Good morning... "Breath prayers" quiet our buzzing thoughts, thoughts swarming like mosquitos in the mayhem of our mind. After reading this wisdom in yesterday's post, she wrote: "Thank you for this lesson. I guide my yoga class with what I like to call 'sacred breath' and so appreciate your mantras. It's helpful to have concise thoughts - even just two [...]
Good morning... A "breath prayer" can be lifted any time, any where, alone aloud or silently in a crowd. Usually nine syllables or less, breath prayers can calm our anxious thoughts. Richard Foster, Christian author and theologian in the Quaker tradition, writes: “Commenting on breath prayers, Theophane the Recluse notes, ‘Thoughts continue to jostle in your head like mosquitos. To [...]
Good morning... She taught me her favorite "breath prayer," a centering word or a short phrase which can be said within a single breath. Inhaling deeply we request, "More of God." Exhaling fully we release, "Less of me." Slowly, methodically we breathe in then out, "More of God. Less of me." Again and again we request and release, "More [...]
Good morning... Morning after morning, I choose a different coffee mug for a different reason. Today I sip from a big, blue mug bearing the words: "Donut Hole - Established in 1978." A few years back, our 22-year-old son and I bought matching keepsakes after enjoying a yummy breakfast at the Donut Hole restaurant near Rosemary Beach, Florida. I [...]
Good morning... Practically, what does it look like to inhale the breath of God before exhaling unselfish love? Yesterday's post, Breathe God In And Out, ends with a Scripture verse. The next chapter in our Bible is 1 Corinthians 13, a chapter best known as the "love chapter." Let's personalize these words in a meaningful way as we prepare [...]
Good morning... "Your post today inspired me to think about how to deal with ourselves when we start to panic," a friend texted after reading yesterday's message, Trust God In Life's Noise. She continued, "We are told to 'breathe.' What if we thought of that breathing (which should be long on the inhale and even longer on the exhale) [...]
Good morning... As I sense God in the silence, I trust God in life's noise. In silence, I sense God's loving tone, God's calming texture, God's slow-steady timing. In silence, I sense God's inviting maybes, God's subtle movement, God's deep-high meaning. In silence, I sense God's guidance before me, God's presence within me, God's protection around me. As I sense God in the silence, I [...]
Good morning... A few months back I agreed to facilitate a Sunday school class at a large, local church this morning. I have loved teaching this class in the past and was looking forward to collaboratively learning with this great group again. Earlier in the week, I had exchanged emails with the organizer, sharing the topic, finalizing the details, [...]
Good morning... Heading into the holidays, we need reminders. Yet we must remember: It’s not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth—this defiles a person (Matthew 15:11, CSB). Especially when we eat like crap, we are wise to rise from the table, to curl up on the couch, and to talk [...]
Good morning... “I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it," writes Alice Walker, author of The Color Purple from Putnam County, Georgia. Purple. Why does purple so ignite the passion of God? I google the meaning of purple and streamline a ton of fascinating facts. Purple combines the [...]
