Thoughts from today's sermon and READINGS for WEDNESDAY's class

Wow...  
There is something about linking together the messages in these Lenten readings from each week that has revealed something to me that I'd never noticed before. For me, the growing message of redemption and GOD's continuous pursuit of the full attention of my heart, mind and soul has been so powerful--and a poignant conviction of the "less than" regard with which I too often approach the throne room of my King...! Whether it be in quickly mumbled inattentive prayer, wandering thoughts during set-aside time (like Mass!), or the too many times in which my "busy-ness" and "distraction" has SO effectively blinded me to the graces in every breath given, every moment's full potential, every word's true intent when spoken and heard, I am reminded that it is "I" that has dismissed--or even just plain ol' missed--HIS burning bushes of opportunity and His call to join Him in intimate fellowship. 

And yet...He still pursues me! He has already forgiven me...already redeemed me...already handed to me that second, third, billionth 'chance' to take up His offer to walk in the Kingdom state of "forgiven beloved"! He still calls to me and reaches out a waiting hand to pull me in and fully embrace and heal me of my sin-filled state!! How can that be??  But, more importantly, as Fr Javier alluded to in his beautiful sermon today: what is holding me back from jumping into His wide-open arms in overjoyed overflowing all-consuming puppy-dog JOY??

Forgiveness, and more importantly, forgiveness IN true relationship in and with God--is the key.  Not just God's forgiveness of me--something that I already know and profess and claim...but, as Fr Javier reiterated over most of his sermon, forgiveness of myself.  Wow.

If I cannot forgive myself when God has already forgiven me, then just as when I do not forgive others as God has already forgiven, I lose the ability to embrace true relationship with and in my Father...and with and in the Father in others.  I will see only my past state of unworthiness-in-sin--NOT my present state of grace-filled forgiveness--and my past state will become my identity and my focus.   

Wow.

How did Fr Javier put it? "Forgive yourself SO THAT you can walk--run!--into the FULLNESS of God's embracing arms.  Whether it is 'coming home after having walked away and becoming lost' OR even after living 'outside' of His presence even within full sight  and reach of His Presence!"

Wow.  Ladies--was the HolySpirit talking directly to us or what??

SO!! What spoke to you from the pulpit or the readings this week? Let's talk about it this week even as we prepare for next Sunday's messages.  

Here are the readings for NEXT Sunday (April 7, 2019):

Reading 1: Isaiah 43:16-21
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6
Gospel: John 8:1-11
Reading 2: Philippians 3:8-14

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/040719-yearc.cfm

I am floored at the faithfulness of the Lord as He continues to teach us about HIS love for us this Lenten season!

Can't wait to see you all this week and hear what you have been thinking about!

God pursues...us!

In accordance with our studies on the readings for this upcoming Sunday (March 31), I have been contemplating the amazing concept that it is not WE that pursue God, but that it is God who diligently, fervently, unceasingly pursues...US. What craziness, right? In the words of the Psalmist: "When I look at Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place; what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You care for him?" (Psalm 8: 3-4)

And then, of course, I came across a devotion in my inbox that spoke directly into my thoughts!  So, here it is. Let us know what you are thinking this week! Down what paths is the HolySpirit bringing your thoughts as you play with your families this spring break?

(from I Want To Be Pursued by Sharon Jaymes):

The entire Bible, from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22:21, is a record of God’s passionate pursuit of the human heart. We end the last chapter of the Old Testament with silence. And then 400 years later, God breaks the holy hush with the cry of a babe in a manger as the story picks back up in Bethlehem.

From God’s first question, “Where are you?” until Jesus’ final words, “It is finished,” we see God drawing mankind with “cords of kindness” that sometimes appear anything but kind — drawing people back to Himself “with ties of love” (Hosea 11:4, NIV). We’ve wiggled and wrangled trying to break free of those cords, but He continues to lasso us with love and draw us in. Asking yet again, “Where are you?”

God has pulled out all the stops to pursue you and me. Moved heaven and earth — literally — to win us back, to reestablish the glory that was lost in the Garden. Most of us feel that we have to pursue God continually, as if He were hard to find. And as long as we believe that, our faith journey will be difficult. It will be arduous. 

