by Rodney Marsh
“I thank you God for the gift of life, a wondrous gift so freely given”
“Open my heart and fill my life with tenderness.”
In her Sept 20 blog Christine introduced a “season of gratitude” by sharing her new mantra “I thank you God for the gift of life, a wondrous gift so freely given”. Christine said, “each morning as I sit in my sacred space with my cup of tea in my hand, I recite these words and relish the thoughts that come to me. I am amazed at what has welled up from the centre of my being. God has placed so many gratitudes within me that need to be expressed.” Here I wish to look at the use of a ‘prayer word(s)’ or mantra.
The Sanskrit word “mantra” combines two words: ‘mind’ and ‘tool’. This reveals that a word or saying can be used as a tool to concentrate our scattered, distracted, erratic minds and bring our body, heart and mind into union and communion. Words, like those Christine recited, are learned by heart then experienced in the heart. Like poetry. Words, used as a means of communication, necessarily have a shared, defined and limited meaning; but when words begin to live in our heart and not just our head communication becomes communion. When one heart communes with another the words live and grow to have infinite depth and meaning. Prayer words, said with love and repeated, descend from the head to the heart where they live and grow. From there the Spirit of Jesus will begin a lifelong transformation.
I used one such mantra when I was, in a school context, working with 12-18-year-olds. In 2019, I used a daily Middle and Senior Schools’ class reflection which combined a reading from Luke’s Gospel with stillness and silence using this mantra/affirmation/prayer: “Open my heart and fill my life with tenderness.”
The origin of this mantra is to be found in Dr. Kent Hoffman’s TEDx talk (here) about his work with homeless teenage girls, aged 13-15. These girls had given birth and wanted to be ‘good’ mums, but were struggling. They had, understandably, a poor self-image. They could not see themselves as loved or loveable and it was difficult for them to tolerate, let alone meet, the demands of a baby. These girls are, in reality, like us all – deeply significant, loved and valued persons. They did not, however, feel significant or valued. Being valued was not part of their experience of life. Others told them “you are worthless/a failure” etc. So, their own minds constantly repeated an internal mantra: “You are worthless.” It was this mantra that descended from their heads to their hearts and began to yield its bitter fruit in their lives.
One strategy Dr. Hoffman recommended was a Daily Presence Practice: “Upon awakening, say something like: “Deeper than any happiness or suffering I will experience this day, I am held with Tenderness” (You do not have to currently believe this).” I shared and discussed Dr. Hoffman’s talk with the senior students and it quickly became clear that there exists an urgent need for this Holding Tenderness to be experienced in their frenetic, fragmented lives too. Indeed, we all need “to know ourselves to be lovable and allow ourselves to be loved” (John Main) and a mantra is one way of discovering the communion of prayer in which we experience love. This is not new knowledge, but it is urgent that this mode of prayer be taught by the church in the world.
It was Dr. Hoffman’s assurance that “you do not have to currently believe this” that attracted me. Why don’t you have to believe it? The reason must be that, whether you believe it or not, the reality is that you are held with tenderness. Tenderness underlies and infuses all reality. The feeling “I am worthless” is unreality. “I am loved” is reality, and, “unreality has no power over reality” (John Main). The good news is that the deep-down tenderness that is at the centre of all reality is also at the heart of each person’s life.
It is faith that enables us to know that we are always held with tenderness. It is prayer that enables us to know tenderness in our experience and a ‘mantra’ prayer such as the ones above is one way to begin to allow that tenderness to hold us and thanksgiving to rise within us. However, a mantra is not magic nor are the words magic. Jesus said that if we seek to save our life we will lose it and if the ‘words’ of the mantra are said with the intent to wrest something from God (eg; a feeling of thankfulness or tenderness) for our advantage a mantra will turn to dust. However, if, when saying a mantra, we give up our ‘life’ (as Jesus said) then a mantra enables us to discover our life in Jesus, who is already praying in our heart. A mantra reminds us that to experience thanksgiving, tenderness or any other gift from God, we must stop doing and start being who we are in God’s wonderful world.
