When the Fertilizer Hits the Rotating Air-Pusher

Unique Commonalities:  When the Fertilizer Hits the Rotating Air-Pusher

I was reading the other day that on the average, each person experiences between two and three significant life changes (as self-reported) during the course of a year.  That is an astounding figure to me.  Yet, looking back on my own life, I must admit that it is probably not that far off.

What is a significant life change?  It is any change in socioeconomic, physical, emotional or spiritual status, which requires significant changes in behavior, thoughts, beliefs, and perspective, which impacts, to some degree, other areas of life.

Yes, it is a mouthful.   Yet, you can simply define a significant life change event by how you initially respond to it.  Usually, the greater the outcry, “The Fertilizer has Hit the Rotating Air-Pusher!” or “Holy Manure!” and such similar things usually indicate that you have just experienced such a life change.  The more you think about it afterward and the more stress it initially generates is also a great indicator.

One common characteristic of a SLC (Significant Life Change) is that there is a shift.  It can usually be felt.  The shift can be in the speed of your thoughts, the depth of your emotion, the sudden change in perspective and priorities.  In each of these responses there is a time, a moment, to manage better the affects of the change.

When an SLC occurs, oftentimes your thoughts speed up and start processing all the aspects, real and imagined, of the change.  This often happens before the emotions kick in.  If left ungoverned, these thoughts can trigger the emotional reaction of PANIC.  Yet, at the outset, you can govern some of these thoughts. 

It takes a decision to start thinking not around or about the issue, the change, but to start looking at it’s cause, it’s degree, and most importantly, at your response to it.  Think one thought and then think another.  If you find yourself dwelling only on the cause of the change, you become trapped in your own mind.  If you focus only on the degree, you promote stress, anxiety and fear.   Your mind will try to analyze it.  Your job is to analyze it in a way that focuses on solutions; not necessarily solving the change, but providing yourself some solutions in addressing it.

At some point, whether governing your thoughts or not, the emotions will come into play.  The shift in emotions might feel exhilarating, or scary or both.  You may find your emotions going as fast as your thoughts did.  You may even go through the entire spectrum of your emotional repertoire in the space of a couple of minutes.  Emotions are ok to experience.  Yet, just like thoughts, if they dwell in fear, anxiety, apathy, anger or frustration for a long time, they can do damage.  They can prime you to experience those emotions more and more while going through this Significant Life Change.   Yet, unlike the fast thoughts, emotions will need to be experienced to a point.  Immediately bottling up frustration or anger will cause those to come out in non-beneficial or destructive ways later on.  Managing the shift in emotions is more about recognizing them, their validity, and setting a time in which they can be experienced. If the life change is good, there needs to be time to celebrate.  If there is a negative life change, there needs to be time to mourn, to grieve.  If the change is confrontational and threatening, anger, for a time, is perfectly appropriate.  You can howl at the moon.  Get it out.  Just don’t make a habit of that.  Do not let any one emotion create habits in your behavior that may complicate addressing the life change(s) that have happened. 

Once the mind and emotions have spoken, and sometime during, there is a change in perspectives that happen during a Significant Life Change.  Up until the change, you had priorities in your life:  paying your bills, going to work, looking for work, being a parent, or family member, taking care of finances, education, scheduling social events, etc.  We all do this.  We all have an unspoken list of priorities, labeled from most important to least.  We all get a little frustrated when we have to re-prioritize these.   Yet, the SLC does more than force us to reprioritize; it forces a whole new system on us.  New items suddenly appear which trump in importance anything else on our everyday list.  If the change involved financial hardship, suddenly there is a survival priority written that puts the most necessary items on top.  If the change is physical, new priorities in health and healing, body image or body survival are created. 

This is the stage where we do a reality check on our priorities.  We do have some choice on what gets prioritized.   Survival needs usually are prioritized first.  Even positive life changes cause needs to be prioritized.  Yet, when we are reordering that list, watch out for those priorities, which no longer serve a purpose under the new change.  For example, if you are in a car wreck and your car is totaled, one of your priorities that no longer work as well is that priority to continue to put $300 away on that future Hawaii vacation.  Other things take precedence.   Emotional priorities are even more difficult to tell which are still valid and which are not.  If you break up with someone or are the recipient of the breakup, the emotional priority to spend time with your special someone is no longer valid.  Yet, if we keep that in the forefront of the priority list, it will cause more frustration, pain, and loss.

When a Significant Life Change occurs, you will think thousands of thoughts; you will feel thousands of emotions, or some emotions a thousand times, and your perspective and priorities will change.  These things will happen.  Managing SLC’s and their negative effects include managing each of these shifts.   Don’t worry.  It gets easier (most of the time) with every SLC experienced. 

Inner Flame Meditation

People have asked me to give another example of meditation.


First thing first.  THERE IS NO BAD WAY TO MEDITATE!


Some forms of meditation work better for others and some don't work at all.  That's OK.  There are as many ways to meditate are there are people in the world.


What I am going to explain is the Inner Flame Meditation.


Inner Flame Meditation
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First, as always, get in a place where you will not be disturbed for at least 10 minutes.   This is really important.  There is nothing so interrupting as almost getting to a place of inner peace and then having the phone ring or the front buzzer buzz.


Get comfortable.  Lay down.  Sit up.  Stand on your head.  Do whatever makes you comfortable.


Now.


Picture an old style oil lamp.  Not Alladin, but more like the kind that used to be used in old locomotives or ones you've seen on Little House on the Prairie .   


See the glass enclosure.  See the small space between the glass and the base to let air in.  See the small cotton wick.  See the glass flume.  This is to be the focus of your thoughts.  The more detail you can give this lamp the better.  Can you smell the oil?  Can you feel the warmth coming off of it when lit?  Can you see it cast light in all directions in your mind?


Now picture this lamp lit and placed in the center of your mind, your thoughts.  See the light, see the shadows cast.  Feel the warmth given off.  


