Today is one of those rare Saturdays when the possibilities are endless. There are no meetings to go to, no workshops at home or elsewhere for me to attend. The hours spread out before me like “a deep breath of life.” Ironic that I pulled the book of that title off my shelf just now to find a great page for pondering. Alan Cohen always has good advice for a day of deep breathing and reflection. Here’s part of what he offered for me today, definitely worth repeating. First the reflection, second a prayer of intention and then an affirmation for release.
Have you been punishing yourself or someone else for something that happened a long time ago? Any payoff you perceive for holding a grudge is an illusion: there is no value, only a weighty price. A friend of mine in chiropractic school showed me a diagram of what happens to a human body in the throes of anger or rage. All kinds of chemicals are released into the system that exact a heavy toll on our health and vitality….
Jesus was asked, “How many times should we forgive — seven?” Jesus’s answer was clear: “Seventy times seven,” meaning just keep on letting go. We must remember that forgiveness is more of a gift to ourselves than to the person we are forgiving.
“Give me the willingness to let go. Let me perceive no value in holding hurtful thoughts. I want to be free.”
I release the past and get on with my life. (A Deep Breath of Life)
I just read a paragraph for this date in Alan Cohen’s book A Deep Breath of Life. It was altogether astounding to me considering the people he was talking about. But, of course, that was his point. If you’re feeling inept or less than creative today (or any day) you might want to have these words on a small paper folded in your wallet that you can pull out and read to give you confidence in yourself.
Home again this morning in my own space, I first did what is my usual Sunday morning task: checking my calendar for the week to make sure nothing creeps up on me for which I’m not prepared. I was reminded that there is some creative work to be done and that is a good thing for my spirit. That task done but still in waking mode, I turned to Alan Cohen to find the perfect message for this morning. Perhaps you will find it to be so as well.
I was jarred into wakefulness this morning by a paragraph in Alan Cohen’s book, A Deep Breath of Life, that reminded me of something I believe about perspective. I trust that I have the power to choose the way I look at life. Here’s how Cohen described it.
Today, as yesterday, the theme seems to be about the danger of making judgments without sufficient evidence. In the gospel (MT 13:54-58) Jesus is teaching in his hometown synagogue and people are questioning how he could possibly sound so wise given the fact that his father, Joseph, was a lowly carpenter and the rest of his family had no “pedigree” either. The conclusion was that “they took offense at him.” Nothing about what he said, but just whether he had a right to say it, given the lowliness of his station in life!
When thinking about the necessities of life lately, the first thing on my list is my calendar. I used to be able to keep track of a month’s activities so I would be where I was supposed to be, doing what I was supposed to do, only checking my calendar rarely for exactitude. Granted, that was when I was teaching high school and living a relatively stable routine. Now my activities vary so much from day to day that I sometimes am not sure what the day will bring until I look at my calendar for a reminder and sometimes I’m looking just to see what day of the week today is! I use the excuse that my activities are much more varied these days and that there is lots more “stuff” crowding my brain. While this is true, I suppose it has something to do with the aging process as well. Today I’m considering this situation as a call to live in the present moment.
Since our Sophia Center Advisory Board meeting on Tuesday, I have been drawn back several times to thoughts of our future and about the best ways to help people engage in consideration of their spiritual lives. It seems less important these days to dream of large events with nationally known speakers – my fondest hope at our inception. What we have experienced as more useful is the value of deep conversation and building trust in the small groups that find meaning in the exchange of ideas. (Not that I’ve given up hope of major events, of course…) We will continue to seek input for programs and events, of course, and welcome any suggestions.
Today’s Scripture texts – as many in the post-Easter season – tell stories of healings or extraordinary events. The book of Acts of the Apostles finds Peter and John realizing their gift of healing (3:1-10) and the gospel of the “road to Emmaus” recounts an early sighting of the resurrected Jesus (LK 24:13-35). In both cases it is an inner knowing rather than an outer event that leads to the miraculous. The moral of both stories, it seems, is “Stay awake!”
It seems that the theme of light is meant to continue here for at least one more day. In Alan Cohen’s book, A Deep Breath of Life, just the title for this morning’s daily reflection got me curious. “Rocks or Light?” it asked. He was talking about the Hawaiian spiritual tradition that every child born into this world is like a “bowl of light” containing the radiance of heaven. The theory is that if rocks – like fear, guilt and unworthiness – are placed into the bowl, the original brilliance is obscured. The more rocks in the bowl, the less light we shine. Cohen’s comments are very similar to yesterday’s Scripture readings. (I love it when serendipity like this happens to support my conclusions!) Here’s a little of what Cohen offers.