"Whenever God gives a person the grace and courage to strive for this blessing with all her heart and soul, he is bestowing the greatest mercy. God does not deny himself to anyone who perseveres. Little by little, he increases her courage, ensuring that she will reach her goal." Teresa of Avila, The Book of My Life (1562)
Here is my "little by little" Friday prayer report for the week of July 26-30:
Monday 0
Tuesday 0
Wednesday 0
Thursday 1
Friday 1
Grace and courage to you and to me!
Friday, July 30, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Carry Love With Us
“I’d like to conclude by saying this: whenever we think of Christ, we should think of his love. It is with love that he has bestowed so many gifts on us. It is with love that God has given us such a sign and promise of his great love. Even if we are just beginning on the path and are still very wretched, let us strive to carry this divine love with us wherever we go and to increasingly awaken ourselves in love.” Teresa of Avila, The Book of My Life (1562)
On Monday morning my friend Rachel Moseley had surgery for breast cancer. She is doing well, but it’s a hard situation for everyone concerned. Ever since I learned about Rachel’s surgery, I’ve been thinking about the way that Jesus healed—sometimes even unconsciously—people who came into his presence, and I’ve been wanting to have some of that healing power to share with others in my life.
Although Jesus healed people instantly, nobody in my life has been able to do that. However, I have been in the presence of people who carried love inside them, as Teresa says, and it has made a remarkable difference in the lives of people they know. For example, my grandmother Gradys Stokke Anseth, daughter of Norwegian pioneers, was born 101 years ago today in northwestern North Dakota. Gladys possessed great love and knew how to bring its healing comfort to all around her, especially when they found themselves groaning under the weight of illness or injury.
My mother has Gladys’s gift of being able to make people feel loved—generously loved from the top of the head to the tips of the toes—no matter what their circumstances, and Teresa would be glad to see that healing power continue through the generations. I just got back from spending time with my mother, and I’m praying her great love will continue to be poured into me until I, too, am filled to overflowing. It's going to take some time...My mother makes loving others look easy, but I think it can be very, very hard work.
Teresa would applaud my mother’s effort that looks so effortless—the joy of love and all its healing power—and so I’m using Teresa’s words to encourage myself and others interested in this holy work: “Let us strive to carry this divine love with us wherever we go and to increasingly awaken ourselves in love.”
My prayer today is a simple one: May we learn to carry love to each other much like my dear grandmother learned to carry water from North Dakota wells to the homestead all those many years ago, and may the holy work we do and its healing power always be for the love and glory of God.
On Monday morning my friend Rachel Moseley had surgery for breast cancer. She is doing well, but it’s a hard situation for everyone concerned. Ever since I learned about Rachel’s surgery, I’ve been thinking about the way that Jesus healed—sometimes even unconsciously—people who came into his presence, and I’ve been wanting to have some of that healing power to share with others in my life.
Although Jesus healed people instantly, nobody in my life has been able to do that. However, I have been in the presence of people who carried love inside them, as Teresa says, and it has made a remarkable difference in the lives of people they know. For example, my grandmother Gradys Stokke Anseth, daughter of Norwegian pioneers, was born 101 years ago today in northwestern North Dakota. Gladys possessed great love and knew how to bring its healing comfort to all around her, especially when they found themselves groaning under the weight of illness or injury.
My mother has Gladys’s gift of being able to make people feel loved—generously loved from the top of the head to the tips of the toes—no matter what their circumstances, and Teresa would be glad to see that healing power continue through the generations. I just got back from spending time with my mother, and I’m praying her great love will continue to be poured into me until I, too, am filled to overflowing. It's going to take some time...My mother makes loving others look easy, but I think it can be very, very hard work.
Teresa would applaud my mother’s effort that looks so effortless—the joy of love and all its healing power—and so I’m using Teresa’s words to encourage myself and others interested in this holy work: “Let us strive to carry this divine love with us wherever we go and to increasingly awaken ourselves in love.”