Now, concentrate on your breathing.  With each breath in, picture more air getting to that lamp.  As you breath in, the light gets brighter; the flame gets a bit bigger, the warmth increases.


Now breathe out.  Let the flame go down to a flicker again.


Repeat this several times.   With each breath the flame reacts.  With each inhalation, the flame is stronger, brighter.


Now, we are going to give this flame more fuel.  Now when you breathe in, think of a time of receiving love in your life.  This love is the fuel for the flame.  The air makes it brighter.  The fuel of love makes it bigger.  Think of a loving moment.  Breathe in.  Feel that love you experienced.  Let that love saturate the oil lamp.  See the flame grow.  Breathe out.


Now, this flame is dependent on the air (spirit) and the fuel (love).  Think of moments of love in your life.  Infuse them with air (spirit) and send them to the oil lamp.  


See the flame become the center, the focal point of your inside mind; your thoughts.


If you think of a passionate example of love, let the flame become redder.  If you think of a brotherly or sisterly moment of love, make the flame greener.  If you think of a divine moment of love let the color turn blue.  If you use a memory in which you were not only loved, but loved another, turn the flame yellow-blue.  


During this meditation, as you breathe in, as you focus on a moment of love, see how many colors you can make that flame become.  Go through all the flavors of love you have experienced and have shown others.  


At some point, vanish the lamp itself.  Let it fade from view and have only the flame remaining.  Move around the flame in your own mind.  See the multicolor reflections as you re-experience those moments of love.  See the hue, the texture, the ambience, the warmth, the body of the flame.  


Now, with each breath in, let the flame turn on itself.  With each breath out, turn it some more.  Let each indrawn and exhaled breath be like a kick on a merry-go-round.  Let it turn the flame.  With each remembered moment of love, let the turning flame flare outward.   See the light flow out of you, bathing everything around you in its brilliance.  Soon the flame is a turning ring of fire, shedding light to the ends of the universe.   


Now, with each breath and each remembered moment of love, see the ring of flame expand outside of yourself.  See the millions of other rings of flame that join together and spread that light and warmth of love.  See it affect all things around it.  See the dancing of the rings together, rejoicing in the spirit and love which are their existence.


Take some time here.  Then slowly reassert the vision of the lamp and the light.  Leave the flame lit.  And remember at any time, you can see that flame and know it is but a point of light in the dance of the infinite rings of fire in life.  You may go back to that place in your mind at any time, and go through this meditation again, to join in the dancing fire of life.

The Story of Brother Service

There was a story from the Middle Ages of an Acolyte and an Abbot that goes something like this:

In the course of his training in the Monastery, new acolytes were given their first interview by the Abbot.  They all knew that the Abbot was looking for a grounded and correct interpretation of the Gospel from each before they would be given their new name, and could continue their studies, otherwise they would be sent back to the Proctor and would have to try again the next year.  The catch was that none knew the time in which they would be summoned before the Abbot.  So all studied continually the Gospels and the teaching of Jesus, waiting for their time.

It came to pass that one acolyte after another was called and some were passed, and went on to other teachers, and some were sent back to the proctor.  

Finally, the youngest acolyte was called in.  In some trepidation he entered the chapel, genuflected, and sat down at the feet of the Abbot.

The Abbot looked at this young acolyte and asked, "If this chapel were on fire, and the very flames were licking the altar, and you had only time to save one thing, what would it be?"

Quickly the acolyte went through an inventory of all the irreplaceable things, and tried to decide what to take.  Would it be the sacred urn, taken back from the Moors in the war.  Perhaps it would be the crucifix, the gold encrusted symbol of this fine Chapel?  He looked about and saw the rare tapestries, the carved birds in the pews, the Passion Story unfolding in the stained glass above the altar.   He saw the silver baptismal font, and the cup of the Eucharist.   Any of these things would be hard if not impossible to replace.

Then he closed his eyes, bowed his head, and prayed that God would show him the answer, for he did not wish to be sent back for another year to the Proctor.  

At that moment, a single drop of sweat fell from his face and hit the feet of the Abbot.  It spattered in the dust on the Abbot's feet, and hit the simple leather of his sandal.

In a flash of inspiration, he turned his head up to the Abbot and said, 

"A fire would destroy many wonderful and beautiful things in this place; and it would be a shame.   But they are only things.  Even the sacred relic is only a thing.  But I see two things in here which are truly the most valuable of all.  And if I had time only to save one......."

"Yes my son?  What would you save?"

"Father Abbot.....I would save you; even if it meant me staying to face the flames."

And then the Abbot surprised the young Acolyte.  He reached down and took the acolyte's hand in his own and said in a soft voice:

"And I, my son, would save you; even if it mean that I faced the flames in your stead."

"You understand, as it took me many many years to understand, that is that you and I who are the most valuable instruments of God.  With these hands (and he grasped the acolyte's hand harder), and these feet (motioning to his foot that received the drops of sweat) are what God uses to love and serve the world.  Not even the greatest, gold leaf crucifix, or the most holy of relics could serve a single soul, the way that you and I may.  They are symbols of the living God, but we are servants of that same God.  We are the ones using the symbols, the services, the sacraments to minister to the world."

"So now that you have passed the interview, and done it so well, you may choose with whom to continue your teachings.   Your choice?"

The acolyte then surprised the Abbot when he replied, 

"Father Abbot.  I wish to go back to the proctor."

"Why do you choose this my son?" asked the Abbot in bewilderment.

"You have shown me that my purpose is to serve others.  What better place may that be than in teaching the new acolytes the lesson I have learned here today.  To show them in my chores and in my duties that they, the newest of our brothers, are worthy of being served."

Then the Abbot smiled and said, 

"In your humility, you have taught me the lesson that I wished to teach to you.  From now on you shall be named Brother Service.  Now go forth and spread the Gospel through your simple service.

