Rituals made while I wait

Posted on March 28, 2017 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

51dkmmZtqHL

Good Evening, God!

Always TWEAKING . . . that’s my motto. I love making small little changes — like adjusting a habit . . . a behavior pattern . . . or even how I view some problem. I do it just for fun. Just to enrich my life.

I am grateful and thankful and appreciative of my life. I rejoice! Still, God, I can’t resist an opportunity to make my life a bit better. And that is what this book provided.

I never enjoyed philosophy in college — and I have avoided it since. But these Chinese philosophers have practical and useful things to say. A lot of them help me see that my ways of thinking are so very culturally determined. I know that in theory. But it is delightful to stumble across examples. Last week I stumbled across Mencius and his contemporary Mozi. Mozi believed in a Coherent World in which working hard and following the Rules would make you prosper. (Sounds like Calvinism?) Mencius, on the other hand, saw that the world was Capricious. He saw the world “as fragmented, in perpetual disorder, and in need of constant work. “ That sure sounds right to me! And please, God, BLESS all the folks working to make our world better!

But, what truly delighted me was the idea that I could create my very own rituals!

For example: I just ran down to the kitchen and did two 5 minutes “Beautification” rituals. I did exactly the same stuff as if I had been cleaning the kitchen. But, I loved doing them. I was happy. Because, it seems, Cleaning is indexed under WORK and Rituals are something I do FOR MYSELF. I do them to make me happier . . .to just feel better!

Tagged with: The Path: What Chinese Philosophers Can Teach Us About the Good Life
Posted in Books, connecting, Creating, creativity in loving service, refraining from work, Rituals, Work

My Dear Old Inner Elephant

Posted on March 18, 2017 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

610_unforgettable_family

Good Evening, God!

After I do my Centering Prayer . . . I do a sort of poem. And I want to share the one I did earlier this week. Why? Maybe because I need to remember to ask my Inner Elephant what she thinks?

Being me

What an

assortment

Of jobs/callings and Challenges

Sometimes feeling

Like the parent

Of many children

Other times

Like a RingMaster

Or the elephant Trainer

Slowly becoming aware

That the Elephant

Is much much smarter

Sigh

Did I say Yes to You

About being me?

And you replay for me

The old tape

Of me saying

I WANT TO GROW

I want to say

BUT I DIDN’T KNOW!!!

But

Maybe

I did

So…

Overwhelmed

I laugh

And open my heart

And go and ask

The Elephant

What she thinks

Tagged with: Matriarchal Elephants, remembering the past, survival
Posted in asking for help for myself, Centering Prayer, connecting, Guardians and Protectors, Mothers, Our Extended Family - all creatures great and small, Prayer, relationships, wisdom

Opening to the filling and emptying of the Holy Spirit

Posted on March 16, 2017 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Opening day at HIM

Good Evening, God!

After two years traveling — when the Hawaiian Islands Ministries Conference was on — we are now home — and able to go to it. Not that we were traveling for two years straight! Although it felt like it. We were just out of town during the conference.

This conference at the Honolulu Conference Center is a Time of Filling! Wonderful Christian speakers — sharing wisdom and joy. And we are together with friends from all over the islands that we seldom see. It is a time of rejoicing.

At the same time, God, I am more and more understanding my need for emptying. The speaker today at the prayer intensive suggested that we could take our breaks in silence. And our minister, David Rivers, at Central Union has been talking about the value of Silence.

Indeed, this Saturday is the monthly morning of Centering Prayer held at Central Union Church from 9:30 to 11:30. This time of concentrated and prolonged silence is so healing and nourishing to me that I shall go to that — and empty — before returning to the conference for more filling.

What a weekend! I am so thankful, God, for both the chance to empty and the chance to fill. You, who are always with us . . . always loving, caring and longing to help us . . . will be given two lovely and deeper openings to interact in me.

And now, God, I am going back to bed . . . back to sleep. I guess I just wanted to say Thank You!