My prayer today is a simple one: May we learn to carry love to each other much like my dear grandmother learned to carry water from North Dakota wells to the homestead all those many years ago, and may the holy work we do and its healing power always be for the love and glory of God.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Friday Prayer Report 21
"Whenever God gives a person the grace and courage to strive for this blessing with all her heart and soul, he is bestowing the greatest mercy. God does not deny himself to anyone who perseveres. Little by little, he increases her courage, ensuring that she will reach her goal." Teresa of Avila, The Book of My Life (1562)
Here is my "little by little" Friday prayer report for the week of July 19-23:
Monday 1
Tuesday 0
Wednesday 1
Thursday 1
Friday 1
Grace and courage to you and to me!
Here is my "little by little" Friday prayer report for the week of July 19-23:
Monday 1
Tuesday 0
Wednesday 1
Thursday 1
Friday 1
Grace and courage to you and to me!
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Simply Live
"As we advance on the path, we will not have to strive so hard to remember that all things are impermanent, that everything is nothing, and that any refuge we find here on earth is not real refuge at all. Eventually we will discover that sometimes we need to forget these things and simply live.” Teresa of Avila, The Book of My Life (1562)
I had a wonderful “simply live” moment this week that could become a prayer for many of us if we would consciously give ourselves a little time to stop striving and start enjoying the small pleasures we find in everyday life.
It’s summertime in Minnesota which means many days of blue skies and bright sunshine along with leafy green trees in the woods and warm(er) water in the lakes. July also means it’s berry time, so last weekend Brad and I went raspberry picking at a farm just outside of Duluth. An hour’s worth of raspberry picking was eaten up before Brad went back to work on Monday, and those berries definitely were a significant part of our long and lovely weekend.
Then on Tuesday night of this week Brad and I had dinner with a group of friends not too far from Big Fork, Minnesota, at an old lodge tucked away in the woods. The lodge had views of water on two of its four sides—I loved the view—and we ate dinner inside an old screened porch which has for more than fifty years provided many memorable summer nights like the one we were experiencing. The dinner was carefully prepared—asparagus wrapped in bacon, walleye, fresh bread with flecks of wild rice—and served with love by the host’s grandchildren. However, the most special part of the dinner was the dessert—five fresh blueberry pies the host had made the night before.
It’s been a long time since I enjoyed blueberry pie with a generous scoop of ice cream, and I loved every bite. “Simply live” is what Teresa would have said if she had been with us on the porch. Sometimes life gets reduced to small bites of fresh pie made by a man who spent his summers picking blueberries near the woods. As he talked about being young and picking berries, as he talked about baking pies and getting them all just right, as I listened and ate and then ate some more, I found myself making a memory that will live inside me for a long, long time.
The wise ones have much to teach us: All things are impermanent, everything ends up being nothing in the end, and any refuge we find is not lasting. But still, it’s helpful to remember that although life is full of uncertainty and doubt, there are those golden moments when we can rest at night telling stories and laughing with friends and family, enjoying a multitude of plump blueberries baked inside a most delicious blueberry pie.
How good it is to simply live!
I had a wonderful “simply live” moment this week that could become a prayer for many of us if we would consciously give ourselves a little time to stop striving and start enjoying the small pleasures we find in everyday life.
It’s summertime in Minnesota which means many days of blue skies and bright sunshine along with leafy green trees in the woods and warm(er) water in the lakes. July also means it’s berry time, so last weekend Brad and I went raspberry picking at a farm just outside of Duluth. An hour’s worth of raspberry picking was eaten up before Brad went back to work on Monday, and those berries definitely were a significant part of our long and lovely weekend.