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The Front Row to the Happy Show

The Front Row to the Happy Show

Sometimes I am privileged to be a witness to supreme expressions of joy and happiness.  Such times make it impossible, upon witnessing them, to be anything but happy myself.

At one of the camp retreats I saw an entire family supporting their daughter as she attempted to climb a rock wall.  At first she was hesitant, and uncomfortable, looking up at that 40-foot tower.  Yet her brother, sisters, and parents urged her on.  Her dad rigged up and was right next to her.  He took a step, reached out for a stone, and she followed.  Then he would give her encouragement by saying that the next step, the next reach up was hers.  She took it and then he went up a step.  In this way, with the shouts of "you can do it!", "Look at how far you are already!" and "You're great!" in the background, they both moved step by step.  At one point, the girl's legs were shaking.  She was so very fatigued.  Her father got on her side of the wall and gave her his hand. With his help she got on the first platform and could rest.   He got there two.  They sat side by side and talked then.  I thought she would request to come down.  Her legs and arms acted to tired.  I don't know what conversation they had up there, but within minutes she was going for the top again.  When she pulled herself up to the top, all the family was clapping, whistling, and shouting.  And the girl.....She was BEAMING!!!   It was like a super nova of joy going off inside her.   And you know what?  When she burst into joy, so did I.

That is having a front row seat to the Happy Show!

Don't Mind the Man Behind the Curtains

Don't Mind the Man Behind the Curtains

It is strange going through my spiritual biography.  Some things I would rather not look too closely at, and others are kinda nice to see again.  Trying to pry some underlying direction, mission statement, or life's goal out of them is difficult to say the least.

There were the painful times when I tried it on my own.  This whole faith thing.   Times when I was reminded that I was a very (and still am) flawed person in a flawed world.

One year when I first became assistant director at camp, I learned that most of the work behind anything, much less a functioning Christian Community, is done behind the scenes.  I thought, back then, I would have more time to hang out with the campers, more time to do Bible Studies, more time in the limelight, so to speak.  This was not the case.  I remember clearly so many times that during the Community Celebration (the non-competitive talent show held at the end of the week) that I had no campers that stood up and gave me compliments.  No "What was good about the week" observations that included me.  I felt left out.  When I was a counselor the year before, there seemed to be a whole lot more little recognitions.  Sounds petty and egotistical doesn't it?  It was.

There were other times that I led the worship services and that was so much fun.  However, as an Assistant Director, my job was to encourage the staff, and through them, the campers to lead their own worships.  So I had Sunday a lot of the time, and the rest I was a participant.  Again, such a petty thing, but I missed it.

It is not that I wasn't being used by God, just not in the particular way that I wished to be used.  What did God use me for?  When the kitchen dishwasher ran out of chemicals, I knew where they were stored and how to change them out.  When the chlorine injector failed on the pump house, I knew how to fix it.  Also, when a camper went missing, I knew what needed to be done, how to organize search parties, how to interrogate campers from the cabin from which he went missing. 

Also there were the times when God used me to support those that were on the front lines of ministry with the youth.  When staff were having a rough time, whether job related or personal, I was there to talk with them. When they needed encouragement, directions, or time and space to just grow (time and space equates to allowing them to make and learn from their own mistakes). 

This was not only camp, not only college years, but I found as I went over my life, I was not the front-runner, nor the motivational speaker, nor the person in the limelight.  God has used me to grease the pulleys of life, to dust the curtains, to adjust the spotlights so that other people could shine.

I am God's maintenance man, using love to keep the stage of Grace working, and the lights on.

Is this all I am?

There is a wonderful line in Star Trek I:  The Motion Picture, where Spock is telling Kirk what the artificial life form VGER is thinking and asking.   At one point, Spock relays a question VGER has been asking since it's creation.  "Is this all I am?  Is there nothing more?

Apart from showing my Geek, by quoting Star Trek, this question comes up constantly in life.  Even reading some of the journal entries for Mother Theresa, in which she writes of her doubts about her life, her faith, God, and her mission, we all have periods where we look around and ask "Is this all I am?"

Recently, I entered into a deep conversation with a woman.  She was seeking for the answer to this question.  Her life, to all outward appearances, seemed idyllic, full of love, full of success.   Yet, she made the statement that she never got to "get off the treadmill" of her life.  She always felt like she had to stay in the rat race, go through the motions to provide for her family.  She felt stuck.   I listened and her complaints and realized that they could have come from right inside my own head.  They were so familiar. 

She talked about her everyday life and how when she got a moment free her mind would immediately be drawn to the next task, the next action, the next fire she felt she had to put out.  From getting her children ready for school in the morning, to going to work, to coming home, cooking, cleaning, enforcing homework time with her kids, supper, dishes, schoolwork, getting ready for bed, trying to fall asleep so that the next day could begin the whole thing over.

Now, I don't have children, and I am mainly responsible only to myself, but I too feel like most of the time I am shackled by the everyday.  My thoughts, my dreams, my visions are put on hold while I take care of business.  Yet, the longer these dreams and thoughts are ignored, forced down, not experienced, I know a part of me starts to atrophy.  This part is hope.  

If we cannot picture something different that what we experience, then hope fades.  With hope goes motivation.  Soon, we truly feel like we are going through the motions; motions we cannot stop because we are afraid of things coming apart, or bills not paid, or children not looked after, or responsibilities not met.

I remember listening to Deepak Chopra on audiobook when he was relating a story about how most Westerners (Americans) have such a difficult time being in silence.  He said that most people, in the first few days, bug out.  Some get very agitated; some cry; one even starting banging his head against a wall (softly though) because the silence was getting too much to bear.  Most of his students, when asked why it was so difficult, said that they thought at first that they were just wasting the time.  Nothing was being done.  Nothing was accomplished.  Then, they found their minds reaching for something besides silence.  A distraction, a problem, something to engage their mind.   Finally, after some days, more days for some less for others, their mind gave up and just started experiencing peace.

