Limited Series – part 6 : : : Howard Thurman: Disciplines of the Spirit [Why the Innocent Suffer] section 3

This is Section 3 of the Chapter on Suffering in the 1963 work of Dr Howard Thurman called The Disciplines of the Spirit.

Today, Thurman speaking about the suffering of the innocent and the intertwining of death, life, and suffering.

The substack link is HERE: https://sparkmymuse.substack.com/publish/post/154857971


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Who Were You Before? [SSL 305]

An exploration of the wounded inner child and how certain temptations and misguided desires start early on in us when we are vulnerable and young and then experience instability, loss, or pain.

After you listen, go to PART II at the substack page here ⬇️ for more: https://sparkmymuse.substack.com/publish/post/143641616


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Eps 142: Guest, CJ Casciotta; Finding Your Sacred Weird

Today my guest is CJ Casciotta.

To get the EXTRAS for this episode and more info about CJ’s work, go the Spark My Muse Podcast support page HERE.

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Soul School – Lesson 17- Love What Was Lost

• SOUL SCHOOL comes out every Wednesday!
• On FRIDAYS return for a fascinating guest interview/conversation. (FIND THE other ones HERE.)

IF you enjoy Soul School, you represent the core listeners of Spark My Muse. Kindred Spirits.

Pay close attention for something new this month. I’m calling it Soul School-Varsity Club. (I was going to call it “Master Class” but, well, OPRAH…and it sounded a little pretentious for me to say it like that… So, nope.

Varsity Club is an access point to dig deeper into the Soul School topics because they interest you and you want to hear more. The Varsity Club is like upgrading from just a bite of cake to a slice of cake. MMM cake.

I’ll go into greater depth in video lessons, offer one-to-one opportunities to meet with me once a month if you want to, do some Q & As, have helpful devotional/worksheets resources for you to use, and also some extra goodies for a reasonable subscription cost.

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When I recorded today’s episode I was alluding to Matt Khan’s work, but I used my own analogy of a WHITE FLAG on the hill of your heart.

• Here’s Matt’s book about loving loving what arises.

Blogging Moratorium

Yes, this is the start of a Blog Moratorium in Tribute to the victims of Sandy Hook Elementary Massacre , but for personal refletion too.

It doesn’t get past me that just as I gear up to spend 13 weeks teaching about the Problem of Evil a horrifying massacre of 6-7 year olds and their teachers and staff occurs.

I have a lot of information about how Evil works right on tap. But, I just can’t go there.

I know that we all react in shock about events such as these. We ask, “How could Evil be so close and innocence shattered so senselessly?” There is rage, anger, hatred. Emotions aplenty. And I know too that Evil runs right down each one of us too. It’s never merely “out there” or far off. If so labeled it shifts, it seeps, amorphous and eludes being so easily understood or classified.

The pain is so raw. The horror so near. The terror so frightening.

A nightmare.

Too soon people have started barking about gun control, and mentioning mental illness, and our crumbling society …all looking for reasons to make it all go down easier. But, right now, I’m just heartbroken. The weight of the brokenness of the world is here and present. Christmas is coming, and yet we lie ruined. Truly ruined. Hope feels like a faint whisper barely intelligible. A wisp.

I’m taking off for a few days. No blog posts. I’m going to reflect. Quietly. By myself. Away from it all and on the interior. Before the year is out, I’ll make another appearance. Thank you for your prayer for me at this time too for things I won’t mention at this time.

In the meantime, join me in prayer for the community and families of those affected by this violence.

Dear God,

Soothe our broken hearts.

How much pain, O’ God!

We cry out in agony…undone.

Have mercy on us

Bring us peace.

Bind up our wounds

Wash us with your Grace.

Grant us the strength to carry on 

And the resolve to not give up

Renew our hope in you and grant that we may forgive

So we ourselves are spared more pain.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Amen