LOVE THIS QUOTE FROM FENELON

Found this in the devotional called Joy & Strength. I really like the "you will."

 

When you find that weariness depresses or amusement distracts you, you will calmly turn with an untroubled spirit to your Heavenly Father, who is always holding out His arms to you. You will look to Him for gladness and refreshment when depressed, for moderation and recollection when in good spirits, and you will find that He will never leave you to want. A trustful glance, a silent movement of the heart towards Him will renew your strength; and though you may often feel as if your soul were downcast and numb, whatever God calls you to do, He will give you power and courage to perform. Our Heavenly Father, so far from ever overlooking us, is only waiting to find our hearts open, to pour into them torrents of His grace.

So I have to ask you to read that once more and answer the query, "Will you do those things?

As the Episcopalians declare,"I will, with God's help!" Great answer, I think!

 

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Feel Thy Stay

Interesting phrase by Isaac Penington, quoted in Joy and Strength this morning on-line. (In the book it is not used until Sunday.)

 

" THEREFORE, in the evil hour, lie still,

feel thy stay, till His light which " makes manifest "

arise in thee, and clear up things to thee."

Now I find this especially interesting in that we own a dog and have been trying to teach her the command "Stay!" for years now. "Feel thy stay." Oh that speaks volumes to me! When I want to run ahead of the Lord and "fix things" I am reminded to 'Feel thy stay." When God seems to be taking too long and I believe I have the answers to solve a situation, I am reminded to 'Feel thy stay."

Wow! Can you imagine the power of The Lord upon the earth if an entire congregation were to wait upon Him, 'feel thy stay' and move only in obedience to Him?

Not too ruff through the power of the Holy Spirit, if only we would learn!Over and over in Scripture the Word says, "but you would not." Help us, Father, to obey.

 

 

 

 

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2013 Adventure

This is the book we are beginning in our small group. We had a smaller than usual group last night. The seven of us had a lively time! We started with the "Prayer for Aging" in the front of the book written by Sr. Moya Hanlen. My purpose in offering this particular book is to have an activity that appeals to person of our age. The "Last Third" refers to persons 60-90 years old. One of the authors is in her sixties; the other in his nineties. There are seven sections in the book with seven selections under each topic. I was thinking we could cover one section in two meetings. Oops! I forgot how much we humans like to talk about ourselves. We covered 1-1/2 sections. However, the sharing was lively and every single person spoke. This will be a good study. Next time I will try to get the focus on the Scripture for each section and the purpose put forth by the authors.

We began with "Gateway 2" Living with Limitations. I skipped Gateway 1 as we just did a study that had a huge focus on death. We all know at our age that death is inevitable.

Here are some of the verses from last night's study:

2 Corinthians 12:9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me."

2 Corinthians 4:16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.

And the best discussion questions were: If you are an older person, what are some of the limits aging has placed upon you? How do you deal with them?

What is your response to the prayer,"May you die young at a very old age?"

What relationship do you see between the contemplative life and the life of doing? Do the two approaches seem opposed, in competition, complementary? Explain.

I hope you enjoy reading this and following along with your own consideration of the questions.

I will keep you posted on our progress!

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Silence and Holy as the Day is Spent

Reading more from J. Brent Bill I was struck by the reminder that "Jesus is everywhere. Silence helps us see that. Holy silence shows us God's wants of us. It infuses us with God's spirit and power so that we can live faithfully in life's common ventures."
Then to give an example of how the Lord makes each day holy, he quoted a song I had never heard before. I hope you enjoy the YouTube version!
The lyrics start

Holy is the dish and drain

The soap and sink, and the cup and plate

And the warm wool socks, and cold white tile

Shower heads and good dry towels

And frying eggs sound like psalms

Witha bit of salt measured in my palm

It's all a part of a sacrament

As holy as a day is spent.

"Holy Silence"

Last night before retiring I was reading J. Brent Bill's book "Holy Silence, The Gift of Quaker Spirituality."

I marked the following quotes:

 

"The desert fathers emphasized silence as more than mere absence of sound...Their practice of silence varied according to their own interpretations and needs."

In the fourteenth century Master Eckhardt said, "Nothing in all creation is so like God as silence." In 1609 Alphonsus Rodriguez quoted St. Bernard of Clairvaux: "Continual silence,and removal from the noise of the things of this world and forgetfulness of them, lifts up the heart and asks us to think of the things of heaven and sets our heart upon them."

"Bordenkircher says that "Being quiet with God allows us to create enough psychological and spiritual space that God can truly create an inner sanctuary in us."

That one really made me pause! I create space, but God creates the sanctuary. Cool!!

"William Penn knew holy silence isn't about stillness, as such, but rather about encountering God in a living and vital holy hush.

 

Now all this was refreshing, confirming and quieting.

I guess it was no wonder that having been up less than an hour this morning I found myself in the "Slough of despond" with self-esteem drenched in a fetid pool of negativity. Yikes! A far cry from the reading the night before!

 

I MADE myself sit down and focus my heart and mind upon the devotionals I have been reading. George Matheson was quoted in Streams in the Desert as having written: " God spoke when there was no inward storm. He could not speak when the mind was fretted; His voice demands the silence of the soul. ..In the hour of perturbation, thou canst not hear the answer to thy prayers...The heart got no response in the moment of its crying - in its thunder, its earthquake, and its fire. Thou must rest, O soul, if thou wouldst have thy heart's desire. Still the beating of thy pulse of personal care."

 

I was left no room to indulge in the negative. I chose to get out the evening book and re-read the passages. then I set my eyes upon Him who loves me best.

 

May you, also, silence your turmoil, create the space for God to build an inner sanctuary in you. Then enter with praise and thanksgiving, finding true rest and refreshment for your soul.

 

 

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Working too hard

I am about killing myself here cleaning! Almost 60 degrees today and I washed windows, cleaned out the toaster oven, up and down the stairs with laundry, etc., etc.

Too bad Bob is not on Facebook to read these funnies! Someone has been getting really good ones, like this:

Very excited that Jesus Culture is coming to the Taft Theater in February. Hope to go to their worship conference with Tiffany!

 

What is wrong with this idea? .... there are daffodils on my back hill 6 inches tall! Too muddy from torrents of rain to photograph, but come on! It is only January and we do not live in San Francisco Bay Area where they bloom in January or February!! Bah, humbug. I do not like it when nature screws up spring.

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Found a Card

Found a card among my things that is so old, well, I typed it on a typewriter. The 4 x 6 paper is discolored and starting to fall apart in one area where it is torn!  It reads:

Saved by

Patience

Meekness

Humility of heart

Resignation to God

5 weapons of Satan to destroy the Word

1. Affliction
2. Persecution
3. Cares of this world
4. Deceitfulness of riches
5. Lusts of other things

First duty of the day:
get into the right place of dependence before God, in meek, patient, humble, resignation to Him.

Turn from all struggles and self reproach, IN STILLNESS YIELD TO HIS WORKING and in meek and humble resignation expect deliverance nowhere but from God Himself.

 The 5 weapons of Satan are from the Scriptures. The other quotes are from "Freedom from a Self-centered Life / Dying to Self Selections from William Law, Edited by Andrew Murray.
Oh, William Law, you never steered me wrong even once! "He was a religious guide not only to the family but to a number of earnest-minded people who came to consult him. The most eminent of these were the two brothers John and Charles Wesley."