Message of 11-11-09
Published: Thu, 11/05/09
- resources for prayer and spiritual growth
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MESSAGE OF THE DAY
He who searches for Divine Reality with all his heart and soul and
finds it, becomes aware that, before he began to seek God, God was
seeking him, in order to draw him into the joy of fellowship with
Him, into the peace of His Presence; even as a child who has
strayed, when he is safely back in his mother's arms, realises that
she had been searching for him, with deep maternal love, before he
had begun to think about her.
- Sadhu Sundar Singh
(God is seeking you! How does that feel? What do you say to God
about that?)
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SCRIPTURE READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
Wis 6:1-11; Ps 82:3-4, 6-7; Lk 17:11-19
R. (8a) Rise up, O God, bring judgment to the earth.
Defend the lowly and the fatherless;
render justice to the afflicted and the destitute.
Rescue the lowly and the poor;
from the hand of the wicked deliver them.
I said: "You are gods,
all of you sons of the Most High;
yet like men you shall die,
and fall like any prince."
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SCRIPTURE MEDITATION
From "Daily Bread"
- http://www.preacherexchange.com/daily_bread.htm
"Judgment is stern for the exalted."
Most of us would say, "I'm OK then. I'm not in a position of
power." Wrong. Nearly all of us, at some time, have the power to
help someone stay on the Lord's path. The effectiveness of our
witness to the truth is greatly helped by a humble and empathetic
manner. We are in this life to learn how to love God and one
another, and God's judgment of our lives will be based on this.
Holy wisdom is God's gift, to be shared by all. None of us owns it
or has the right to lord it over our fellow travelers on the Way.
"Lord, when I assist one who is seeking to know your truth, help me
always to treat the seeker as I would wish to be treated."
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WHAT IS CHRISTIAN LOVE?
by Philip St. Romain©
Adapted from "Freedom from Codependency: A Christian Response"
http://shalomplace.com/view/codep.html
- - Dysfunctional Beliefs About Love -
part 5 of 5
- "Do not be angry."
Codependents interpret this teaching of Christ to mean feeling
angry is wrong, bad, and sinful. Codependents are angry and
resentful on the inside. Since they believe it is bad to be angry,
they repress these feelings and try hard to be nice. This facade
of niceness keeps codependents out of touch with their anger.
Anger is a feeling, and feelings are neither bad nor good. It is
what we do with our feelings that is bad or good. Jesus is talking
about harboring resentment and vindictiveness. These are choices
about how to deal with anger -- bad choices!
- "We should not expect happiness in this life."
I have heard this said in therapy groups by codependents who had
resigned themselves to being trapped for the rest of their earthly
days in an unhealthy relationship. The truth is that we can begin
to experience something of heaven even in this life. Distorted
beliefs such as this are really about being a victim and martyr.
- "To forgive means to forget."
While you may never forget what has happened, you can let go of
resentment, a kind of emotional forgetting. Codependents
mistakenly believe that when you forgive, you even forget what has
happened. This is a distortion of the meaning of this value.
All these beliefs described during the previous lessons give a
distorted picture of the meaning of Christian love. Each of them
contains a kernel of truth, but taken out of context, they lose
their force. When taught by codependents who are active in
ministry, they become one of the means by which the Church
contributes to the spread of codependency.
(Part 6 of 12 part series)
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REVIEW OF DAY
- from, "Handbook for Spiritual Directees"
http://shalomplace.com/view/hndbk-lite.pdf
Here is a practice used by many at the end of the day to see what
lessons can be learned and how God was present and active through
the day. Set aside fifteen to twenty minutes at the end of the
day for prayer and review of your day. A suggested format is
described below:.
1. Take a few moments of quiet. Breathe deeply. Ask God to help you
see yourself as you truly were during the day.
2. Look back over your day - not to see what you did wrong but to
honestly acknowledge what was going on with you and others.
* What happened? What did I do today?
* How did I feel? Why did I feel that way?
* Were my expectations and beliefs reasonable?
3. Affirm the healthy things you recognize.
4. Admit to yourself and God the unhealthy things. Ask God's
forgiveness, believe it is yours, then decide if you need to
apologize or make amends.
5. Use creative visualization to grow stronger. Honestly
acknowledge the troubling situations of the day. See and feel
yourself acting honestly and lovingly in these situations. Ask God
for the grace to help you act in this new way.
6. Close with simple awareness of the sights and sounds around you,
grateful for the good things in your life.
This process can be undertaken as a daily journal exercise or by
prayerfully reviewing your day in your own mind. I like to take a
walk before bedtime for examen. The important thing is to do it. It
is a discipline, to be sure, but a very important one.
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Amazon.com gift cards - good for any occasion
- http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00067L6TQ/?tag=christianspiritu
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SHALOM PLACE PREMIUM GROUPS
- Life-long learning and formation in Christian spirituality.
Groups now open include the following:
A. Psychological Types and Spirituality
B. The Way of Christian Spirituality
C. Freedom from Codependency
D. Christian Spirituality Resources
E. Wonderfully Made (Christian Metaphysics)
F. Growing in Christ
G. Spiral Dynamics®
H. Discerning God's Will
I. Dark Night of the Soul
J. Silence, Solitude and Sabbath
K. Alpha Group -- includes all the above and all to come.
- see http://shalomplace.org/groups.html
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