Tagged with: Hawaiian Islands Ministries, relationships
Posted in asking for help for myself, Centering Prayer, connecting, healing, health, Holy Spirit, hope, Hope as a gift from God, letting the Holy Spirit flow through us, LOVE, Praise, Prayer, rejoicing, The Flow of God's Love, wisdom

Noble Intentions and Blessing Others

Posted on March 14, 2017 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

yellow hibiscu 3/17

Good Day, God!

This morning — during my Centering Prayer time — I remembered a talk given by Hob Osterlund — years ago — at Central Union Church. She encouraged us, when dealing with irritating Parts of Ourselves, to remember that they ALL had Noble Intentions!

That was/is a difficult concept to grasp! The Part of Me that wants to escape in to romantic fiction has a Noble Intention??? Well, yes. She wants me to focus on MY beloved husband. She wants me to focus and Love and Togetherness . . . not on getting stuff done. Does she go about it in a way I can understand and decode?

Dang! Of course! IF I BEGIN BELIEVING IN THE EXISTENCE OF NOBLE INTENTIONS I CAN SEE THEM!

So, how about Solitaire? A desire to close off the Outer World which gets TOO MUCH of my attention. Wow! That is Right! And this morning I discovered a partial solution!

I created a TIME WALL. I, who have scoffed at Other Walls, found this one helpful. I looked at my day and decided that all my obligations to Others could wait until Noon! the 9-12 time would be MINE! I loved and enjoyed those three hours!

Hmm. Yes, God. It is CLEAR. When I BLESS folks . . . I must attribute to them Noble Intentions. It may be permissible to argue about views of reality. But, God, I shall work at refraining from doubting the Noble Intentions of others!

Tagged with: Hob Osterlund, the surprising usefulness of walls, Walls
Posted in Blessing, connecting, kindness, Noble Intentions, Positive Protective Limits, respect, Wanting a protected time

Getting back into Sync

Posted on March 6, 2017 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

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Good Day, God!

Wow! This midmorning I was definitely Out-of-Sync! Grumpy! Worried about so much stuff that I couldn’t keep it all straight. And this was during my Centering Prayer time, too. I know this is “to be expected” and probably healthy to get a good look at some of the stuff down inside me. Still . . . I’d much prefer to float on the calm surface that face a splintered assortment of “pick-up-sticks” of fears and upsets from down deep.

And, God, at some point toward the end of my prayer time I felt as if You said:
Don’t worry. I’m going to surprise you.

I started to laugh. You are LOVE, God. Still, Your perspective is so different from mine — sufficiently different that I’m not keen on being surprised by You. But, it did stop my fretting! There is no point in fretting about what I can’t even imagine!

Meanwhile I spotted this book on “Getting in sync” in our local library’s bookstore. And I love it. It is all about how we humans differ in our ability to handle sensory inputs. Each member of this family has a different deviation from “normal.” But, they understand how they differ! And that makes room for compassion and patience. Best of all, there are exercises at the end of the book to help balance sensory inputs for each variation.

Being different is so much better than being wrong or bad!

Tagged with: getting back into sync, Surprises
Posted in A God given diversity, Compassion, compassion to care for myself, connecting, LOVE, On being Different, Perspective, perspectives

Charting a Path through my day

Posted on March 4, 2017 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

yellow tufted hibiscus

Good Evening, God!

Almost at the end of my day, God. But, I still have some things I want to do . . . well, just two. I’m letting one BIG one go until tomorrow. I LIKE getting things done. And I like planning WHAT I want to get done. But, I’ve noticed that my wanting is bigger than my doing. And that leads to dissatisfaction.

Ah, so I’m so SLOW SMART, God! Tomorrow I will plan on doing less . . . and getting it all done. That way the satisfaction will build motivation.

Meanwhile, I wanted to share this yellow tufted hibiscus. Ah! In doing a google search I realized that it is probably called a Plumed Hibiscus. So interesting, God, how many specific names there are for odd things — like a pride of lions or an exultation of larks.

