I present these two passages to you, from my own meditation time today, for your own reflection. Either one is a good choice for meditative prayer (Lectio Divina) which I have written about in previous posts. (You can do a search, or click on the appropriate category at the bottom of the page, for the 4 movements typical to this prayer form.) I have taken these two passages from the material offered in the Holy Bible: Mosaic by Tyndale, pages 58-59.
After reading these, please share your reflections.
This morning on FACEBOOK, I issued a challenge to my friends who happened to be on their computers at the time. The challenge was simple: Sing Praise.
Quickly, a friend replied by posting a Psalm of her own. Inspired, I rejoined with more praise, and then so did another.
After you read what happened, maybe you can type in a few words of praise.
Jodi Shockey Plum
I sing praises to Your name oh Lord, praises to Your name oh Lord. For Your name is great and greatly to be praised. i sing praises to Your name oh Lord…
about an hour ago ·
(me) Praise you God, the Highest One. You glory extends from the heavens to the depths of the earth. The stars shout for joy, the tree sway to your music, the birds sing your refrains, the creatures acknowledge you.
Sharon Herbster
Praise God from whom all blessings flow. . .Praise Him ye creatures here below. . .Praise Him above ye heavenly host. . .Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!
(Once my granddaughter was talking to me on the phone from NC and sang me her “Jesus song”. She asked if I knew any Jesus’ songs and I enthusiastically said “YES!”. “Sing one for me, Mimi” she asked. So, I did. When I finished she said, “Sing me another one!” This repeated and went on for close to a half hour. . .)
Long ago, singer/song writer, Bob Dylan sang that we’ve all “gotta serve somebody.” Nothing could be truer. Dylan wasn’t preaching, he was capturing the human condition.
Look at anybody you know, or watch a few people for a while. What do they love? What do they work for? What do they invest in? Of course, ask yourself the very same questions, because your answers are the ones that start the thoughts and insights that produce growth, or betterment.
Whatever someone starts to love or invest time and effort into, that very thing becomes their master. (It owns them, etc.) It becomes the object of their worship.I realize this sounds negative, but that is not what I’m shooting for here. It’s just an observation. But notice how, a kind of power or attention shift happens, like it or not.
It’s true with hobbies, goals, money making, fitness, drugs, career, relationships, material wealth, fame, ministry, and yes, God. So, what ever it is we love or enjoy had better be the best master, the most good, or the highest way, so when (not if, but when) it soon rules us, the fit will be for our good, not ill, because, “you gotta serve somebody.” We’d like to think we’ve mastered independence, and we make our own decisions, but what we love (worship, adore, spend time on) influences us. And that’s that. (I got folksy on you, at the last second.)
You can tell so much about you, if you write down 10 adjectives that best describe the thing (person, item, idea) that you love best or put most of your time into, (like a strategy, trade, or discipline). Give it a try if you don’t believe me. If you leave 10 adjectives in the comments section (answering honestly), even if I don’t know you, I’ll reply and tell you something about you. (Or, maybe it’s more than you want to know. lol.)
Interestingly, it’s those who that say they love God, for instance, when they describe God as judgmental, angry, and so forth, they are really describing a god they have worshiped, which is different than the Being who made, loves, and redeemed us.
They also describe who they have become. We become that which we serve and worship. If we adore an ungracious god, we become ungracious. However, in this case, we are not worshiping the Living God.
(I’d love to hear your thoughts or comments; and if you were tagged to read this, thank you for reading and responding in a way that best suits you.)
Hello Schuylkill News readers. Thank you for coming!
Now we can continue a conversation I broached at the beginning of January. (see more below)
If you haven’t read the latest (free) issue of Schuylkill-News, click here to find distribution locations, or do a search for “Schuylkill-News,” on this facebook link, to see the full layout.
On this “January Epiphanies” theme, let’s first reflect for a moment on the quote seen in the article:
“Who can listen to a story of loneliness and despair without taking the risk of experiencing similar pains in his own heart and even losing his precious peace of mind? In short: Who can take away suffering without entering it?”-Henri Nouwen (1932-1996)
I encourage you to leave comments, thoughts, questions, or answer in reply to this question I now pose:
*When has someone entered your life or struggles, to help you. Or, when have you done this for someone else?(Anonymous comments are welcome, too.)
*In your opinion, what are some things we learn from these times of surprising grace?
Self-test: Is the Holy Spirit like a York Peppermint Patty?
Some of you won’t remember the goofy York Peppermint Patty commercials of long ago, but thanks to the marvel of technology, you can view a couple retro ad pieces right now to either refresh your memory, or thank God you were not routinely subjected to such silliness.
After you watch the short video, have some fun and take this self-test to see how you score.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaVTrIjoqo4&hl=en_US&fs=1&]
Self-test:
Answer true or false, and add up your scores.
1. When you hear the word “Holy Ghost” you get “shivers.” (You prefer the less weird term “Holy Spirit.”)
2. Spiritual things are sometimes what you would call “spine-tingling”.
3. When eating minty candy, sometimes you feel a cool draft, or get a bit of a chill.
4. Watching shows like Ghost Hunters is fairly tempting.
5. You like to say “God bless you” when others sneeze–and now that you think of it, a dry and powerful sneeze seems practically other-worldly. (A wet one is just plain gross.)
6. If chocolate was served instead of bread at Communion, you would look forward to going to church more often.
7. The idea of dressing up as the Holy Ghost has never crossed your mind, yet you realize drinking some milk when eating chocolate makes sense.
8. If it were not sacrilegious, or highly odd, you could imagine the Holy Ghost (or Spirit) as a good choice for the pitchman for York Peppermint Patty and saying, “Get the (cool) sensation,” in a dry humor sort of way.
9. You can imagine Jesus eating and enjoying a York Peppermint Patty.
(Perhaps you can relate to this scenario: If you had two, and if he was physically there, you would give him one. If you had one, you would split it, but maybe you would have a brief conflict of conscience thinking of hiding it, or not mentioning it. After realizing that he would know anyways you would hope he wouldn’t mind if you kept the whole thing. Maybe you’d look at him in the eyes to check for a “knowing look,” after you averted eye contact for a little bit, first.)
10. You are finding that something simple like a York Peppermint Patty can somehow remind you of God, and yet make you a bit hungry for candy at the same time.
Scoring:
If you got more than 5 True answers you have made an irrevocable connection between a minty chocolate treat and one, or more, of the three persons of God. Use this connection wisely. It may help integrate your spirituality and draw you into a more intimate relationship with God, in everyday ways. On the other hand, you could get terribly fat filling a huge spiritual void with empty calories, and go to hell in the process.
Okay, I’m not really sure about that last part, but I do think something could go wrong in this whole setup, I’m just not completely sure what. And also, the test really isn’t scientific, in case you were wondering.
If you had fun, got a laugh, were the least bit amused, or even got mad, please tell a few people to drop by and visit to take the self-test for themselves. Then, they’ll get their own sensation.
Your thoughts and comments are always welcome.
-Lisa, peppermint patty lover, God lover, and putting on the pounds with various chocolates.