After all, Jesus reminded us, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30, NIV). And yet, easy and light are not words that come quickly to mind when most think of their faith journey.

God is wooing us, stirring us, awakening a longing for Him in our souls. 

Jesus said, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them” (John 6:44a, NIV). He tunes the violin and pulls the bow across the strings of your heart and waits for you to recognize the melody wooing you into relationship with Him. Because you’re reading this devotion, He knows you’re listening.

I have been in an all-out pursuit of God for most of my adult life. But when He turned my telescope around, the truth became clear. I had it all wrong. I had made Him much too small, and me far too big. I began to see He was the one pursing me with an outstretched hand, inviting me to live and move and have my being in Him. And friend, God is pursuing you, too!

What’s the key to experiencing God’s passionate pursuit? It’s simple, really. We must recognize and acknowledge His presence as we live and move and have our being in Him. Acts 17:28 must be more than a nice Bible verse; it must become a way of life. When it does, sudden glory moments where we recognize His presence will fill our lives and take our breath away. It is a divine romance of the purest kind.

Dear Father, thank You for pursuing me more fervently and passionately than anyone else ever will. As You continue to woo my heart every day, help me come to You and be overwhelmed with the expanse of Your love. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY

Ephesians 3:17b-19, “And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (NIV)

Ghosting my phone to spend more time with God

“Teacher, which commandment is the greatest in the Law?” Jesus declared, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind." (Matt 22:37)


Ok, so it's been a tough Lent for me so far.  Yes, I totally planned on getting back into my daily journaling and I absolutely was going to find that "special thing" to do or to give up that would be meaningful.  But, even after the musical was no longer wracking my brain and we were back to empty-nesting after Chris' whirlwind Spring Break, I found myself three weeks into Lent--and still with no Lenten effort to show on my part.  

To be honest, it wasn't due to lack of time. After all, even in the throes of rehearsal, practice and performances, I still had enough time to get at least 6 hours of sleep each night (according to my Amazfit), easily keep up with laundry, prep and secure meals even when I wasn't going to be home, AND play enough levels in the word game on my iPhone to beat out all other contenders in the weekly tournaments. hah.  

And then, we started noticing that every time we got a call from Michael in the UK, we would be barraged by an influx of international SPAM calls from Slovenia, then Morocco, followed by Belarus and most recently Burundi (like, where is Burundi anyway??). They would call at all hours of the day and night, sometimes simultaneously ringing BOTH of our phones at 4:30am. Eventually, over days, the calls would slack off, only to resurge in number and countries after another ring from our son from the UK.

We found ourselves distracted by our phones constantly--interrupting meals, movies, sleep AND, (God forbid!!) word game tournaments! Even after setting up call filters (which, by the way, supposedly don't work for international 10+ digit numbers!) and manually blocking each new number, I still found myself checking my phone for "missed calls" so that I could rage about them.  Hah.

Three days ago, I turned my phone to Do Not Disturb so that only contacts can get through.
Two days ago, as a new tournament was starting, I deleted my game. 
Yesterday, after laying in bed reading and rereading the same news threads on my phone that I had read when I first awoke that morning and that I had read before I went to sleep the night before, I realized how bored I was.

And suddenly I understood why I wasn't engaging in Lent. Any goals I may have set for my heart mind and soul were quickly diverted by the much more easily accessible and engaging instant escape of my smartphone. 

And then, this popped up in my inbox this morning. 

Ok, God.  I hear You.  Where shall we meet today?

 Ghosting the Phone to Get With God 

by Karen Ehman

  “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” Psalm 42:2 (NIV)

I lazily reached my arm across the nightstand beside me to silence the clanging alarm. A retro battery-operated clock, its classic bell tone coaxes me each morning out of a deep sleep and sends me on to my morning routine …

Shower. Dress. Check to make sure my son hasn’t overslept. Make the bed. Start the coffee maker and a load of laundry. Grab some java and head into my home office.

