7 How precious is your steadfast love, O God! All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings. 8 They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights. 9 For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light. Psalm 36:7-9
Even Amy Carmichael in The Edges of His Ways comments on abundance using Romans 5
Much more they which receive abundance of grace . . . shall reign in life by One, Jesus Christ.Romans 5:17
There is a lovely word in this verse, it is “abundance.” The word is translated “overflowing” in Weymouth and elsewhere, and Way has “The measureless overflowing of the fountain of the grace of God.” This is the grace that is ready to help us in time of need, this and nothing less. Thank God, He does not measure out grace in teaspoons. The measureless overflowings of the fountain are for each one of us today. Need we fail? NEVER.
How can we comprehend this abundance? Have you tried to drink from this fountain?
Often at Christmas we overwhelm ones we love with gifts. Did you realize that was God’s idea first? When gifting our kids at Christmas we often chose to only give them three since that is what the Wise Men brought to Jesus at His birth. This year I found myself stuffing more than one gift in each bag!
Love, grace, delights, life, and light to name a few. Amy says each one of us need these everyday. Sit with your heavenly Father and make yourself receptive to His gifts DAILY. It makes a tremendous difference!
Have you ever thought of prayer in terms of giving and taking, receiving and offering, letting God use your offering as God sees fit? This blog offers a few how-tos. I hope to draw parallels between the faiths in an understandable and useful way.
Dalai Lama speaks in The Book of Joy about the practice of Tonglen. At the end of the book there are Joy Practices and Tonglen is included. I am not skilled with Word Press lists, but the basic steps are as follows:
Begin by settling your mind with several long breaths through your nose.
Think of someone who is suffering. You can choose a loved one, a friend, or even a whole group of people, such as refugees.
Reflect on the fact that, just like you, they wish to overcome suffering and to be joyful. Try to feel a sense of concern for the well-being of the person or group you are focusing on. Feel deep within your heart the desire for them to be free of suffering.
4. For my own practice I move here to the teachings of Christianity and plead the Blood of Jesus over myself. I also take on the Whole Armor of God. The Word says the Blood of Jesus has mighty power and along with the Armor of God (Ephesians 6) brings us protection and power. If you place your palms about 5 or 6 inches apart, you can sense the power of life that is within you. This power through Christ is full of Light. He is the Light of the world, and darkness cannot put it out. John 1:5
5. Taking their suffering. As you inhale, imagine the pain being drawn from the other person (or peoples) and dissolving when it encounters the warmth and bright light of your compassionate heart. Imagine their suffering dissolving into the bright orb of light in front of you that is radiating out from your hands and compassionate heart.
6. Give out your joy. As you exhale, imagine that you are sending the person rays of light filled with your love and compassion, your courage and your confidence, your strength and your joy.
7. Repeat this practice of taking the suffering and transforming it by giving your joy.
The Catholic faith has a practice of “Offering Up Suffering to God. “Bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.: Galatians 6:2 NRSV I researched this a bit online as I did not totally understand how to explain it. I have heard of the same sort of prayers from others, especially the missionary Amy Carmichael. The article I consulted says it was written ‘by an anonymous priest.” https://laycistercians.com/how-to-offer-up-suffering/
Anonymous priest wrote, “You do this by making a small prayer or intention. You can simply ask God to apply the offering of your pain to help the person you are praying for in whatever way God sees fit. For example:
“Lord, I offer up the pain of this migraine for {this person}, asking You to bring them comfort, healing, or strength in their struggle. May my suffering unite with Your suffering (on the cross) to bring grace into that life.”
The goal is to unite your suffering to the suffering of Jesus on the cross and offer it as a means of healing to another person. You’re placing your pain before God, who knows how to use it for the best.
GOD KNOWS HOW TO USE WHAT YOU OFFER
“As a result you grow in patience, humility and empathy for others by offering up your pain. Offering your suffering can be a form of intercessory prayer, in which you ask God to intervene on behalf of others.”
Does it work? I am no healing expert, but it certainly cannot hurt you or the other person if prayed wisely and consciously. I always insist on being under the covering of Christ for this type of prayer. Jesus warned in Matthew 10, 28 and John 17 that we need His protection against the evil one and his minions.
Wikipedia says: Tong means “giving or sending”, and len means “receiving or taking”
Pema Chodron, a Buddhist priest says of Tonglen, You breathe in with the wish that those human beings could be free of that suffering, and you breathe in with the longing to remove their suffering. And then you send out – just relax …. Send enough space so that peoples’ hearts and minds feel big enough to live with their discomfort, fear, their anger or their despair, whatever the form of suffering takes.