Then on Tuesday night of this week Brad and I had dinner with a group of friends not too far from Big Fork, Minnesota, at an old lodge tucked away in the woods. The lodge had views of water on two of its four sides—I loved the view—and we ate dinner inside an old screened porch which has for more than fifty years provided many memorable summer nights like the one we were experiencing. The dinner was carefully prepared—asparagus wrapped in bacon, walleye, fresh bread with flecks of wild rice—and served with love by the host’s grandchildren. However, the most special part of the dinner was the dessert—five fresh blueberry pies the host had made the night before.
It’s been a long time since I enjoyed blueberry pie with a generous scoop of ice cream, and I loved every bite. “Simply live” is what Teresa would have said if she had been with us on the porch. Sometimes life gets reduced to small bites of fresh pie made by a man who spent his summers picking blueberries near the woods. As he talked about being young and picking berries, as he talked about baking pies and getting them all just right, as I listened and ate and then ate some more, I found myself making a memory that will live inside me for a long, long time.
The wise ones have much to teach us: All things are impermanent, everything ends up being nothing in the end, and any refuge we find is not lasting. But still, it’s helpful to remember that although life is full of uncertainty and doubt, there are those golden moments when we can rest at night telling stories and laughing with friends and family, enjoying a multitude of plump blueberries baked inside a most delicious blueberry pie.
How good it is to simply live!
Friday, July 16, 2010
Friday Prayer Report 20
"Whenever God gives a person the grace and courage to strive for this blessing with all her heart and soul, he is bestowing the greatest mercy. God does not deny himself to anyone who perseveres. Little by little, he increases her courage, ensuring that she will reach her goal." Teresa of Avila, The Book of My Life (1562)
Here is my "little by little" Friday prayer report for the week of July 12-16:
Monday 0
Tuesday 1
Wednesday 1
Thursday 1
Friday 0
Grace and courage to you and to me!
Here is my "little by little" Friday prayer report for the week of July 12-16:
Monday 0
Tuesday 1
Wednesday 1
Thursday 1
Friday 0
Grace and courage to you and to me!
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Fame and Blame
“Do you know what I think our greatest concern should be? Becoming detached from our lives and relinquishing our self-importance. All we need to do is tell the truth and hold it up for the greater glory of God. Fame and blame should be equally meaningless to us. In fact, those who risk everything for God will find that they have both lost it all and gained it all. I’m not claiming to have achieved this kind of equanimity myself, but I’m working on it.” Teresa of Avila, The Book of My Life (1562)
When I read Teresa’s words, I have a feeling she’d have lots to say about the “fame and blame” lifestyle of the 21st century. Most of it would likely be a repeat of what she counseled her Spanish friends in 1562. Teresa encourages us to detach from ourselves and work for the Holy One. She writes, “All we need to do is tell the truth and hold it up for the greater glory of God. Fame and blame should be equally meaningless to us.”
How different this attitude is from the way many people think today. In 1968, American artist and pop culture guru Andy Warhol was quoted as saying: “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” What he predicted has certainly come close to being true, and through the years people have become more consumed with fame and blame than ever.
With the world’s increasing emphasis on Google searches, reality shows, and YouTube videos, many people—even people of faith—find themselves striving harder for their 15 minutes of fame than they do to make God’s kingdom come. It is easy to succumb to this way of thinking because we are surrounded by it. How can we maintain wisdom in the face of all this emphasis on self? We can follow Teresa’s advice to work on becoming detached and relinquishing our self-importance all the while knowing that Teresa herself found these skills to be difficult to accomplish.
As Teresa says, equanimity is lifetime work…May we begin today and support each other in the effort.
When I read Teresa’s words, I have a feeling she’d have lots to say about the “fame and blame” lifestyle of the 21st century. Most of it would likely be a repeat of what she counseled her Spanish friends in 1562. Teresa encourages us to detach from ourselves and work for the Holy One. She writes, “All we need to do is tell the truth and hold it up for the greater glory of God. Fame and blame should be equally meaningless to us.”