Now, I know for one that I do not have the desire to go to a retreat and be silent for the days it would take to silence my mind.   Perhaps it would be good for me, but I just don't have the desire.   However, I have found that times of silence during the day do have the effect of recharging the imagination engines again.   With imagination, there comes daydreaming, envisioning, hope.  Motivation returns.   The ability to look once again at my life, not in terms of running on the same treadmill, or being shackled by chains, but rather seeing new possibilities.  Focusing on things I can change.  Appreciating things that already bring joy to my life.   The view changes.  The chains are no longer so restraining.

I love retreats up at my camp in Kerrville.   Not only do I love spending time with all the children that come up there, but their families as well.   You have never seen so many adults, that for a weekend, are unshackled by the everyday.   Smiles, hugs, laughs, practical jokes, boasting, toasting, story-telling, bragging, loving, listening, caring, understanding.   They have all taken a moment and in that moment their imagination, their hope, their perception of possibilities comes back. 

Now why did I go into this long monologue about "Is this all I am?"   Because the start of hope begins when you answer "There is always more!"

Becoming Someone Wonderful

Having joined one of those online dating sites, I have been placed in a position to have to review and sometimes modify my concept of a future companion.   It is a daunting task.  Sometimes, a humbling one.

At first, I laid out the various women with whom I have had any kind of relationship in the past.  What were their great qualities? Which areas were we most complementary?  Which areas caused the most friction?  What qualities did I possess which made the relationship more difficult to grow in a healthy way?  What factors caused the dissolution of the relationship?

Very sobering questions.

Yet, they brought me to a realization.  One that I knew before, but that had so much more impact now.  Searching for a long-time companion is not a process of finding someone wonderful, but becoming someone wonderful.

The search for the perfect fit, or someone with whom I am compatible is usually done by looking for qualities the other person needs for me to feel they might be a good companion, girlfriend, friend, etc.  How many times in this process did I point to myself and say which qualities do I have that would make another person a good companion, boyfriend, friend, etc.

At some point, I need to either be in the process of uncovering the areas in which I still need improvement, or actively becoming a better version of the person I wish to be.  Anything less would be not only a diservice to whomever I might have a relationship, but a diservice to myself.

I recently started reading "The Five Love Languages."  by Gary Chapman.  In this book, he describes five ways in which we express and receive love from another.   Words of Affirmation, quality time, receiving gifts, acts of service and physical touch are the 5 languages.  I thought, what a better way to continue to become the best version of myself that I can be but to become better at all 5 languages.  That way, no matter which language the other person uses to love, I can both recognize and appreciate it, and return it.

This prompted me to go back to my first questions about previous relationships.   In which ways were the 5 languages used.  In which ways were they interpreted, or misinterpreted?  How did I misinterpret or not acknowledge or not appreciate them in the other?

What amazed me is that most if not all the problems with previous relationships had to do with not speaking and recognizing the same language.  While I thought I was extremely loving in words of affirmation and quality time, acts of service were not really there.  On of the women really responded (or did not respond well) to what she considered a reflection of love that was not there, namely acts of service, doing chores, tasks, things for her.  It was not completely absent, but it was not one of my languages at the time.

So back to becoming a wonderful person.

Now that I know the areas in which I respond, the languages I use to show love and receive as an affirmation of that love, I can at least be prepared enough to share those with women I may date and hear what language they use.

So now my eyes are open to how the other expresses love for people in their lives.  I ask about their relationship with parents, with friends.  What times have they felt very loved and appreciated.  From this, I slowly decipher their language of love.

This whole article has been about dating, but it can be about any form of love.  Love between friends, family, spouse, etc.  It is simply about listening and recognizing the ways in which people feel loved.

More on this in later blogs......................

I Can Feel It

I can feel it.  The tingle in the air.  The sense of anticipation.  It is like a small snowflake before the winter wonderland.  Or, in Texas, the dust of sand before the dune.

I've had this feeling before.  As a young boy, the closer I got to this the more excited, animated, and joyful I became.  As an adult, I find I am having the same reactions.

Yes, I'm being a bit cryptic about what this thing, this event is, because I really want to talk about the feelings and actions that come up when people get excited.  When they feel passion for something.  When they can't wait for something they love to occur.

For me  high school was not a great experience.  I was part of the "geek" and "nerd" and "dweeb" crowd.  Didn't really want to be in that crowd, but I was.   There were several groups, the least of which were the athletes, that made life at that time a little difficult.  A lot damaging to the ego.  And, of course, girls at that time looked on us for what we could do for their grades, not their hearts.

Yet, my summers were reserved for what I loved.  I would wait in anticipation all school year  and almost run home the last day.  The next week would be spent in a chaotic state, getting packed, ready, waiting......

Ok.  Yes, I will tell you finally what this thing is.  I wanted to give a lead-in, a preface because for many people it's no big thing.  Summer Camp.  Yep.  Summer Camp.

I was a camper at my camp from 4th grade to 8th.  I was a staff from 10th grade to after college.  It was and is a magical place.

I would go there as a staff early.  Usually it was only me and the camp director and maintenance guy.  I would be put to work getting the campsite ready for summer.  Several days, I remember, painting, sanding, buffing, polishing, doing trash runs, mowing.  It was wonderful.

Then the staff for the summer would start to arrive and for the next two weeks it would be like all the best experiences of camp, mixed with the best experiences of school.  All of this in an environment of loving kindness and service.  There were many a time that I thought I could spend my life there.   It ended up, that now, 20 some years later, I still have that desire.

So, next week I am going back to the same camp to volunteer for a week.  Yes, I'm a bit older.  Yes, I could be the dad of some of these staff.  (Frightful thought).  I could almost be the grandfather (not quite) of some of the campers.  Yet, last year I did the same thing and it was as if I never left.

I am going to keep this a bit short, because I could almost write a book about my experiences there.

