“I so want this with all my heart amen” wrote one of my readers, SW, in October this year, in a comment on “The Promise of Isaiah.” She was expressing a deep longing for her whole self to be restored to the Lord and for living a purposeful life. Interestingly, that deep longing is the […]
The truth about our lives is so simple: we live every moment in the presence of God. God is present in every event, every plant/rock/person/animal. God is the interweaving of all life, the glue, if you will, that holds everything together, that connects all elements in the universe. God is the Creator of all and […]
“Our God is an awesome God, there is nothing that he cannot do…” This is a song that my grandchildren learned in Vacation Bible School a few years back. It’s true, our God is an awesome God, but not just in the muscle-flexing ways of the children’s song. God is awesomely mysterious and yet knowable; […]
Today I want to focus on two passages in Isaiah which to my mind communicate the whole of the Spiritual life. First, there is God who in Isaiah 43:1 tells the Israelites: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; and you are mine.” God goes on to tell […]
We have not been well-loved and valued; we have not been fully embraced as we are, even if we grew up in a loving family. It is far worse for someone who grows up with abuse in any form. Still we are a prickly people. We are self-preoccupied. We live mostly in the past or […]
An article by Cindy Brandt[1] that I read a few weeks ago reminded me that when Jesus called his disciples, he said to them, “come and see.” He invited them to experience what he was offering. He held out a promise, a potential that they could taste and feel. And, obviously, when they did “come […]
The essential skill for the Life of the Spirit is listening, an inner ear attuned to the voice of the Holy Spirit. It is an attunement to the voice of God within. Listening by itself, however, is not enough; we must then follow what God suggests. As we practice listening for God’s voice within, we […]
A contemplative life is not as we might imagine it—dull with nothing to do but ponder and reflect. What the word contemplative usually conjures up for us is someone, probably a cloistered monk or nun—who has nothing to do all day long except think about God. There actually are contemplative orders of religious people that […]
What God requires of us is really so very simple: “act justly, love mercy, walk humbly with your God. “[Micah 6:8 NIV] And yet nothing in our lives is more challenging of the culture in which we live and our attachment to it. It is the most challenging task we face and the lesson […]
“Martha, Martha …there is need of only one thing.” [NSRV Luke 10:41] Poor, maligned Martha who is stressed and worried, frustrated that her sister is listening to Jesus and not helping Martha in the kitchen with the meal. The version of this story that echoes in my head is the KJV: “but one thing is […]