How different this attitude is from the way many people think today. In 1968, American artist and pop culture guru Andy Warhol was quoted as saying: “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” What he predicted has certainly come close to being true, and through the years people have become more consumed with fame and blame than ever.
With the world’s increasing emphasis on Google searches, reality shows, and YouTube videos, many people—even people of faith—find themselves striving harder for their 15 minutes of fame than they do to make God’s kingdom come. It is easy to succumb to this way of thinking because we are surrounded by it. How can we maintain wisdom in the face of all this emphasis on self? We can follow Teresa’s advice to work on becoming detached and relinquishing our self-importance all the while knowing that Teresa herself found these skills to be difficult to accomplish.
As Teresa says, equanimity is lifetime work…May we begin today and support each other in the effort.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Friday Prayer Report 19
"Whenever God gives a person the grace and courage to strive for this blessing with all her heart and soul, he is bestowing the greatest mercy. God does not deny himself to anyone who perseveres. Little by little, he increases her courage, ensuring that she will reach her goal." Teresa of Avila, The Book of My Life (1562)
Here is my "little by little" Friday prayer report for the week of July 5-9:
Monday 0
Tuesday 1
Wednesday 1
Thursday 1
Friday 1
Grace and courage to you and to me!
Here is my "little by little" Friday prayer report for the week of July 5-9:
Monday 0
Tuesday 1
Wednesday 1
Thursday 1
Friday 1
Grace and courage to you and to me!
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Connection and Companionship, Part 2
"This is why I would advise anyone who practices prayer, at least in the beginning, to cultivate connection and companionship with like-minded souls. This is very important, because we can help each other make progress on the path of prayer and bring each other greater benefits." Teresa of Avila, The Book of My Life (1562)
This is the nineteenth week of The Wisdom Project, and it’s a good time to reflect on what I’m doing and why. Teresa says connection and companionship are helpful to people as they are practicing prayer, and I was hoping that through my writing I would be able to build a community of wisdom seekers. A gift came to me in the mail last week, a visible sign that this hope is being fulfilled, and it gave me great happiness.
The gift came in the form of a package from my best friend, Charlotte Konrad, who lives in Winnipeg. Inside was a lovely, handmade card made by Charlotte with an encouraging message: “…I have been journeying with you, reading and leaning on your blog, and exploring this mystery of ‘wisdom’ a bit myself. Of course when you explore, you write. When I work through something I have to letter it. So here is a copy of one of my proceedings. I read through the wisdom literature including Sirach etc. which I have never done. Of course I read it out of my copy of the St. John’s Bible which was inspiring on many levels.”
After reading the card, I admired the artwork she sent me, a quotation from the Wisdom of Solomon:
Wisdom
hastens to make
herself known
by those who
desire her and she
graciously appears
to them in their
paths
“Deep calls to deep” it says in one of the psalms, and Charlotte’s calligraphy brings the psalms to mind. The Wisdom Project won’t be completed until March, and I have a long way to go before then. Charlotte’s gift with its lettered beauty and depth of meaning will help me in the many days to come.
Teresa’s words and Charlotte’s gift have caused me to reflect on the blessing of companionship. How fortunate I am to have like-minded friends to travel with me on the wisdom journey! May we find ourselves mutually enriched by our time together, and praise the Holy One for the love and inspiration we share.
This is the nineteenth week of The Wisdom Project, and it’s a good time to reflect on what I’m doing and why. Teresa says connection and companionship are helpful to people as they are practicing prayer, and I was hoping that through my writing I would be able to build a community of wisdom seekers. A gift came to me in the mail last week, a visible sign that this hope is being fulfilled, and it gave me great happiness.
The gift came in the form of a package from my best friend, Charlotte Konrad, who lives in Winnipeg. Inside was a lovely, handmade card made by Charlotte with an encouraging message: “…I have been journeying with you, reading and leaning on your blog, and exploring this mystery of ‘wisdom’ a bit myself. Of course when you explore, you write. When I work through something I have to letter it. So here is a copy of one of my proceedings. I read through the wisdom literature including Sirach etc. which I have never done. Of course I read it out of my copy of the St. John’s Bible which was inspiring on many levels.”