Remember – God ALWAYS hears the prayer of a sincere heart and the Holy Spirit only needs us to open the door to our hearts just a crack for her to enter and begin her loving transformation.
Sit still, breathe quietly and say under your breath:
“I thank you God for the gift of life, a wondrous gift so freely given”
“Open my heart and fill my life with tenderness.”
Perhaps more now than ever, Awe and Wonder are important practices for a thriving life. Follow along with Christine in her latest book as she explores what childlike characteristics shape us into the people God intends us to be. Be encouraged to develop fresh spiritual practices that engage all our senses and help us to live a new kind of spiritual life that embraces the wonder and joy that God intends for us.
“Can you imagine a God who dances with shouts of joy, laughs when you laugh, loves to play, enjoys life, and invites us to join the fun?”
For many years, I dreaded the seasons of autumn and winter. I objected to the denuding of trees and the harsh cold; the dark days and the long nights. I held onto my discomfort for dear life-like leaves that should have surrendered to the ground long before the first frost.
In those days, I wondered if creation felt pain as she watched her leaves turn from green to the brilliance of color fading to brown and then falling to the ground? I wondered if creation suffered like I did as I watched her cycle through birth, growth, decay, dying, death?
I had a change of mind and heart when I discovered Celtic spirituality. The Celtic worldview has helped me to appreciate the natural flow of darkness and light, cold and heat. As I tuned into the changing seasons of the year, I came to see these cycles as natural and began surrendering to both creation and the similar changes taking place in my own body and life. Now that I live in the Pacific Northwest, I find it a joy to follow the lunar and tidal cycles and celebrate the ebb and flow of life.
Winter has taken on a whole new meaning as I now understand that it is not a season where everything dies but regenerates. I give myself permission to regenerate as well. For me winter is really Sabbath—a gift to savor.
Winter Sabbath
During this season of gestation, I am incubating and in discernment wondering what is yearning to be born now that I am retired. I am holding a quote by Joseph Campbell who wrote, “You must be willing to leave the life that you planned in order to find the one waiting for you.”
I look for the divine light in all things. That is not to say that I am loss, grief, and pain-free, any more than all of us living through this ongoing pandemic and poverty of both of body and Spirit. Yet, rather than giving in to fear and resisting what is, I try to surrender, daily in prayer and meditation to a divine grace who is beyond my understanding, but always there, loving and standing watch with me. I practice what Teilhard de Chardin called, “trusting in the slow work of God.”
As we move into the coming holy seasons of Advent and Christmas, perhaps your daily practice might include meeting and praying with God in and through creation. Perhaps taking an extended Sabbath will enable you to discover new soul seeds asking to be nurtured. Perhaps you will deepen your practice of witnessing the presence and light of God in all things.
In a book called The Circle of Life, by Joyce Rupp & Macrina Wiederkehr, I echo their invitation, “This winter let this become your prayer, “I am the one for whom God waits! I am awaiting the One who is awaiting me! Embrace the season of winter with hope. It is a good teacher. It will lead you to your inmost depths where God is contemplating you.”
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*** New for 2021!*** We are so pleased to announce this companion journal for our Advent Devotional Lean Towards The Light This Advent & Christmas! Last year’s devotional continues to be relevant to the pandemic times we are in; find refreshment with new eyes and opportunities for reflection as you pair your copy with the journal. Or perhaps your group or community is looking for an advent devotional this year? We offer savings on devotional bundles with the journal, and with the journal and our Advent prayer cards in both physical and downloadable forms. You can also order the Journal as a download! If you are ordering 5+ copies, we offer even more savings! Email us to get the code!!
Thirty-two years ago today, a great wall that divided East and West Berlin was brought down.
