FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE

My son surprised me with this cell phone photo in a text message. He told me he was going to visit my sister. I wasn't expecting the photo. It made me emotional, of course, and it took me down memory lane. The day we buried her was a complex mix of unbelief, sorrow, and grief.

My son was eleven when his aunt, my sister Lois, passed away. Now, a quarter century later, he is back at the hillside cemetery in Stayton, Oregon. His first time revisiting the very spot where she is at rest. It took him about an hour to locate her marker. Then he sent me this photo and told me he said "hi" to her for me.

I wonder what emotion he feels, and his thoughts. The two--his wanting to pay his respects and the memory of her--warm my heart.

We never stop loving. Those we have lost continue to be a part of us.

In life, our lives intersect, and we may experience an everlasting bond. Our connections with family, siblings, parents, mates, and children and even those who are like family to us, have many differing threads. These may be sweet or not so much. Our lives are influenced by the intricate web these threads weave that make up the tapestry of our lives.

Sometimes these change the trajectory of our lives. I spend a few to many hours a week fulfilling a promise I made after losing my sister. She had been troubled, depressed, and had lost her way. When our family got the call, it was already to late.

We all grieve differently. I promised myself and God that I would learn more and be more available to those who struggle with life. I also have become more sensitive to the actual struggle. Life IS hard. There's no denying it. Words are not enough. I believe caring with feet on it is part of the answer.

I see life and my part in it differently than I used to. I want to love people without bias, judgment, or categorizing; that's the desire. Is it easy? No. I've had to change my way of thinking and become more flexible.

I think Lois was part of that. Her loss was part of an awakening in me, to do more, to be kind, to validate what I can validate, to speak truth in love, to abandon what gets in the way of these.

I miss my sister and always will. She was a beautiful person. I'm glad my son wanted to validate her memory. That means something to me. She would have been pleased with the man he has become. I know it in my heart.

Life is too short. Love well. Be good.

Thank you, my son.

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WHAT ROCKS? A Spiritual Awakening

 Spiritual life has the power to rock your world.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. ---John 10:10

Deeper Spiritual Life is the Abundant Life

 

I didn't tap into the deeper spiritual life until I was in my late forties. It rocked my world.

How do we get to where our spirituality becomes real, deep, life-giving and free? The process is one of going from "doing" religiously to one of "being" authentically.

When troubles come, we can be decimated by the events. But, but . . . but what does that say about our spirituality? You and I can live through events on two levels, human vs spiritual, but it is best when they are blended together as one.

Our spiritual journey begins with a decision to believe, accept, and acknowledge belief in God, Christ, and salvation. This is a "by faith" transaction, choosing to believe by faith in the gospel, and accept the salvation offered to us -- whereby we receive redemption for our soul. Our soul awakens.

A baby is born ready to be shaped, loved, and nurtured. They grow and become within the context of human stepping stones on their way to becoming a functioning adult.

Spiritual life has its own stepping stones to mature spirituality. The place of worship, study of scripture and doctrine, dedication of heart and mind to truth, obedience to the Savior, Father God, and Holy Spirit--are all part of the spiritual path.

The issue is this. All those good endeavors may miss the point--and they have made many a Pharisee--when they may miss the mark of what it is to be enlivened spiritually. What is missing is a pursuit of God in a living and breathing relationship with him, formed within the context of becoming Christ-like.

We are "becoming" Christ-like through a constant growing relationship with the Divine. When we are connected through the heart with the Savior, we begin living in him, not living intellectually in him--although we are intellectually stimulated by this holy alliance.

Here is the secret. Christ's life awakening in us changes us into living, authentic spiritual beings.

Here's how it's done. To get there takes stripping away all our arguments and biases to look fully on the Savior. We open our mind, heart, and soul to God. We let him teach us and reveal his love and kindness, truth, and character to us, day after day.

His life will rock you. Get alone with God and use this time to focus your thoughts on him, his word, and his truth. Let his being ripple in you. Do this without preconceived conventions and barriers. This will awaken your soul into the deeper spiritual life--where one lives and thrives, where one experiences the greater love and being.

The problem is, it is easier to live our spiritual lives in our own strength, with its limited parameters and rigid beliefs. Christ came to free us from that way of thinking and living. He is the way, the truth, and the life.

This spiritual life is known by its life-giving qualities. Spirituality that is centered in Christ is known by its love, humility, purity, and strength. This kind of spiritual life is liberally living within a sense of "being" through an interactive walk with God.

Here's the deal. The joy, peace, love, and spirituality that I mentioned in last week's writing is not automatic for any of us, but it is possible for all of us. It is the greatest thing that could ever happen to you.

True spirituality is commiserate with an interactive relationship with the Father, Son, and Spirit through praying, listening, and pursuing living relationship. I find it easiest to do in the silences, in nature, in a room by myself, alone with my own thoughts, centered and focused on the Divine. Prayer, scripture, and meditation facilitate this process.

Our anchor in life is in the One who is the Anchor. The deeper our relationship, the more assurance we have during all our moments, even those with adverse circumstances.

 Spiritual life when lived well is peace-giving, strong, loving, and kind. I no longer worry if I'm living my spiritual life in a right way. The living relationship with God is life-giving and real. He ministers to me and teaches me. In the process, I am becoming more fully his. He is my light and life-giver. I am blessed. This is a beautiful way to live every day.

This is my wish for you.

Any questions?

TRUE SPIRITUALITY ... Makes a Difference

A few thoughts of mine that reveal my take on spiritual life and how it should impact our lives. If our spirituality doesn't make a difference in how we live our lives there may be some clues as to why embedded in this short essay.

Another way to say what spiritual life should look like:

Your spirituality should make a difference in your life. Real spiritual life will impact your interior self: how you think, choices you make, your deep down true desires.

Take it a step further, Spirit-led spirituality is like having a living being in you that guides you and speaks to your soul, and that has the capacity for greater beauty, higher levels of joy and peace, and tremendous hope and courage.

The truth is, the liveliness of God in the soul also desires purity, truth, and goodness and lives its internal life in you with hope, faith, and love.

Relationship with God, a true spirituality that is not human-based but God-based, speaks life to the soul. The person tuned to this life in them makes a daily choice to live and thrive, or mute and ignore, the Beauty within them.

Our spirituality is easy to see. One only has to look at what matters most to us, what our pursuits are and why, and how we react to life in general, with its joys and sorrows, goods and bads, relationships and amusements.

We have problems we need to solve, wounds we need to heal, and heartaches we need to repair. But we also have resources to help us. Our spirituality is one of those resources. No matter how bad it is, we can embrace the Living Being that resides within us with our heart, mind, and soul. We can read its spiritual--life and "how-to"--manual, the Good Book, to find help, guidance, and strength as we draw near to the source of its wisdom and life, and its theme, God, his living presence, his Son and his Spirit.

True spirituality centers a person and makes them a better person. They will use their gifts to bless others. They will use their mind to grow, enrich, and infuse spiritual truth with living reality. They will also do impossible things like love their enemy, forgive those who hurt them, and access healing that brings peace to the soul.

Bitterness and residual anger cannot live or thrive in the person who is finding their life hid in Christ, the One who speaks life to the soul. The spiritual life in you confronts, changes and impacts the mind and soul and offers newness and renewal of mind and heart. The Spirit of God then transforms us, and our spirituality becomes a living, breathing, life within us and makes a difference in our inner being and how we live our life, our motivation and our loves.

Any questions?