Message of 1-27-10
Published: Sun, 01/24/10
- resources for prayer and spiritual growth
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MESSAGE OF THE DAY
Loving a holy God is beyond our moral power. The only kind of God
we can love by our sinful nature is an unholy god, an idol made by
our own hands. Unless we are born of the Spirit of God, unless God
sheds His holy love in our hearts, unless He stoops in His grace to
change our hearts, we will not love Him... To love a holy God
requires grace, grace strong enough to pierce our hardened hearts
and awaken our moribound souls.
- R. C. Sproul
(We love God with God's own loving -- God's Holy Spirit. Pray that
you may know this love today.)
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SCRIPTURE READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
2 Sm 7:4-17; Ps. 89:4-5, 27-28, 29-30; Mk 4:1-20
R. (29a) For ever I will maintain my love for my servant.
"I have made a covenant with my chosen one;
I have sworn to David my servant:
I will make your dynasty stand forever
and establish your throne through all ages."
"He shall cry to me, 'You are my father,
my God, the Rock that brings me victory!'
I myself make him firstborn,
Most High over the kings of the earth."
"Forever I will maintain my love for him;
my covenant with him stands firm.
I will establish his dynasty forever,
his throne as the days of the heavens."
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SCRIPTURE MEDITATION
From "Daily Bread"
http://www.preacherexchange.com/daily_bread.htm
"And these are the ones sown on rocky ground who, when they hear
the word, receive it at once with joy. But they have no root; they
last only for a time."
It's easy at this time of year to enter the doldrums of our faith
life. The excitement of Advent and the Christmas season has passed,
and the discipline of Lent still seems far off. At seemingly high
points in the liturgical year we have a tendency to regard our
faith life like a new and exciting romance; however, often a
relationship that starts like a whirlwind cools to a comfortable
complacency that we take for granted. Jesus encourages us to keep
the joy of our faith alive. We cannot leave it untended and expect
it to grow. We must recognize every time of year, even so-called
Ordinary Time, as the perfect season for God's word to take root
within us.
"Lord, find within us rich soil to sow your word, we pray."
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AT THE MASTER'S FEET
- by Sadhu Sundar Singh
5. Sometimes during sickness the faculty of taste in the tongue is
interfered with, and during that time, however tasty the food given
to the sick person may be, it has an ill taste to him. In just the
same way sin interferes with the taste for spiritual things. Under
such circumstances My Word and service and My presence lost their
attraction to the sinner, and instead of profiting by them he
begins to argue about and to criticize them.
- Chapter 1
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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
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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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