This Wall divided families and many died in their attempt to escape East Berlin. The first of these deaths was reported to be a young woman, who desperately tried to jump from her apartment window, at the eastern side of the Berlin Wall, to the western side of the four-foot-wide wall. A 20-year-old man was recorded as the last person to try to escape the East German dictatorship. He was shot by an East German guard.
The Berlin Wall was constructed in August of 1961, as part of the Iron Curtain, a political boundary that divided Europe into two distinct sections. The East was under the influence of the Communist Soviet Union and the West represented the democratic countries during the Cold War, which lasted from the end of WWII until 1991 and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. In actuality, the Wall was built to stem mass defection from the East to West. The Wall’s purpose was to ‘keep people in their place.’
The Cold War began after World War II, between the USA and Russia and their respective allies. George Orwell had coined the term in a 1945 essay called You and The Atomic Bomb. As he explored the essence of a world living under the shadow of nuclear war, he cautioned of “a peace that is no peace,” calling it “a permanent Cold War.”
Today, crowds loudly protest for their rights, saying they are afraid of losing their freedom. This is much different than the rights and freedom sought by the East Germans. Yet we are seeing many families here separated not by any physical barrier but by their personal beliefs and opinions. Many of these claim Christianity as their religion.
What exactly does Jesus say about our personal rights and freedom?
31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8: 31-32
Jesus’ message was one of peace and love. It was not one of freedom wrest away from others or kept only for us. “13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'”Gal 5:13-14
This is not just a new covenant idea. The Psalmist wrote: “I will walk in freedom for I have sought out your precepts.” Psalm 119:45
And what about our rights? Jesus did not mince words.
39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. 40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. 41 If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. 42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you… Matt 5:39-44
For me, to go from this instruction of Jesus Christ to thinking I have a right to take a war-like stand against one who is merely different from me is a tremendous leap. Throughout his teachings Jesus continually helped and loved the “other.” He asks us to give up our rights in their favor.
5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness. Phil 2: 5-7
Those under the age of 75, living in North America, have always lived in peacetime here. Unless we have served in wars abroad, it is difficult to imagine what the constant threat of war does to humankind. And yet given Orwell’s notion of “a peace that is no peace” I am not at all sure we are not in a state of a cold war now.
As Christians, we are to be peacemakers.
10 For,
“Whoever would love life
and see good days
must keep their tongue from evil
and their lips from deceitful speech.
11 They must turn from evil and do good;
they must seek peace and pursue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their prayer,
but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” 1 Peter 3:10-12
We do well to recall that these words of scriptures were written in warning to Christians, who were also commanded not to judge lest they be judged.
On this World Day of Freedom, let us practice our freedom to follow in the steps of our Lord. Let us not build walls with hatred and rage. Let us meet in the open meadows of God’s love and peace.
Join Christine Sine and Tom Sine TOMORROW! Wednesday, November 10th at 9am PDT (check my timezone) for our next FB Live! Can’t make it? No worries–we upload the sessions on our youtube channel so you can still enjoy the lively discussions and interesting topics discussed. And catch us live for the next session–happening here every other Wednesday!
Can you imagine a world of goodness and beauty and wholeness? Can you imagine a world of abundance and generosity and compassion where the hungry are fed, the excluded are embraced, and justice comes for the rejected and despised? Can you imagine a world in which everything is made new and the wonder of God’s presence fills everyone and everything? It is hard to imagine, isn’t it? Especially in the challenging times in which we live? Yet as we look forward to the season of Advent and Christmas, that is part of the wonder we are looking forward to. God’s son birthed into our world as a human child is our promise of a future in which the goodness and beauty of God’s original creation is restored and all creation is made whole. Now that is something to get excited about and something to give thanks for every day!
In a recent Yes magazine article, Building a Beautiful Climate Future Begins with Imagination, I was introduced to the concept of world building, “…the process of creating an imaginary world for a work of fiction. It’s the practice of taking the ideas in your head, the sensations from your imagination, and allowing people to see what you see, feel what you feel. It’s as much about creating new things as it is about destroying old structures and assumptions. It’s an art, not a science.” Its use should not be confined to fiction.–it’s an inspiring tool to use as we prepare to celebrate Advent and Christmas too.