My hope is that, once I am comfortably seated at my desk, the next half-hour or so of my daybreak ritual will follow this progression: I’ll flip open my Bible, grab an adorable journal and a smooth-writing pen and connect with my Creator, stopping only to sip coconut-mocha coffee from my whimsical pale pink mug.

I wish I could say this is how the morning scenario unfolds every day, but I’d be fibbing. More often than I’d care to admit, it looks a bit like this:

The alarm sounds. I shut it off, but then I spy my cell phone. It is then that the pull begins — not physically magnetic, but strong nonetheless. It tugs on my heart and swallows my time.

“Just a quick check to see if I have any text messages,” I reason to myself. Then, the yank begins. Every tap. Each new swipe. They all lure me deeper into the black hole of social media, making empty promises. “You simply must read that intriguing news piece on Twitter … the one with the captivating headline. Can’t start the day off right without it.” Or, my clicking catapults me down a trail of curiosity when I notice an old friend’s family update on Instagram or a Facebook ad for a product that promises to make my life more organized, exciting or Pinterest-y.

Glancing at the top of my phone, I notice the time. “Well, that’s 23 minutes I’ll never get back!” Now behind from the get-go, I must let go of any hopes I had for carving out a slice of my morning to meet with God.

Psalm 42:2 states, “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?"

My soul thirsts for God. We might read that as a wish — we wish we had that kind of longing for the Lord. However, if read in a straightforward manner, we can take it as fact: The soul of a believer thirsts for God. Sadly, we often try to quench that dryness with trivial pursuits like phone tapping. Yet we still experience a parched soul.

The last phrase of the verse tosses a question into the mix: When can I go meet with God? Well? Let’s take this as our cue to answer that inquiry. When can you go meet with God?

Meeting with the Lord doesn’t have to be in a legalistic manner, surmising there is something magical about a pre-dawn meeting. Perhaps the best time for a mom of littles is during naptime. Maybe another working woman’s lunch break affords the best chunk of time when she can shut off the phone and flip open the Bible. You might even be a “curl up in my fuzzy jammies before turning in for the night” kind of girl who is most attentive at bedtime.

No matter what works best for you, make time today to go meet with God. Ghost your phone. Turn it back on only when it is truly needed. Your relationship with Jesus will grow stronger because of it, and your gadget won’t even notice you’re gone.

Lord, please grant me the determination to put my phone on “do not disturb” so I can focus on learning more about You through reading Your Word. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Thoughts in my inbox about pain-filled times

Hi ladies!

So, finding myself with a sudden abundance of free time, I decided it was time to wade into a rather intense book called The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living--given to me by a wonderful priest who, I am realizing now, must surely have thought me much more intelligent and discerning than I actually am.  After struggling through the first 13 pages or so this morning, I suddenly found that I had only been reading the Forward and Introduction and was now only two pages into the Prologue!! Hah!  

However, after so VERY many words, I was actually beginning to get a feel for the importance of perspective--of recognizing when and from where our feelings, our thoughts, our intent of heart--is/are coming from.  As Lorraine so often would remind us--what (or WHO) is our source? Which segues beautifully from our recent Lenten discussions on KNOWING and SPEAKING and WALKING in the Truth of the who we call our "God".

And then, THIS popped up in my inbox today. I know it speaks more into those desert times when we have forgotten who we are and who He is, but it can also speak into those times of confusion where we start relying upon past experiences as "bad" instead of times of opportunity and grace...and learning to trust.  

Read on and let me know any thoughts on "perspective"!

Are You Collecting Wounds?

Melanie Porter

March 25, 2019

“Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit.” Romans 8:5 (NLT)

The waves rhythmically lapped the shoreline as I walked on the wet sand giving way beneath my feet. I always saved my long walk for the last day of vacation. Looking for sea glass, perfect shells and unusual mementos, I realized that my collection was growing, and I could afford to be a little pickier with my choices.

The two-hour stroll provided time to reflect on the healing I so desperately needed. Grief, loss, betrayal and rejection … all themes in a season of letting go and moving on. I listened as God spoke directly to my heart.

“Just like these treasures from the sea, you have chosen to pick up wounds to add to the growing collection now consuming your heart, child.”

I felt a quickening in my stomach. Tears slipped below my sunglasses, rolling down sun-kissed cheeks.