So the in-breath you breath in with the wish to take away the suffering, and breathe out the wish to send comfort and happiness to the same people. The principal aim is to develop one’s own selfless and empathic qualities more than or at least as much as creating a real difference for others.
Taking on suffering does not mean to burden oneself with the misery of the world, but rather to acknowledge its existence and accept it. This makes it possible to increase one’s own peace of mind at the same time as acknowledging suffering and disharmony, so there is less contradiction than there might have been.
So where does that leave the rest of us? Most of us have experienced suffering of some sort during our lifetime. Perhaps the next time you are confronted by your own suffering or that of another you could try this combination of prayer forms?
Prayer of give and take. Prayers of substitution. Name it as you wish. We all know someone or many someones who are suffering. I just ask you to try it on behalf of another. Wouldn’t this be an amazing world if we prayed this for one another!? Love this image!
Are you familiar with the three images in Old Testament about God: wind, fire and earthquake.
In 1 Kings 19 Elijah was exhausted and afraid of the threats of Jezebel and had fled to the wilderness. Eventually, after an angel had fed him twice, he traveled forty days and nights into the wilderness of Mt Horeb. He slept in a cave and then the LORD God came to Him and told him to go outside, as follows,
He said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.’ Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. 13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’ 1 Kings 19:11-13
There have been many songs written about this incident and how the LORD calls us to listen to His still, small voice. The one below was written by and sung by Audrey Assad. Lyrics below are slightly different from recording, but you will get the idea. Recorded and released on a Chris Tomlin Christmas CD entitled Abide. Snow is unusual in Bethlehem, but not unheard of. We have had a few light snows in our area lately. This song always returns me to listening for that still small voice in my heart.
Could’ve come like a mighty storm With all the strength of a hurricane You could’ve come like a forest fire With the power of heaven in your flame
[Chorus] But you came like a winter snow Quiet and soft and slow Falling from the sky in the night To the earth below
[Bridge] Ooh no, your voice wasn’t in a bush burning No, your voice wasn’t in a rushing wind It was still, it was small, it was hidden
[Chorus] You came like a winter snow Quiet and soft and slow Falling from the sky in the night To the earth below
[Outro] Falling, oh yeah, to the earth below You came falling from the sky in the night To the earth below
Listen for that tender voice as we celebrate Advent and await His coming again.
My mind is a-whirl with things to cook, gifts to buy, gifts to make in preparation for our celebration of the birthday of our King. I do not think this is His highest and best for me. Emmanuel calls me to walk and talk with the Trinity Majesty even as Christmas approaches! People ask me, “How are you?” I reply, “Too busy for my own good!” Just like some folks say they are too busy to pray, wise men say they are too busy NOT to pray.
Mindfulness is helping me to tame these thoughts. It is not easy to sit and try to just breathe and be here now. Not easy, but so worthwhile. The most important thing for me this year is to remember Whose birthday is it. Lay stuff aside and just rest in our Risen Christ.
Bob and I both had a lousy night last night. So though I practiced mindfulness meditation yesterday and this morning, I need to sign off for a nap. Here is our story: We both had just gotten to sleep when the power went out and then his oxygen machine began beeping when it came back on. That woke me too. About 10 minutes later it went off again and this time did not come back on. We both used the bathroom. The dog was asking, “What is going on?” We got back in bed. Bob was restless with pain and I was not much better off. Finally, I fell asleep and then an hour later my continuous glucose monitor began signaling that my glucose was low. I woke up thinking it was his alarm and he was saying, “That one is yours!” Grrr. With flashlight and iPhone in hand I went to the kitchen. It was raining and windy out. We are not usually effected by weather as our power lines run underground. I ate some things. Drank some milk that was not the freshest tasting. Thought about just sleeping in my recliner. Nope! it is powered by electricity and his chair is not comfortable. About then I decided I better get back in bed before I froze. As I was turning off the flashlight, the power came back on. Ugh! All the timers on coffee pot and Christmas decoration would have to be re-set. I finally read some more on my iPad and went to asleep. I awoke at 4AM drenched in sweat. Threw off some covers and did not awake again until 5:30 or so? Bob was still asleep. I dozed off and the next thing I knew it was time to get up. Ugh. I am tired.
So I hope you can see the benefits of mindfulness, even though it cannot keep you from nights like our lousy one.
Oops! Artist spelled couple wrong. It’s not like I ever post a misspelling! She is showing areas where mindfulness can help us.
Seems like a long post to me, or perhaps it was just difficult for me to write? WordPress estimates it as about 4 minutes reading time?