My question to you is, is there something that you look forward to, that stirs your blood, that affixes your attention.  Is there something that you love that's coming up.  And if there isn't......plan something.

A Special Saturday Morning

(Since some of this is personal, I have changed the names and location.)

A friend who used to have a restaurant recommended that I go and check out another place.

So, when I woke up, I decided that this was the day I was going to visit.

I entered the town, and turned the corner where this cafe was located, and was presented with a large, blue house with the sign outside welcoming people in for a cup of Joe and perhaps breakfast. 

I entered the front door and the "parlor" was full of welcoming couches, chairs, and festooned with art of all kinds.  Pottery, painting, sculptures, masks, homemade works out of wood, stone, cloth, photos.  A sign pointed to the kitchen area and I followed.

The art never left.  With each turn I was presented again with these works on the shelves, wall, everywhere.  In the dining room were reclaimed wood tables, a bar with inlaid glass and pebbles and dark wood inlays.  All of it recycled wood.

Their menu is anything from Organic to mainstream.  A little bit of everything for everyone.  I ordered the coffee (which smelled heavenly) and the Sunrise plate.  This was turkey with a touch of bacon with melted provolone and spinach sandwiched between two pita breads with an orange slice.  It was delicious.

I was surrounded by art, and surrounded by fans (the kind that blow air).  It was like being in a constant gentle breeze while I enjoyed my breakfast (which was so good I ordered the same thing again and ate it).

The owner Gracy grew up there and moved away, but came back and wanted to bring the feel of some of the organic, eco-friendly restaurants back her town.  She talked out how much she had put into advertising and drawing customers.  They have live music on the weekends, and everything they use they recycle.

I talked with the cook, her partner Marti.  You could tell he loved to cook.  He loved to talk.  He told story after story about creating the benches and stage outside with recycled wood.  How he built the bar, the tables, the trim on the walls.  Very proud of his work.  He spoke of his family and his wife that he lost to cancer.

He also talked about his miraculous encounters with God.  His daughter was bipolar and had to be hospitalized repeatedly for her own safely.  Yet, his stories about her were inspiring.  At what seemed last the last moment, the last nickle that he couldn't afford to pay, the last bill that came due, something happened.

In one story, the hospital lost the bill and never charged him and never brought it up.  That was after his time with God asking how he could afford yet another bill for his daughter.

Another story was his encounters with 3.  In the course of a day he woke up at 3:33am but thought nothing of it.  He then was at his daughter's house picking up clothes for her as she was to be released and he touched a rose that she was drying out upside down, and 3 petals fell.  He got to the hospital and looked down and saw 3 quarters (which he has kept to this day), and this was the day that again, when he went to Billing asking what this would cost, the hospital said they would cover all the costs and he shouldn't worry. 

A new couple came in then, and the first thing the woman did was go up to Marti and gave him a huge hug, saying, "I told you I'd be back" and presented her boyfriend to him (as if Marti were her father and she were presenting him to Marti for approval.)  Then he had to get back to the kitchen.

A bicycling couple, in their skin tight wind suits, and obligatory white water bottles, were coming in just as I was leaving.  They stopped and talked about the place and how they loved the recycling and conservation that Gracy and Marti did.  They just love the place.

I left, charged up, inspired, and fed, and not just with food.

It was a great start to a day.

Long Road to the Mountains.

Long Road to the Mountains
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Mountain tops are nice.  The air is different.  The view is spectacular.  The setting often beautiful.  It lends itself to a wider perspective, a longer vision.  They are necessary.  They are a spiritual reset that I need so often.  The only drawback to mountain top experiences is that at some point, I have to go back into the valley.  Rarefied air is great, but I can't breathe it forever.

So what happens when the mountain-top experiences become fewer and farther in between?  In this dynamic two years since I "woke" up, I have had moment after moment of these timeless periods of feeling reconnected, seeing the longer view, experiencing the wider perspective, the eternal peace.  They got so frequent that hardly a day went by that I did not have such a moment.  It was glorious.

Now, I am looking at why I have fewer such experiences.  To a mystic like myself, it is almost a painful sense of loss.  That immediate, intimate experience of God is what impassions and emboldens me.  The mountain-tops are where I wish to live.  So the quest for an answer began.

There were valley experiences.  More than usual.  

Not to go into detail, but when a crisis or a problem comes up that seems to restrict, to limit the physical possibilities of life, I felt pulled off the mountain.

It took almost fourteen years to come to a point where, for the most part, I could balance all the axis of my life.  I was conscious and actively participating in life.  Challenges would come up, and for a while there were no mountaintops.  Yet, this was a very short and temporary thing.  The problems were within the realm of my experience.  The tools I had to deal with them were at hand.  It was familiar territory.  Before I knew it, I was back experiencing those timeless moments of connectedness.  In fact, more so after the crises.

A brush with mortality.

These recent crises were new.  They involved another set of balances to be added to my life.  Too much one way, and now instead of getting to a place where I was physically uncomfortable and temporarily limited, these felt more serious, more life and death.  To put it simply, I re-experienced my own mortality.  I knew again what it was to look at the possibility of a limited time on earth.

Forgetting to look outward

With these new problems came the immediate reaction; I went back into survival mode.  Survival-mode is a funny thing.  In order to protect myself from what I perceived as outside problems, I curled back into myself.  All this really does is prevent me from looking toward those things that can make me feel less threatened; connections with other people, friendships, the support of a community.  The tighter I curled up, the less open I was to the very things that restored me before.

I even remember a time very similar, when the act of service to another (giving a stranger a 130-mile ride), broke me out of that time in the valley.  Yet, why did I not do the same thing this time.  Because I was curled up and watching my back instead of watching how I might serve others.

So, now that I knew the road-map I had, I could change direction.  I could choose a different outlook, and if I didn't end up in the mountains again, at least I would recognize them when they came again.