Through trauma and shame we unconsiously learn that God is harsh, maybe even cruel and indifferent to our sufferings and the painful cries of the unjustly treated and the polluted earth. But what if we imagine a future of beauty and wonder and goodness. How would our desire to live into that future change who we are and how we move forward.
Sit and think about the world in which we now live: the glimpses of beauty and goodness that inspire and encourage us each day interlaced with the ugliness and despair of injustice, inequality, pandemics, climatic catastrophes like fires and storms and droughts. How do you feel about our world and the people that inhabit it? How do you interact with it? What do you feel you could change? What do you feel is beyond your control? (Adapted from Building a Beautiful Climate Future Begins with Imagination )
Now close your eyes, sit and imagine our world as God created it and that wonderful divine response each day: “It was beautiful and good.” (Gen 1:25 The Voice )”
In his book A New Heaven and A New Earth Richard Middleton suggests that human stewardship was supposed to transform the whole earth into a fitting place not just for humankind to dwell, but also for God to dwell. Can you imagine it? God’s longs for a beautiful place in which to dwell and walk once more with humankind. To me that is absolutely incredible. Even more incredible is the coming of Jesus into our world to make this happen.
So with this in mind, read in Isaiah 65:17-25 in the Passion Translation. Here is a vivid and beautiful glimpse of the world that God is once more giving birth to, a birth made possible through the coming of Jesus into our world in human form. Talk about awe and wonder!
“Look! I am creating
entirely new heavens and a new earth![a]
They will be so wonderful
that no one will even think about the old ones anymore!
18 As you wait for the reality of what I am creating,
be filled with joy and unending gladness!
Look! I am ready to create Jerusalem
as a source of sheer joy,
and her people, an absolute delight!
19 I will rejoice in this new Jerusalem
and find great delight in my people.
You will no longer hear
the sound of weeping or cries of distress.
20 No baby will die in infancy there,
and everyone will live out their full lifespan.[b]
For when centenarians die,
they will be considered youngsters,
and anyone who dies earlier
will be considered of no account.
21-22People will build their own houses to live in,
and they will not be taken over by someone else.
They will plant their own vineyards to enjoy,[c]
and they will not be confiscated by someone else.
They will live long lives, like age-old trees,[d]
and my chosen ones will enjoy to the fullest
the work of their hands throughout their lives.
23 They will neither work in vain for someone else,
nor will their children face disaster
for they will be children and grandchildren
who are blessed by Yahweh.
24 Before they even call out to me,
I will answer them;
before they’ve finished telling me what they need,
I’ll have already heard.
25 The wolf and the lamb will graze side by side
and the lion will eat straw like the ox,
and the serpent’s food will be dust.
There will be neither violence nor murder
on my entire holy mountain of Zion,” says Yahweh.
Close your eyes and imagine this world as the world you want to live in. What do you value in this world? How do people treat each other? Can you hear the laughter and the joy? Can you imagine the delight as people share and care for each other? In this world how do you think people treat God’s creation and as a result how does it feel and look?
Memorize your images of this world, and imagine Jesus being born into our broken and ravaged world and walking beside each of us encouraging us to bring this new world into being.
Isn’t it wonderful to think about that? However, for it to have an impact on our world we need to keep coming back here until we make it real. When you open your eyes, ask yourself: Is there something from that world I can bring into this one not just over the Advent and Christmas season but every day of the new year too?
As I wrote this today, I was reminded of the Advent and Christmas cards I use each year that encourage me to make changes that can bring more glimpses of God’s beautiful and good world into being. One of them says
Make room,
Let Christ be born,
Not far away in distant ages,
But in every heart and place,
Where love and faith are found.
Make room,
Let Christ be born,
and find in us his Bethlehem.