After reading the card, I admired the artwork she sent me, a quotation from the Wisdom of Solomon:
Wisdom
hastens to make
herself known
by those who
desire her and she
graciously appears
to them in their
paths
“Deep calls to deep” it says in one of the psalms, and Charlotte’s calligraphy brings the psalms to mind. The Wisdom Project won’t be completed until March, and I have a long way to go before then. Charlotte’s gift with its lettered beauty and depth of meaning will help me in the many days to come.
Teresa’s words and Charlotte’s gift have caused me to reflect on the blessing of companionship. How fortunate I am to have like-minded friends to travel with me on the wisdom journey! May we find ourselves mutually enriched by our time together, and praise the Holy One for the love and inspiration we share.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Friday Prayer Report 18
"Whenever God gives a person the grace and courage to strive for this blessing with all her heart and soul, he is bestowing the greatest mercy. God does not deny himself to anyone who perseveres. Little by little, he increases her courage, ensuring that she will reach her goal." Teresa of Avila, The Book of My Life (1562)
Here is my "little by little" Friday prayer report for the week of June 28-July 2:
Monday 0
Tuesday 0
Wednesday 0
Thursday 1
Friday 1
Grace and courage to you and to me!
Here is my "little by little" Friday prayer report for the week of June 28-July 2:
Monday 0
Tuesday 0
Wednesday 0
Thursday 1
Friday 1
Grace and courage to you and to me!
Thursday, July 1, 2010
A Few Humble Acts
“Believe me, in the presence of Infinite Wisdom, a little study of humility and a few humble acts are worth more than all the knowledge in the world.” Teresa of Avila, The Book of My Life (1562)
Have you seen someone doing a humble act that made you rejoice?
It happened to me in early June when I was coming out of the grocery store just behind a bent-over, old man who was slowly walking with a sack of groceries in each hand.
A very tall, dark-haired young man—he looked like a university basketball player—came walking out of the store after me and caught up to the older man in two long strides. “Would you like me to carry your groceries?” he asked.
“Yes, that would be fine” was the reply. So the older man gave his groceries to the younger and they walked side by side all the way to the car.
Since then, I’ve been thinking about these two men. It’s been my own “little study of humility.” How grateful I am to have been a witness to this humble act! I’ve been looking for more examples, but I haven’t found any. Is it because humble acts are small things that don’t draw attention to themselves and are easy to miss, or is it because fewer people are committed to quiet service? While I sort out answers to these questions, I’m going to be watching for a few more humble acts and I hope you will join me.
May the presence of Infinite Wisdom guide our actions into service for others and may blessings fall like summer rain upon the old and young man, today and every day.
Have you seen someone doing a humble act that made you rejoice?
It happened to me in early June when I was coming out of the grocery store just behind a bent-over, old man who was slowly walking with a sack of groceries in each hand.
A very tall, dark-haired young man—he looked like a university basketball player—came walking out of the store after me and caught up to the older man in two long strides. “Would you like me to carry your groceries?” he asked.
“Yes, that would be fine” was the reply. So the older man gave his groceries to the younger and they walked side by side all the way to the car.
Since then, I’ve been thinking about these two men. It’s been my own “little study of humility.” How grateful I am to have been a witness to this humble act! I’ve been looking for more examples, but I haven’t found any. Is it because humble acts are small things that don’t draw attention to themselves and are easy to miss, or is it because fewer people are committed to quiet service? While I sort out answers to these questions, I’m going to be watching for a few more humble acts and I hope you will join me.
May the presence of Infinite Wisdom guide our actions into service for others and may blessings fall like summer rain upon the old and young man, today and every day.
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