said:  “Stop that silly smiling.”  He smiled.
I warned him I was going to get a scrub brush.   Didn’t phase him.
I turned my back and ignored him.   He wouldn’t quit.
I gave up.  He persisted.
Pretty soon I began to wonder about a smile showing up on a stucco wall,
and why here and why now
and I  found myself turning up the corners of my mouth
and I thought “My Lord, I’m smiling at a wall.”

But it felt pretty good,
and I was more relaxed
and the ugly plant in the corner didn’t look so ugly anymore.
Strange and rather wonderful what a smile can do.
Don’t you think?

Be glad in the Lord always.

Let your gentleness show in your treatment
of all people.

Don’t be anxious about anything…

Then the peace of God that exceeds all
understanding will keep your hearts and minds
safe in Christ Jesus.

I have learned the secret of being content in any circumstance.

I know the experience of being in need and of
having more than enough.

I can endure all things through  the power of the one
who gives me strength.

Philippians 4   Selected verses

Yesterday the clouds played games in the sky.
They swirled and rolled and tumbled.
Looked like they had a great time!

When was the last time you played a game?
So, today make time to play.  Maybe it will be your
already favorite game, a new one, or one you make up.
But, do yourself a favor…set aside some amount of time
during your chores and routines and responsibilities
to play.

And, by the way, don’t feel guilty about using your
valuable time like this.  You deserve some
playtime.  Go for it.

Light takes many forms,
just like the containers that hold it.
Tall, short, slender, chubby, prominent,
in the background.  But Light fills them all,
well, almost all.  And even when you
feel like Light has gone out, you’ve got lots of
Light around  you…the same flame in others who
are there to comfort, encourage, console, and to share
their Light so that you may shine once again.
It’s call Community, the Community of the Light,
the Body of Christ.
Let your Light shine so that others may know,
and if your Light grows dim or vanishes,
don’t worry.  We’re here.

A new decade just around the corner?
You bet.  Hang on.  Life gets more interesting every day.

Through all the mountain tops and the dark valleys of 2019,
it is good to acknowledge some of life’s consistencies.  Like
family, friends, church…there are too many inconsistencies to name,
and inconsistencies are not our focus, anyway.
We are people of the possible.
So I encourage you to take a look at 2019 with a sense of curiosity
and gratitude.  Cherish the good.  Learn from the not-so-good.
But in all things be thankful.
Bring with you into the new year the strengths you developed
in the past months, the hope that sustained you, and
a determination to cause good to happen in the months ahead.
Do these things to honor the One who calls you forward
and for the blessing of your neighbor.

And have a bowl of black-eyed peas on me.

The rosebud has the inherent ability to become a
beautiful rose.  Bud to blossom.
It’s a rose now, but its full development
is yet to come.

So it is with human beings, with me and you.
We have the seed of possibility planted within us by our choice
to follow the Way of Jesus.  The seed awaits the nurturing,
but that is our responsibility.  No one can make the nurturing
decisions for me.  No one can take the practical steps that lead
to the fullness that Jesus promised.  We have received a precious gift,
but now it is time to unwrap it.  Imagine carrying one of your
Christmas gifts around all year without unwrapping it.

We have the gift, the ability, the resources, even the
clear instructions to become “children of God.”
Great joy, insight, wisdom await our efforts
to blossom into the spiritual beauty that
is our inherent nature.
Go for it!

“But to all who received him, who believed in his name,
he gave the power to become children of God.”
John 1:12

“And what does the Lord require of you?
Do justice.
Love kindness.
Walk humbly with God.”
So says the prophet Micah.

The best time to begin is now.
Christmas Eve, 2019