So let’s rekindle the wonder of the coming of Christ and all the incredible dimensions of what that means. Take time, make room and Walk in Wonder Through Advent this year.
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Join Christine Sine and Lilly Lewin on Saturday, November 20th 9:30-12:30 PST (check my timezone) for an interactive, multi-sensory, creative retreat focused on the WONDER OF ADVENT! This retreat will be LIVE via zoom, but if you are unable to join live, you can sign up to watch the recording and participate later! Come with a creative heart, be inspired, have fun, and reconnect with the WONDER of the season. And did you know? If you have purchased a course from us before, we offer a discount. We also offer a group discount for groups over 5. Email us to get the code!
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A contemplative service with music in the spirit of Taize. Carrie Grace Littauer, prayer leader, with music by Kester Limner and Andy Myers.
A contemplative service with music in the spirit of Taize. Carrie Grace Littauer, prayer leader, with music by Kester Limner and Andy Myers.
Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained from One License with license #A-710-756 with additional notes below:
“O You are Beyond All Things (O Toi L’au-dela de Tout) – Taizé song”, “The Lord Is My Light – Taizé Song”- Words and music by Taizé Copyright and all rights reserved by GIA/Les Presses de Taizé
“Seek Ye First” – By Karen Lafferty
Copyright 1972 Maranatha! Music
“Kyrie” Music and Text by Kester Limner, shared under the Creative Commons License, Attribution (CC-BY)
“His Eye Is On The Sparrow” – Public domain hymn written in 1905 by Civilla D. Martin and Charles H. Gabriel
Thank you for praying with us! www.saintandrewsseattle.org
guest post by Glenys Nellist
Welcome to November, the month that usually heralds the arrival of snow (at least here in Michigan where I live!) the month of giving thanks, and the month when Advent begins.
“‘Twas the season of Advent, when all through the earth,
People were pausing to ponder Christ’s birth.
The bright lights were hung ‘round the doorframes with care
In hopes that Christmastime soon would be there…”
So begins Twas the Season of Advent, a brand-new, premium picture book that invites readers to journey from December 1st through December 25th using twenty-five daily devotions and stories.
Read on to peek inside the book, read some excerpts, admire the beautiful artwork by Elena Selivanova and then be sure to enter the giveaway! Look for the Facebook post today in the Godspace Light Community Group!
“Welcome to the season of Advent… Over the next twenty-five days, we are going to share in a wonderful adventure together. We’ll begin each day in the quietness of our own homes, perhaps gathered around the Christmas tree, while all the lights are twinkling in the darkness. And we’ll read together and learn about God. We’ll meet angels and shepherds, magi and Mary. We’ll spend time with Isaiah and Elizabeth and Joseph. And we’ll end up back where we began—at the manger, where God is waiting to introduce us to Jesus. And there, at the manger, we’ll worship and wonder.”
“Now a long way away lived three magi, or kings,
Who were scanning the skies for beautiful things.
When what to their wondering eyes should appear,
But a star in the east, shining bold, bright, and clear.”
This lovely picture book also has a free downloadable Activity Pack which includes follow-up questions for each day, a suggested daily activity, and an Advent Calendar countdown to Christmas.
If you would like to win a copy of this new release, you can enter by liking or leaving a comment on this post in the Godspace Light Community Facebook Group. Thank you to Zonderkidz for sponsoring this giveaway, which is open to entrants in the USA with a physical street address… no PO boxes. The winner will be announced on Facebook in a week!
Watch the video.
Happy Advent, Friends!
Glenys Nellist
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Bundle and save on our updated and new resources for Lean Toward the Light This Advent & Christmas! Choose from several bundle options, conveniently available either to ship to you or to download.
by Tom Sine
A Commitment in Glasgow to Protect the World’s Forests and a Call from the Church in Wales to Promote Environmental Justice
“Global Leaders Pledge to Eliminate Deforestation by 2030 in a Landmark Agreement” announced the New York Times. Leaders of more than 100 countries, including Brazil, China, Russia, and the United States are down at the climate talks in Glasgow to end deforestation by 2030, a landmark agreement that encompasses some 85% of the world’s forests.