Turnabout - Heading in a new direction is sometimes painful


So what turned me about this time.  It was a moment of sheer physical pain.  Again, I won't go into details, but that moment of pain seemed to shock my system awake.  Things started moving again.  This wash of emotions cam over me.  Like a torrent, it blasted all this stagnant, survival-mode crash position perceptions away.  It was an emotional catharsis.  At one point, it was so powerful that once again I turned outward and fervently welcomed God, something larger than myself, to help me out.  Though I was alone, I felt once again connected.  As the tears stopped and the breathing resumed, I was again me.  The me who experiences mountains everyday.  

Since then, I have seen again the playful presence behind the laughing eyes of a dog.  The sheer moments of loving-kindness between friends, the giggling of children, the peace of the birds in flight.


I realize these things never left.  I just got caught in the self-sustaining cycle of survival and forgot and denied my life, or the living of it.

Yet, now I know there will always be the mountains, but that there will always be the valleys as well.  And I hope that this long journey back will remind me again to hope, to persevere in the valleys.

Willingness versus Will-fullness.
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"I know now how to do it.  I know where I made my mistakes.  This time it will be better!"

"God helps those who help themselves!"

"If all else fails, then I will give the God thing an try."

"I am a mighty warrior for God!  Look at all the things I have done!"

This is really a problem area for me.  It is.   I have two choices that seem, on the surface, to be contradictory.

I can be Willing.

You have all heard it.  Just wait upon the Lord.  Seek for those signs.  Wait for God.  Be available.  Be willing.

Yet, how?   I mean, do I just show up at church events, Sunday school,  and sit on the pews waiting for God to use me?  How about walking out into the center of town, and sit on a bench in the park and just wait for something to happen.  I know, let me go and sit in a chapel in a hospital and wait for God to instruct me on what to do.  I will need to reorganize my schedule.  Nothing should get in the way of my availability for God right!  I mean, I can put off that vacation and volunteer right?   I can't start anything because I don't know if it is God inspired or God's will.   I can't make a mistake.  What if it is just my will?

Lots of what ifs.  Lots of passivity.  Lots of fears of making the wrong move, so I wait until God moves first.

Yes, I know this is unrealistic.  It is taking willingness to a whole new level.

The assumption that Willingness begins from is that we need to be viilant, available, aware, and willing to do God's will when we see it in our lives.  As you can see, it can degrade into a passivity with life in general.  It becomes an excuse to not do things.  To not try.

Let's look at will-fullness taken to the same level.

I can be will-full.

"Just do it"

"Go for gold"

"God or Bust!"

There is a part of me who sees something that should be done and wants to do it.  Very little planning or rational thought goes into this.  Sometimes I just jump.   Later, when I am way over my head I ask the questions like "Wasn't this what God wished for me to do?  I mean I was helping people after all.   Sounds like it was God's will."

The underlying assumption in being willfull is that we are an active partner with God and therefore we don't have to wait for inspiration, but just begin to do something.  I have nothing against this assumption.  Sounds pretty good.  But just like "Willingness" described above, it can lead to a life based on action and not contemplation.  Asking how God fits in after plunging in.  Making sure that God is still in our corner, when the boxing gloves come off.

Now both being Willing and Willfull have their place.  In fact, this whole Christian journey wouldn't get very far without them.

Willingness allows us to see the needs in the world; and gives us the possibility that it may be us who may address these needs.   Otherwise, we are armchair Christians, mouthing the words about that needs to be done but doing nothing.

Will-fullness provides the power, the motivation, the drive to act on those perceived needs.   God did not create us with no will at all.  We have the power to make decisions, to take action.  We can do.

Yet, both of these are necessary to counterbalance the other.

Our willingness may be there to change our minds about the course we have started (we have willed).  Perhaps it is a path which is better for us and the world than the one we acted on.  We have to be open to this possibility.  We need to be willing to reevaluate.

We also need to be will-full to check the tendency to remain static, or even paralyzed in making a decision about what to do.  We need the motivation to act on new circumstances.  To change our path when necessary.

Our willingness introduces us to where we can be useful, and our will acts on it.  Both necessary.  Both harmful when taken to an extreme.

What a mystical experience feels like.

What a mystical experience feels like.

Let me first say that all people have mystical experiences.  No really.  They do.

A mystical experience is one in which you experience feelings, thoughts, sights, sounds that cannot be explained; or rather, are outside your realm of experience. 

Your first crush on someone was a mystical experience.  There were feelings that overwhelmed your heart.  Sensations that coursed through your body.  There was an overwhelming sense that you were plugged into something so much more powerful than you.  This is a mystical experience. 

For mothers and fathers, oftentimes the birth of their child is a wholly and singly powerful experience.  In a moment, their outlook, their feelings, their motivations, their thoughts, their entire contract with reality changes.  Some parents literally have a moment out of time.  Everything slows down; and what occurs is a suspended moment of bliss.   Indescribable joy.  Unlimited Love.  This is truly a mystical experience.

Though these experiences are not limited to those above.  You can have a mystical moment looking at a tree, reading a book, looking at a photo, listening to a song.  Remember the definition.  It is simply an experience that transports us to a place unknown and unexplainable.

So what is one of my mystical experiences?

I used to work at a summer camp.  It is a Lutheran camp that caught and held my heart and my service for my childhood, young-adult and college years.  Once I graduated, life took over and I did not go back, even for a retreat for 16 years.   Then I just decided one summer to volunteer for a week.  Here is where the mystical experience comes in.

This is the body of an email I wrote to a dear friend of mine after that experience. 
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"What can I even say about the 5 days I got to spend in among such wonderful and loving people in such a blessed place?

What I did was listen to people's stories...their moments with God; their contact with the seen and unseen; their love for each other; their service. With each interaction and each story, these people became the saints, the fellowship of all believers, the people of God. Truly, they were so filled with love and the richness of their experiences, that it was impossible not to fall in love with each and every one. The people there are the embodiment of what can happen when Love and Service become living things; part of the fabric and makeup of each one!

