Faith & Life Inspirational Message

Out of my rather aimless thinking recently, an important idea moved to the front of my mind.   Recently, I was on a flight.   That is not unusual.   I am not one of those business folks who seemingly fly all the time.   But I do a fair number of flights in a year’s time.   So there was nothing unusual about this one. I began to think about the process of having moved on board the flight.   There are the usual instructions to fasten seat belt, what to do with the life preserver in the event that you go down in water, etc.   I wondered if I could remember any of this in the event of the real danger.   I fear my assumption that I have heard it all before and know it all would be severely tested!   I need to pay more attention. It began to dawn on me, as I thought about the process of flying, how much trust is demanded of the passenger.   Again if we were to think about it, we would realize how true that is.   And yet, like me ...

I enjoy getting a new book and diving into the ideas contained in it.   Sometimes I have a fairly good idea of what I will get; other times I have little to no clue what I will read.   A recent read is a book suggested by one of my favorite columnists, David Brooks.   I read Brooks in the New York Times online.   One of his columns mentioned a book by an editor of a poetry journal.   It was a book that was intriguingly religious in Brooks’ estimation.   I became intrigued, too, and jumped into My Bright Abyss by Christian Wiman. I had never heard of Wiman, so I had no idea what to expect.   The book is very engaging, but not an easy read.   The are ample examples of poetry, which is fun for me, since I don’t know that much about poetry and probably don’t understand and appreciate it like I could.   I feel like I am growing.   I feel like I am learning and being challenged.           ...

I have thought about some topics for decades now.   But it is always wonderful to come across someone who can shed new light on an old subject.   One such topic I have pondered for years is faith.   Anyone who has engaged religion in any form probably has thought about faith.   I reckon I first thought about faith---what it is and how it works---as early as high school.   Perhaps I thought about it even earlier than that, but I can’t remember.   However, I am sure faith was involved in my life long before I thought about it!             To be sure, faith is a word that is usually involved with religion and the religious journey.   I would even use it with respect to spirituality, assuming there is some difference between religion and spirituality.   But faith is not simply a word used in conjunction with religion.   And I would contend, it is not a religious word.   Rather, I migh...

Again, it’s back to the basics.   I know I have done this quite a bit.   But it is always a good thing occasionally to go back to the basics.   I like reading a range of material and I am always amazed how easy it is to find spiritual connections and lessons in a huge number of venues.   It is true, I believe, to find the spiritual ebbing through almost all of our daily life.   But there are always good reasons to go back to the basics. Back to the basics for me means that I engage the daily lectionary that I use.   Of course, most days I don’t use that to comment on life.   But it is always present.   It is the substratum of life for me.   It is part of the day’s pulsating presence.   I know it is always there, but I also know that sometimes I pay no attention.   And then I wonder why life seems a bit shallow or maybe a little more aimless.   God is always present and ready to speak to me, if I will but listen.   I ...

One of the reasons I use and like the daily lectionary (reading) is the fact that it gives me the benefit of regularity.   And in a sense, regularity is the key to any discipline---spiritual disciplines, too.   Spiritual disciplines are much like physical exercise.   If I did it only when I felt like it or want to do it, I might slack off.   I would get out of shape---physically and spiritually.   So I decide I want to be in shape physically and spiritually and, therefore, make the commitment to be disciplined about it.   That is the role of the lectionary.             Since I use the lectionary more in the mornings than the rest of the day, I often look at the readings for Morning Prayer.   I also like the fact that Benedictine monks around the world are doing the same readings as I am doing.   That connects me to a community that I value.         ...