“12 governments committed $12 billion, and private companies pledged $7 billion, to protect and restore forests in a variety of ways, including $1.7 billion for indigenous peoples. More than 30 financial institutions also vowed to stop investing in companies responsible for deforestation. And a new set of guidelines offers a path toward eliminating deforestation from supply chains…
The value of healthy forests goes far beyond the ability to store away carbon. They filter water, cool the air and even make rain, supporting agriculture elsewhere. They are fundamental to sustaining biodiversity, which is suffering its own crisis as extinction rates climb…
President Biden said he would work with Congress to deploy up to 9 billion to the global effort through 2030. Preserving forests and other ecosystems can and should play an important role in meeting our ambitious climate goals.” — Catrin Einhorn and Chris Buckley, “Global Leaders Pledge to Eliminate Deforestation by 2030 in a Landmark Agreement” New York Times, November 2, 2021, p. A (Also published on Agriculturalextension)
I was particularly impressed by the thoughtful proposal created by five Bishops from Wales for this urgently important conference titled: Statement on COP26. Reportedly presentations at the conference on the environment in Glasgow were more dire than earlier conferences. This is what led to the title “2020s- the Make or Break Decade.” I selected the thoughtful proposals of 5 bishops of the church in Wales to present some very positive responses.
“The Climate Emergency is a profound challenge for humanity and the decisions made at COP26 will affect us all.
Scientists warn that this decade is critical to stave off catastrophic climate change. We are already witnessing extreme weather events. The unprecedented heatwaves, droughts and wildfires in the USA, Canada, Turkey, Greece and Siberia, the catastrophic floods in Germany and our own experience of Storm Dennis in South Wales last year are but a foretaste of what is in store for many more of us if we continue on our current path.
We must act fast to avert disaster. What happens in the next 10 years can change the course of history.
Climate change is also an issue of justice. People who are marginalised, on low incomes, and developing countries are most at risk. They have contributed least to the situation and yet they are the least able to adapt to the consequences.
Governments need to be bold, decisive and to act fast so that carbon emissions are cut drastically over the next few years and we have to hold them and ourselves to account.
Each one of us needs to limit our contributions to climate change by moving away from our unsustainable life-styles and consumption.”
Five Bishops of the Church in Wales committed to being Net Zero Carbon ideally by 2030 and by divesting from fossil-fuel companies by the end of 2021.
“We are now calling on our political leaders to:
- Take immediate action to achieve net-zero emissions.
- Limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C.
- Hear the voices of people already impacted by climate change and put their needs centre stage
- Equip those most at risk of climate change with the financial means to tackle climate change.
- Ensure that wealthier nations take the lead by sharing knowledge and resources with those nations experiencing the inescapable consequences of climate change.
- Take action to stop the use of fossil fuels and the expansion of fossil-fuel energy and invest in clean energy.
We also encourage people in Wales to take part on the Global Day of Action for Climate Justice on November 6 to make their voices heard.
We all have an obligation to care for God’s creation and we pray that COP26 will prove a real turning point in our stewardship of earth’s precious resources.”
The Bishop of Bangor, Andy John
The Bishop of St Asaph, Gregory Cameron
The Bishop of St Davids, Joanna Penberthy
The Bishop of Llandaff, June Osborne
The Bishop of Monmouth, Cherry Vann
photo by picography on pixabay
Join authors Tom Sine and Dwight J. Friesen as they explore three vital practices for thriving in a decade of accelerating change. In the fast-paced internet age of constant connection, it can be a challenge for the church to keep up with the needs of younger generations as well as predict and respond to the waves of change. Written for laypeople as well as pastors and Christian leaders, 2020s Foresight has something for everyone concerned about finding innovative options to respond to change and new generations in an authentic and Christlike way.
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Thank you for supporting Godspace in this way.
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