I slipped into that loving community, not as a stranger, nor outsider, but as a welcome friend. To the staff I was just another staff. To the campers, just another camper. To the pastors and sponsors, just another pastor.

I felt like no other time the physical presence of God. My being was attuned to another world. I could feel the emotions, the joys, the trials, the pains of other people there. I had empathy like never before. It was unbelievable.

And these people, these staff were of such quality, such richness that I was moved many a time to tears.

It was simply and life-changingly amazing!"

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I did forget to point out another characteristic of a mystical experience.   
After the experience, you feel more connected to something greater than yourself. 

If the mystical experience happens with people, you feel a greater sense of community.  The ties that were there are stronger, and new ties are forged.  If it is in solitude, the strands that tie nature, the world, your soul, your mind, your heart are strengthened.

With these characteristics in mind; remember the mystical experiences that you have had.

God is Patient and Kind....

 

Paraphrase/Modification of 1st Corinthians 13:4




" 4 God is patient, God is kind. God does not envy, God does not boast, God is not proud. 5 God does not dishonor others, God is not self-seeking, God is not easily angered, God keeps no record of wrongs. 6 God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 God always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."

What concept of God do we have?  What do we think about when we think of God?

I know that for myself, my concept of God came from the Old Testament stories.  God was a burning bush, a frightful and awe-inpiring Father of Heaven, The Great IAM, the Alpha and Omega.  Now I also realize that my picture of God was also of an old man with a long white beard who reigned on a golden throne surrounded by angels.

In this country, I would bet that that is fairly close to many people's vision or concept of God.  Yet, that model (The Great Father/Creator) has with it it's own limitations.

If our concept of God is based on a father figure, then the same limitations that are in our own family relationships are defacto in our relationship with God.  Even a perfect father figure we can only imagine to the point that we have felt a father who has given unconditional love, unconditional support.  All fathers, or parents in general, cannot live up to that ideal.  So when we have felt conditional love from a parent, it shapes that relationship with God (using that Father/Creator model).  Every dashed hope, conditional behavior, restriction or discipline we felt growing up is always in the back of our minds then when we relate to God.

For those people who did not have good parents, or parents at all, the problem becomes even more insideous.  God then becomes a punishing or withholding God because that is our experience with our earthly parents. 

At some point, this model of Father/Creator, must change or we will be unconsciously placing restrictions on God's love for us.

In the paraphrase and modification of 1st Corinthians above, I would argue that the vision of God, the model that we need to move into is one where God is Love.  Any passage from the Bible that mentions Love, we should be able to substitute "God".   By doing so, we are opening up God, or our vision of God, in order that we may see the unconditional character of God's affection and love for us.

Let me restate the passage again:

" 4 God is patient, God is kind. God does not envy, God does not boast, God is not proud. 5 God does not dishonor others, God is not self-seeking, God is not easily angered, God keeps no record of wrongs. 6 God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 God always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."

This God is now more than the great Father/Master/King.  Though all those things are still true.  The focus has shifted to the character of God and away from the Image of God.

God's character is now highlighted by the following traits:

Patience, Kindness, envy-less, boast-less, humble, honoring all others, seeking the best for others, not getting angry, not keeping tally of the wrongs nor sins.  God delights now with truth.  God protects.  God trusts.  God hopes, and God endures always.

Does this not also sound like the God from the Bible?  It is.   The focus has changed but God has not.  Our concept of God has changed but God has not.

What does this new conceptualization, new model of God affect us now?  One Answer!  "Unconditional Love".  That is what God is.  God loves period.  God doesn't love in spite of.  God doesn't love because we love him.  God Loves.  It is a fact.  There is no because.  There is no set of conditions.  When God said "I am that I am" God could have been saying "I love that I love" and it would mean the same!

God is love.
(John 3:16; Romans 5:8; 1 John 4:8)

-more later.

Self-Inspiration

Yes.  I know that all inspiration can be said to come from within and not from without.  However, when I talk about self-inspiring thoughts, I am refferring to those things within yourself that you tap into, in order to reach an inspired state.

Several blogs I have done have had to do with being inspired by people, places, nature, etc.  A wonderful sunset, or the ducks playing in the water, a baby laughing and others have the ability to inspire.  True.  Oft times I do not have immediate access to these things.  Sometimes in the lazy boy or laying down in bed I still want to be inspired.   This is when I participate in self-inspiration.

It starts with the desire to be inspired.  Sometimes I don't have that desire.  Let's face it.  And that's OK.  But when I do want new ideas, new vistas, new revelations, new motivations then that is a different story.  Then it begins with a change of thought.

The easiest way to explain changing my thoughts is that I build a thought-vision.  A daydream. 
I create a movie script or short story in my mind.  I place myself in a vision in which I am inspiring others or they are inspiring me.  This can also include visions where I love and am loved by others. 

There are a couple of rules to building this daydream though.  No Negative Thoughts!  No Bad Outcomes!  No Self-Criticism.   Which means, this is a true daydream.  I do not need to justify its contents, or explain it to yourself in any way.  Any never do I say, "Even though this will never happen....." or "This is impossible but....."
The purpose of the daydream is to re-inspire me.  It is to infuse my life with the feeling of being spirit-filled.

For example:

I come back and back to a vision of myself volunteering at a woman's shelter.  I am sitting taking notes, taking and intake, and I hear a joke being told by one of the children.  Suddenly this gurgling laughter wells up inside of me, overflowing in loud guffaws.  I cannot help myself from laughing.  At first there is a silence with the rest of the people there; but from second to second I see the corners of the children's mouths turn up.  A few begin to laugh quietly; and upon seeing that I literally cannot stop myself from laughing, they begin to relax into true laughter.  The mothers and some of the staff start laughing too.  A wave of good-natured humor spreads throughout the room.   I see the sparkles in the children's eyes and the deep relaxed sighs of the women.

