We toss out the word "forgiving" as if it's easy to do or necessary if we want to be "good" about the whole thing. But it doesn't quite work that way. Forgiving as some very insightful person said once, is "for giving up." That means whatever happened is no longer attached to us any more than a movie is when we leave the theater.
A guest on Oprah said it best, "Feelings are time travelers." When we can't put a hurtful incident to rest it follows us, it shapes us, and it pains us. Unfortunately, we even take it with us into another lifetime.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Sunday, January 13, 2008
True or False?
"I have no money, no resources, no hopes. I am the happiest man alive." Henry Miller, a controversial author and painter, December 26, 1891 – June 7, 1980.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
A Perfect New Year's Wish
Today is January 3, 2008, the beginning of a new year. This thought from Alan Watts is a perfect idea for every parent on earth. If put into practice, it would change the world.
He said, "The Book I would pass to my children would contain no sermons, no shoulds and oughts. Genuine love comes from knowledge, not from a sense of duty or guilt."
Author and philosopher - Alan Watts 1915 - 1973
He said, "The Book I would pass to my children would contain no sermons, no shoulds and oughts. Genuine love comes from knowledge, not from a sense of duty or guilt."
Author and philosopher - Alan Watts 1915 - 1973
Monday, December 24, 2007
Christmas Magic
Today is Monday December 24, 2007. And although my posts on this blog cover inspirational thoughts over many years, a touching story happened yesterday that is worthy of sharing.
I arrived early at Sunday’s service so I could sit on the front row a mere foot from a towering and beautifully decorated Christmas tree. There are only five seats on this row but when I arrived, two were already taken—the isle seat and the second seat next to it.
Excusing myself as I passed the two men sitting there, the young man in the second seat gestured with a slight hand movement for me to take the empty third seat. Since sitting under this massive and magic Christmas tree is personal, I nodded with a thank you opting to sit in the forth seat leaving an empty seat on both sides.
His brief gesture allowed me to observe a twenty-something angelic face that quite honestly resembled what Jesus may have looked like at his age although his clothes betrayed his personal presence. They resembling those of a homeless person more so than a spiritual power, a thought I quickly dismissed. It’s wrong to “judge a book by it’s cover.”
The first row is also first to receive the collection plate. But when the young man passed the velvet-covered collection basket to me, I couldn’t help but notice his angelic smile and the quarter he had carefully placed there. His gratitude was over-flowing and obvious, far greater than mine. It was a Christmas lesson leaving me to wonder who was he really?
I arrived early at Sunday’s service so I could sit on the front row a mere foot from a towering and beautifully decorated Christmas tree. There are only five seats on this row but when I arrived, two were already taken—the isle seat and the second seat next to it.
Excusing myself as I passed the two men sitting there, the young man in the second seat gestured with a slight hand movement for me to take the empty third seat. Since sitting under this massive and magic Christmas tree is personal, I nodded with a thank you opting to sit in the forth seat leaving an empty seat on both sides.
His brief gesture allowed me to observe a twenty-something angelic face that quite honestly resembled what Jesus may have looked like at his age although his clothes betrayed his personal presence. They resembling those of a homeless person more so than a spiritual power, a thought I quickly dismissed. It’s wrong to “judge a book by it’s cover.”
The first row is also first to receive the collection plate. But when the young man passed the velvet-covered collection basket to me, I couldn’t help but notice his angelic smile and the quarter he had carefully placed there. His gratitude was over-flowing and obvious, far greater than mine. It was a Christmas lesson leaving me to wonder who was he really?
Friday, December 7, 2007
Evil and Death
Just as fame, power, money, monarchy, gender, age and race are unknown to God, so is evil. When cruel, corrupt, and evil people die their secondary energy, which had accumulated around them to influence their evil acts, is sucked back into the vortex.
This adds to the repository of every disgusting, violent act and thought since the beginning of time. It is the same destructive force that temporarily comes alive in us, from somewhat benign picky self-talk to violent, demonic manifestations borrowing its, so called, power from the Law of God.
This adds to the repository of every disgusting, violent act and thought since the beginning of time. It is the same destructive force that temporarily comes alive in us, from somewhat benign picky self-talk to violent, demonic manifestations borrowing its, so called, power from the Law of God.
Saturday, November 24, 2007
My 16,777,216 Grandparents
Pomp can easily become a smug happening when based on miniscule facts. Take ancestors for instance. Lots of people get very pomp about theirs. I wonder if they ever thought about how many direct descendants are bouncing around in their DNA? We all have two parents, which give us four sets of grandparents and eight sets of great grandparents. The math is simple and if everyone will agree that each generation is usually calculated in 20-year increments, then there are five generations in 100 years. Now if that’s so, I have 1,048,576 direct linage grandparents who were getting smitten around 1608. Drop another 100 years and I have 16,777,216 grandparents who were roaming around in 1508 when the world’s population is estimated to have been only 800 million—that’s 2 percent of the population!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