The drawing below is me, yielded to Immanuel. It is an attempt to illustrate the poem.
Sometime in the 1990s I wrote this and it still expresses my heart today. I especially recall this poem in the Advent season as we await the celebration of the birth and coming again of our King.
So what does that have to do with the Hebrew word Hineni? First I am learning to pronounce it correctly.
I had heard this word before in a sermon some place and then was reintroduced to it in the book series Sensible Shoes. The character was learning to pronounce it regardless of what life sent her way. Eventually I realized, “Wait! I have a series of short poems that begin with ‘Here am I.” Well, duh, Molly.
The declaration “Here am I” or ‘Hineni’ is more than telling God your geographic location. It is a powerful declaration of surrender and complete availability to God. We are saying we will do whatever the LORD asks, not even knowing in advance what that might entail. Reworded from https://firmisrael.org/learn/here-am-i-the-hebrew-meaning-of-hineni/
Examples are given of Abraham, Moses and Samuel all saying “hineni” to God, with readiness to pay attention or follow instructions. God can make this declaration, too!
“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness[a] will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. 9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.” Isaiah 58:6-9 NIV
The declaration that “God with us” is a name for Jesus, Immanuel or Emmanuel, is huge. The fact that Jesus is both man and God should make us consider what that entails. I think I could ponder the impact of that declaration the rest of my days here on earth and not get to the end of the meaning.
What does it mean to you that the Word declares that Jesus is said to be God with us? What does it mean that the same God wants to dwell within you? Can you capture that meaning in a few sentences? I have not been able to do it.
Immanuel is a masculine Hebrew name meaning “God with us” or “God is with us.” The name Immanuel appears in the Bible three times, twice in the Old Testament book of Isaiah (7:14 and 8:8), and once in the Gospel of Matthew (1:23).
An alternate spelling of the name Immanuel is Emmanuel, which comes from the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament. Immanuel, spelled with an I, is the translation of the original Hebrew name into English, whereas Emmanuel, spelled with an E, is a translation of a translation (from Hebrew to Greek to English).https://www.gotquestions.org/what-does-Immanuel-mean.html
Greek, Hebrew, does it really matter? Can you embrace the meaning?!? Embrace the spelling that speaks to you heart. Can you allow this God to dwell with you and in you? Could this be a Christmas where you make the celebration all about the Mysterious Trinity come to dwell in you?
I was trying to listen to a song by Leonard Cohen called “You Want it Darker” and found it very disturbing, even though it has Hineni in the lyrics. Then I found this commentary from a Rabbi on that very song and the music of Leonard. If you have the time, I think you will find it VERY enlightening as to how the Jewish people embrace Hineni. (Maybe I need to get this tattooed on my arm. Even after taking notes and then writing this blog I STILL do not know how to spell it on my own!)
I wrote this last week. It never showed up for Bob. Few seemed to see it, so I am posting it again! No clue what happened.
We can learn to rejoice in even the smallest blessings our life holds. It is easy to miss our own good fortune; often happiness comes in ways we don’t even notice.
PEMA CHÖDRÖN
I recently shared a recipe with a friend for making Thanksgiving dressing. I learned from my sister’s mother-in-law that if you shape it into balls and bake it is much tastier than if you stuff it in the turkey. Stuffed dressing always seems soggy to me! My friend made and served dressing balls at her Thanksgiving feast and they were a hit. We love them, too!
DRESSING BALLS 1 bag=4c, 2 bags=8c Makes 20 balls Saute 1/2 cup margarine 1 cup chopped celery 1 small onion diced Add 4 Tablespoons dry, chopped parsley 1 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 1-1/2 teaspoon sage 1 teaspoon thyme 1 cup chicken or turkey broth
Put 2-14 oz. bags of dry bread cubes in very large bowl. Pour hot spice mixture over cubes and begin to stir. Gradually add 3 more cups of broth until you can form bread cubes into baseball sized servings.
Spray oven-proof glass pan with oil. Form and place balls in pan. Pour some broth over for heating. Cover with foil. Refrigerate. When ready to serve, heat 10 minutes covered and 5-10 minutes uncovered at 325°.
After my mother died suddenly in 1975, I was furious when I realized just how many of her recipes she never wrote down. It took me years to try to find recipes similar to what she made. I made it my practice to write my recipes out so my kids could have them when I was gone. When we got our first computer I put the recipes into the computer and printed out copies for me, and my children. To this day I continue this practice.Oil the pans. About 2 hours before baking, cut off amount needed and return rest to fridge. Shape while cold. Cover and let rise on counter 1-1/2 to 2 hours. Brush with melted butter.