It sounds too simple to be somethings that inspires me; but while I was writing the above, I felt so full of inspiration that tears started flowing.  No kidding.  That daydream of bringing joy to them never fails to inspire me that that is my life's purpose.  Helping others.

Another daydream is of me in front of High School and College students, giving a motivational speech.  In it I am talking about the worthiness and value of each and every life.  We talk about the skills and talents each has, and how they are affected and changed when they get to share these with others.  The students give their own stories and I watch as one story from one student inspires another.  The feeling of closeness and understanding among them build and when they relate the very emotional and pain filled moments of their lives, the others reach out and hug and hold, touch and affirm them.   I feel the compassion and empathy from them all.  They quickly go from being strangers to something more. 

Again, it sounds quite simple; and in both cases somewhat ego-centric on my part; but, it has impact.  It inspires me.  The dreams of affecting and being affected in the process of teaching, preaching, praying, laughing, playing and working with people has always inspired. 

The best part about participating in these daydreams is that I can do it at any time.  When I need a motivational boost to when I feel depressed.  The funny thing is though; by going through these daydreams, when I am around nature, the sky, the earth, people, communities, families, friends I find it easier to be inspired by them.  It is as if the inner inspiration primes the pump to experience it outside myself.

Plus, I just like to daydream.

Love at a Distance

Love At a Distance

I've written about the effect that love has on people.  Quite a bit in fact.  However, there are times that you never need to come into contact with someone to affect their lives, and they yours.  Let's call this "Love at a Distance."
 
We affect everything by our thoughts.  Whether we know it or not.  It is not so much of a stretch to think that we can also affect people though our thoughts of love about them and to them, without even talking.

Norman Vincent Peale had the right idea when he spoke of the many instances where changes were made in another person's actions by thinking positive thoughts toward that person.  Even though no talking took place, a change happened.

In one of his illustrations, he talked about encountering another driver, while out on the highway.  Norman was going somewhere unfamiliar, with trust map in hand and entered the freeway.  This other driver cut him off, slowed down when Norman needed to speed up, switched lanes when he wanted to exit.  Norman was not blameless.  The more aggressive the other drive got, the more he did too.  Then he was cut off, he started cursing the other guy under his breath.  When he wanted to enter a lane and was blocked he rammed down on his horn.  It just escalated from there.  Finally, Norman realized that he was getting no where with this one-upsmanship on the road.  He slowed down and started talking, in his car, to the other driver.  Calmly he told the other driver to take the lead.  That he was sorry for all the bad things he thought about him on the freeway.  That he should have a good day, and be safe on the road.  In fact, Norman went so far as to wish him in his heart a great and joyful day.

Well, they both happened to turn off on the same road, and Norman stopped to look at his map.  The man in the other car pulled over too, and asked him if he could give him any directions or help him in any way.  The change in the behavior of that man  Norman attributed to the change in his attitude toward him.

Now we are talking about Love at a Distance and not a good attitude at a distance, but it works much the same way.  Our thoughts of unconditional positive regard (the psychological definition of love) radiates out from us in ways that are not limited to talk, touch, feel.  In fact, I would go so far as to say there are no limits to how this attitude expands and touches all around us.

Have you ever started thinking about someone you wished would contact you, and then you get a card in the mail from them.  Or how about when you think that you really need to apologize to a good friend, and you battle with yourself over calling, but then they call you. 

But let's talk about love now.  What if you have burned bridges with someone.  They won't accept your calls.  They don't send you mail.  What then?  How can you ask for forgiveness and rebuild that bridge when communication just isn't there?

If we believe that love, unconditional positive regard, can be shared with another, even if that other person is out of sight, out of touch, even out of the country, then there are active things we can do to Love at a Distance.

Change our inner conversations about that person

Our present attitudes are habits, built from the feedback of parents, friends, society and self, that form our self-image and our world-image.  These attitudes are maintained by the inner conversations we constantly have with ourselves, both consciously and subconsciously.  Our attitudes about others are also build from these inner conversations.  So change the conversation.  Instead of thinking how the other person won't contact you because they are stubborn, a jerk, etc, replace it with an inner conversation with that person that focuses on the wonderful characteristics they have, the ones that may have made them friends in the first place.  

Actually have the conversation.  Talk to them like you would if they were in the same room with you.
Don't let blame and guilt, finger-pointing come into your conversation with their virtual selves.  Only focus on what you would like to see accomplished if you saw each other.  How your friendship means so much, and all the shared great memories.  Apologize to them for any thing you have done wrong.  Tell them that their greatest happiness is your greatest goal.  





Continue the conversation as the days go on.  Visualize that all wrongs are forgiven, and you are back in the friendship. 







If it is a relative stranger, the same applies.  Have the virtual conversation.  Talk to them about the same things.  Wish them happiness.  Wish them peace.  Surround them with your visions of them being happy.  Of them getting along with you.  Put yourself into the picture in your mind.


Whatever the greatest thing you wish for yourself, wish more for them.

Again, without ever needing to speak or see the other person, visualize them receiving all the things that you wish for yourself.  Success, friends, peace of mind, humor, laughter, love.  Include them in your daydreams of you receiving these things.  Imagine all the ways that, if you saw them again, you could participate in providing these things to them.


Pray


Whether in prayer or meditation or simple quiet time, include these people in your thoughts.  Visualize them surrounded by unconditional love  See them in your mind's eye as receiving that unconditional love; of having that seep into every cell; of the perfect situations, people, plans that would assure them of that love.  Pray for the ability for them to see all the times, the opportunities to experience that grace.

When the time comes to speak to them, don't miss it!
Very often, a time will come when you will have a chance to speak with them.  Be ready.  By this time, your inner conversations, desires and prayers have prepared not only them but you for a conversation full of positive regard, healing and love.  Even if it is only a few words, let them come from your heart.  You never know, but that it may spawn more such opportunities.  It may be the start of reconciliation.