The pain that comes with loss makes the heart raw and weak. This state puts us in a place where we can be easily offended because we’ve been greatly hurt.

It doesn’t take much emotion to tip the scales of a broken heart.

As the cool ocean breeze blew the sticky strands of hair caressing my face, I knew the Father was telling me it was time to stop collecting wounds.

I realized that my deep hurts had triggered a domino effect of emotional chaos that only complicated my grief.

We can choose to pick up wounds, or we can choose to let them be.

Satan longs for us to be led by the wound instead of being led by the Spirit.

He is a master at manipulating our emotions. He thrives on pain and uses every opportunity to ping our deepest hurts.

Unfortunately, being led by the wound opens the door to bitterness.

Being led by the wound can shut down our hearts to others and ministry.

But we know the love of an all-consuming God who wants us thriving in wholeness.

You see … just because a painful moment or experience taps us on the shoulder, doesn’t mean we have to turn around to greet it.

When I finally cried out to God and begged Him to heal me, I immediately felt His prompting to change my thinking.

As today’s Scripture reminds us: “Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit” (Romans 8:5).

It’s so easy to let our sinful nature make us think the worst when we’ve been wounded, isn’t it?

I found that dwelling on the hurt led to sinful attitudes and divisive thinking … which merely opened the door to more wounds. The more we dwell on a hurt, the more we rebel.

Letting go of the past while abandoning future flawed perceptions (and direct or indirect offenses) is the only way to break free from a broken heart.

I’m so grateful the Spirit sweetly reminds me that no wound is worth the trade of emotional freedom.

Just like the seaside treasures I carefully collected or left behind that day, I’m now walking past the unnecessary wounds that are meant to keep me in bondage.

Father, give me wisdom to recognize the enemy’s ploys that cause me to react in the flesh. Free me from the spirit of offense, and help me filter my thinking in upsetting situations. Please help me stay faithful to walk hand in hand with the Holy Spirit, especially when wounds are waiting to find me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY

Philippians 4:8, “And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” (NLT)

Galatians 5:16, “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.” (NLT)

Any thoughts?

love

maggie

Lenten readings for Sunday March 31st (plus some thoughts on our Lenten discussions!)

HI Ladies!

I know that we will not be meeting this week, however, I didn't want to break the flow of truly incredible pearls connecting, linking, deepening the messages coming through our studies on the Sunday Readings of Lent. They not only seem to be building one upon another, but also, amazingly, they seem to be building upon--and reinforcing!--all of the things we have been delving into about "Learning to Walk In Absolute Trust with The HolySpirit...No Matter What!"! Thank You, HolySpirit!  

So, let's talk about it! What have you been thinking as you've contemplated the readings each week? Is there a link...a connection you are beginning to see--from one week to the next? A thread leading back to something we learned or discussed in class?  

For me, I guess I was pretty amazed when the readings from the first Sunday in Lent reminded me to REMEMBER (especially since I was about to enter the throes of those last few weeks of all-consuming, sleep-stealing, life/mind/soul-overtaking musical preparation and anxieties!): 

(http://usccb.org/bible/readings/031019.cfm)

Through the readings, I was exhorted to...remember!... remember who He is in my life, who I am IN Him, who He is/has been/always will be for each one of us IN and THROUGH HIM AND in/through/for each other, no matter the circumstance or the issue at hand. But what struck me the most was how the Gospel reading taught me that, in my deepest trials and fight against temptation (i.e. most often by putting something or someone other than GOD in the throne room of my heart!), I can speak the word of God (and the WORDS of God)--not necessarily to "engage the enemy"--but rather to remind myself in my own voice, GOD's own words of TRUTH--untwisted, undistorted, fully intentioned as God intended and fully revealing "aletheia"...GOD's reality and GOD's "unconcealed TRUTH"!

I was reminded to KNOW God's word, so that I can speak them--powerful and effectual in and for all circumstances.  BUT! I must KNOW Him first in order to be able to recognize and know His voice and words...and then be able to speak them TRULY and in TRUTH...no matter the circumstances!  Yet another reminder for me to stay close to Him and to spend time in His word--especially in my "busiest" seasons!