I learned to make yeast rolls that can be refrigerated until you are ready to use the dough (several days). Then you shape the rolls or coffee cake and let the dough rise before baking. Makes those holiday meals less hectic and they are SO tasty. Beats every store bought roll we have ever had. Eventually the arthritis in my hands said NO! to forming that cold dough. Caused me a lot of pain. First Emily took over the rolls, then eventually my husband took it over when Emily left home. He realized that I had not written out the step where you let the dough rise on the counter. Oops. I just assumed. This year he realized I did not write out, grease the pans. Another oops.
The other day Emily (daughter) called and said she had given her recipe to a friend, but forgot to copy the backside of the recipe card. How to shape and bake them. (LOL) I updated the recipe saying to GREASE THE PANS and sent her a copy.
What touched me with a small gratitude was that she not only liked my recipe, but shared it with a friend. That might seem small to others, but to me it was huge! “Even the smallest blessings.”
Have you been keeping up with a gratitude list? Perhaps you can make this a week of noting even the smallest things?
The hard frost we have had for several nights has finally killed off the nasturtium vines that are trailing all over the garden. Did not have the heart to pull them earlier as they were blooming right up to the end. I was pondering when it might warm up enough to get those vines into the trash. Then I realized I could simply remove them from the porch and let them disintegrate in the flower bed! Genius tiny blessing. If I wait until it warms up those vines will be soggy and ugh!
Elephant Ears beginning to succumb to wintry weather. They are now totally dead.
One more small blessing. Bob was telling friends about me making dressing balls. It was a small gathering of people who knew each other well. Suddenly the 82 year old at the table asked, “I just have one question. Would someone tell me what turkey balls are?” The table went quiet. Eventually one guy began to giggle. Then the table erupted in laughter. Oh my. The woman placed her hands over her mouth and turned red as she realized what she had said. My sister’s mother-in-law likely would not have approved, but they found it hilarious and could not stop laughing. Bob explained I would shape the dressing into balls to serve with the turkey.
Keep looking for treasures, even tiny ones, for your gratitude list!
Woke up with this song running through my heart. Of course, then I had to find it so I could sing all of it. It is never a waste of time to praise the LORD! I believe she wrote this in 1986, so yes it came from memory bank somewhere! The hymn is now in many hymnals.
Exalted is elevated in rank, character or status, lofty sublime, noble.
He is above us, beyond us, yet within us! Have you yielded to exaltation of the LORD God Almighty?
ACTS 2:33 NIV Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.
ISA 25:1 NIV Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done wonderful things, things planned long ago.
PS 57:5, 108:5 NIV Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth.
PS 46″10 NIV He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
Perhaps in the opening photo you noticed the hand on my dashboard? I cannot remember if I posted this story previously or not. If I did you still might want to read this as I finally located the complete story online.
When our kids were young teenagers I bought a dismembered hand at a Halloween store for my own object lesson. The hand I bought then was very flexible. I cut the “blood” off the cuff and placed it on the dashboard to remind me to hold the children loosely. They thought it was hilarious as every time we hit a bump the fingers would vibrate and bounce. No idea where that hand is today, but I needed another one this autumn.
I started by shopping at the original shop where I had bought it. No such thing. The one they asked to be sent from the downtown location was not right and too bloody. Shop keeper assured me they could sell it.
Finally found something similar on Amazon and had it sent to the house. Cut the blood off the cuff. It is not as bouncy but still holds the same message.
Recently I was in anguish seeking wisdom from the Lord. On the way to our trysting location I heard I should try Chuck Swindoll. Originally I had read the object lesson in a book of daily devotions compiled from his teachings. Have absolutely no idea what that book was called. Sure enough the example was available online. I do not think I ever read his entire telling of it.
Here goes: Shortly before her death, Corrie ten Boom attended our church in Southern California. Following the worship service, I met briefly with her, anxious to express my wife’s and my love and respect for her faithful example. She inquired about my family . . . how many children, their ages—that sort of thing. She detected my great love for each one and very tenderly admonished me to be careful not to hold on to them too tightly. Cupping her wrinkled hands in front of me, she passed on a statement of advice I’ll never forget. I can still recall that strong Dutch accent: “Pastor Swindoll, you must learn to hold everything loosely … everything. Even your dear family. Why? Because the Father may wish to take one of them back to Himself, and when He does, it will hurt you if He must pry your fingers loose.” And then, having tightened her hands together while saying all that, she slowly opened them and smiled so kindly as she added, “Remember … hold everything loosely … everything” In the back of my mind I can still hear her words.