It turns out that An Exaltation of Larks is the name of a book in which the author has researched the old (1500s) books of venery and given us: a “shrivel of critics,” an “unction of undertakers,” a “blur of Impressionists,” a “score of bachelors,” and a “pocket of quarterbacks.”

All of which goes to show how fun it is just to drift curiously through information!

Tagged with: An Exaltation of Larks, Charting a path, plumed hibiscus
Posted in Books, connecting, learning, Planning

Dwelling in the Now

Posted on March 3, 2017 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

tufted hibiscus

Good Morning, God!

This was from yesterday’s walk/jog. And looking at it makes me happy. Beauty does that. In looking at the photo, I have the joy of its beauty — and I have the joy of the memory of the moment I spotted it. Hmm.

We have inside us an amazing wealth of memories and moments. Moments that can be called up and relished. Funny thing, I have a decided preference for positive moments.

But, just this morning — while in my pre-prayer journaling — I realized that I have Fears that I need to BE WITH. I had the clear feeling that they were like small children . . . needing to be held and comforted. And, it was also clear that — the comfort was not that the feared future would never happen — but that I would be with them if the fears did happen. And that You, God, would be with us . . . in whatever future comes about.

It is this Great Assurance that You are always WITH US (although we may well not feel it) that makes it possible to float serenely in the Now. Floating serenely in the Now . . . ah . . . I’m embracing the idea.

Tagged with: Being With, floating serenely in the Now
Posted in beauty, connecting, fears, Journaling, Peace, small hidden fears

Willing, Wanting, and Waiting to Help

Posted on March 1, 2017 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Dawn at Kahala

Good Evening, God!

Ah, memories. . . Recently I misremembered Alfred P. Doolittle’s line in My Fair Lady. What he said was that he was willing to tell them. I misremembered it as to help them. And, as I misremembered, I was struck by how those lines could have been said by the Holy Spirit to me.

I’m willing to help you. I’m wanting to help you. I’m WAITING to help you.

That, God, is how I see You relating to me. This Lent my goal is not so much to let go of stuff as it is to make more time and room for YOU to help me.

You, of course, could do in me whatever You want — in a nanosecond. But, it seems to me that You would mostly like to simply be with me. I’ve been thinking in terms of “changes,” “improvements” and “corrections.” I am, I fear, very Product Minded.

So, I am slow in coming to see that You might be a lot more Relationally Minded.

Amazing, God, that You desire and are waiting to BE WITH me. Maybe I just start by noticing that You are with me. And, of course, not just me. You love each and every one of us. Golly, God, what would happen if that were the message we took out to the world? Hmm. Or more to the point — the message that I absorbed?

This Lent, please help me to make being with You a priority.

Tagged with: Alfred P. Doolittle, Kahala at dawn
Posted in being a Slow Learner, Being ENJOYED by God, connecting, LOVE, pondering the purpose of Lent, The daily details of love, the gift of persistent love

The joys of sunlight

Posted on February 28, 2017 by a moment with god — 1 Comment

Kapiolani Park

Good Evening, God!

I find even rainy grey days lovely. But, it is hard to resist a bright blue sky — especially when reflected in a quiet pond, and surrounded by green grass. There is indeed something healing about going for a walk outdoors in the sunlight.

Just the other day, I was reading an article in Dr. Mercola’s website about the healing uses of light — Photobiomodulation he called it. I am going to have to reread it, God. But one sentence that leapt out at me was: What this means is that the red light at 630-660 nm will provide the same mitochondrial benefits as the near-infrared range of 810 to 830 nm.

Mitochondrial benefits from being exposed to red light and near-infrared light? Mitochondria are more and more in the news. I remember reading — years ago — Madeleine L’Engle’s book A Wind in the Door about the hero Charles Wallace being ill from an illness of his mitochondria. And now it appears to be a key to our good health.

We are learning so much, God. So much more than we can easily or quickly assimilate! Yet, it does seem sometimes as if You are helping us notice important stuff. Thank You!

Tagged with: mitochondria, Photobiomodulation
Posted in connecting, God's Light, Light, Sunlight explored, the Light of the World