The second Sunday of Lent reminded me of how, when we DO spend time with and in Him, that we ARE transformed:  

http://usccb.org/bible/readings/031719.cfm

We are empowered by GOD to move from "I believe" to "I KNOW!!"  Something happens, like with Abram looking at the daytime sky for stars he can't see but KNOWS beyond a doubt are still there, like with Peter, James and John when they heard and saw--and finally KNEW beyond a doubt--the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets in Jesus the Christ at the transfiguration... Something happens within us...a light, a transformation, a paradigm-shifting, life-changing, hope-restoring, down-on-my-knees-in-eucharisteo redemption that inevitably drives (and occasionally hurls!) us from "i believe" and into "I KNOW"...no matter how dire or despairing the situation.  Totally HolySpirit-driven, HolySpirit-given, absolutely, HolySpirit-indwelling. And again, it's a direct result of ever-growing intimacy, knowledge and TRUST in the God we say we follow.  How well DO I know this God that I proclaim...? When in the face of darkness and opposition...who do I truly have sitting upon the throne in my heart...? DO I know that I know that I know WHO is (or who is NOT) directing my thoughts and my actions, my fears and my faith?  My actions and my words will reveal it.

"...for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks." (Luke 6:45)

The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life’s refuge;
of whom should I be afraid? (Ps 27:1 from the second reading of the second Sunday of Lent)

...Do I really KNOW...?

And then, the beautiful readings of the third Sunday of Lent:

http://usccb.org/bible/readings/032419-yearc.cfm

God calls to me--even when I don't know Him, even when I don't hear Him, even when I am otherwise occupied. He uses all of nature, all of creation, all of my situations and circumstances, and even some unusual special effects to catch my attention! He KNOWS that I am created to respond to His love and His life, made to respond to His light--even if in the form of a burning bush!  DO I see them? Do I recognize them? Am i even looking...?

And the second chances...given compassionately, mercifully, grace-filled for every moment I dismiss His call, His presence, His work. But my life is but a fleeting time and God knows that every moment I spend outside of Him is potential for eternity spent devoid of His provision of love and life abundant!  He knows that my perspective needs re-alignment!

And so, He continues to pursue and call and urge and send His burning bushes.  He continues to send fellow journeymen (and sometimes, in so many wonderful cases, Red Tent Sisters!) to help cultivate my soil, to help me grow and bear fruit...especially through times of spiritual drought and horrible unrelenting hail storms. He sends me Himself--in the form of every one of the "others" around me--to give me the second chances that will empower me to bear the fruit of my existence--to realize the God-given state of grace and opportunity in ALL forms and circumstances!

Sin => hamartia => "missing the mark" as in an archer misaligned from his target.

Repentance => metanoia => "metamorphosis" as in a caterpillar transforming into an amazing butterfly

As Fr Slawomir said in his sermon this Sunday: "We are ALL sinners. No one greater or lesser than the other. Comparison to one another only leads to self-arrogance...or loss of faith!  We can only approach God--each one of us--as the sinners each one of us truly are.  And only in that way, can we find HOPE."  For me, it's that HOPE of full transformation with and in the God who dwells so powerfully within me--who became one of us SO THAT I could have the choice to partake of His life...or not.

And so, in three weeks of readings, we have gone from "remembering" to "the transformation of Knowing" and then to "hearing His call and walking in the gift of repentance/transformation NOW...not later, not eventually, but NOW". 

(ok I am reminded by this past Sunday's readings of a bumper sticker from the 90's that read: "If you are waiting for the 11th hour to repent, what happens if you die at 10:59?" hah)

So! Can't wait to see where the next set of readings brings us! 

Here they are:

Reading 1, Joshua 5:9, 10-12

Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7
Gospel, Luke 15:1-3, 11-32
Reading 2, Second Corinthians 5:17-21

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/033119-yearc.cfm

Please write in your thoughts, ladies! However short or long, just start a new POST or add your comment to this one.  Let's keep our contemplation and Lenten reflections upfront and center no matter where we are this week!

love to everyone
maggie