I retained “Hold everything loosely, because the Father may wish to change things and it will hurt you if He must pry your fingers loose. Hold everything loosely … everything.”
I cannot remember how many times I have shared that lesson. Just this morning I learned that my dear friend from childhood had a terrible report from her husband’s MRI. “It showed metastases to the spine, pelvis and lymph nodes. He has been under the care of a team – urology, oncologist and radiation oncologist for prostate cancer. They were pretty certain it had spread to the bones somewhere but not certain where. Until now it had not shown up on any scans.” On her behalf I am holding her husband loosely as I pray for them as a couple walking through this.
Since my husband almost died in 2018 I have rejoiced in every day that I still have with him. I cannot say I have practiced holding him loosely. As the Father has allowed things to change with one family member I have remembered the pain of having my fingers pried loose.
In most circles this is called non-attachment. I find it especially difficult to do in regards to family members and those we love dearly.
So the hand remains on my dashboard. I pray that you, too, will able to open your hands and hold all things loosely. Corrie ten Boom was a woman of intense wisdom learned through unbelievable suffering and cruelty in the concentration camp in Germany. If you have not read her biography, “The Hiding Place” I encourage you to get it and brace yourself for a telling of the comfort and power of God. It is in print, was made into a movie, and also a play.
I looked up from my book. Startled, I told Bob to look out the window slowly. We had a visitor who seemed to be asking, “What are you doing in there?”
Never knowing if it would be startled, I captured another shot.It came closer for a better view.“Oh my goodness! Those are people in there.” It turned and bounded off to the back yard!
Sitting quiet and still has so many benefits! Understand now why we are NOT impressed at seeing a white tailed deer in the Great Smoky Mountains?
Hope is a thin and slippery thing, sorely tested and hard to come by in this culture. Hope reminds us that there is nothing in life we have not faced that we did not, through God’s gifts and graces—however unrecognized at the time—survive. Hope is the recall of good in the past, on which we base our expectation of good in the future, however bad the present. It digs in the rubble of the heart for memory of God’s promise to bring good out of evil and joy out of sadness and, on the basis of those memories of the past, takes new hope for the future. Even in the face of death. Even in the fear of loss. Even when our own private little worlds go to dust, as sooner or later, they always do.
Advent calls us to hope in the promise that God is calling us to greater things and will be with us as we live them. —Joan Chittister, excerpts from “Unwrap the Gifts of Advent”
Have you embraced hope yet this Advent season? I just loved when we were in Church this past Sunday and the Priest declared, “Happy New Year!” for Advent is the beginning of the New Year for the liturgical church. I was feeling neither happy nor joyful when I walked in. Even after participating in communion I was wavering in my own cares. As the day wore on I finally worked my way out of that situation with good reminders from Desmond Tutu and the Dalai Lama.
I was reminded in The Book of Joy that most of my suffering that day was due to “too much self-regard.”
Some distasteful events around Thanksgiving that upset me were less unsettling when I embraced much less, much, much less self-regard. The choices of another had more to do with them than with me. An act of kindness that was not needed sent me into a tailspin, but that was due to another not being truthful and clear. When I decided to let my feelings go and choose the path of compassion and peace I was settled rapidly.
None of this is easy, but I am trying to learn. Like I have said, I read this book several years ago and I gleaned a lot of wisdom from it. I know I did not take the lessons and practices to heart and I wish I had. Perhaps I would be on a more even keel now if I had?
Hope reminds us that there is nothing in life we have not faced that we did not, through God’s gifts and graces—however unrecognized at the time—survive. Joan Chittister
Though there are times when life is painful we can embrace the fact that through God’s gifts and graces we can survive this, too.
Victor Frankl wrote in Man’s Search for Meaning, We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.
No matter what family members may send your way the rest of this year, you have the freedom to choose your attitude in any given circumstance. It took me a few days to make my way through this, and I am not proud of the pain the midst of that delay, but I eventually chose grace and compassion for the person. The wise men in The Book of Joy state repeated that the greatest thing to lose on earth is one’s compassion for others; losing one’s heart and losing one’s humanity.
My soul still occasionally spouts off snide remarks about the event, but Brother Lawrence continues to remind me that “Useless thoughts spoil everything, and much mischief begins there.” If I want to live with composure, peace and joy I must “take captive those thoughts to Christ Jesus” (2 Corinthians 10:5) and let God have the final word even in the way I think!
Treasures in Plain Sight, A Christian Blog 