Every person we travel these roads with have made their trek to us because they need us and what we know as much as we need them for what they can teach us. This idea has been stressed in earlier essays but it’s one worth further emphasis because of the importance of the journey we share. Knowing that every person is specific to our education means we don’t have to be fearful about the experiences that present themselves. We have been guided to each experience and we will be led through it too. I have heard it said in many gatherings, that God never bri[...]
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learning from others
4 I don't know about you but I feel a bit discombobulated during the holiday week. I wake up wondering what day it is. I plug in the indoor lights because I love them but it feels somewhat anticlimactic to do so. I feel like it's appropriate to give myself some time "to vacation" from the work that calls to me and yet I am more comfortable in my structured existence. I seem to go through the motions of living rather than getting down to the nitty-gritty. Lunches with friends, dinner parties too, give this time a special quality, of course, but I feel like I[...]
Do you want to increase your own hope? Try these suggestions. They are guaranteed to work. Or your money back!! (Get a small notebook that you can carry with you everywhere and be ready to use it) 1. Begin noting how others on your path demonstrate their hope. Do this for a month. 2. Keep track of the times you extended love/hope to someone else over a seven day period. What effect does this extension have on you? 3. Practicing gratitude cultivates hope and a changed heart. At the end of each day for thirty days, write about your experiences. What change[...]
I led a retreat this past week end at the Hazelden Renewal Center in MN. The topic was Cultivating Hope In All Our Affairs. Twenty-eight of us gathered and gently moved forward in our thinking, our personal explorations, our willingness to be intimately vulnerable and open to the vulnerabilities of others. It was miraculous, really. I have discovered that these kinds of week ends are always miraculous, in fact, because perceptions become changed. You can see it happening. You can feel the shift occurring. And you can see the body language relaxing, a[...]
The Miracle of Sponsorship My more than three decades on this spiritual path have convinced me there is a mystical element in sponsorship. Sponsoring someone means to guide them, to offer one’s experience, strength and hope, and to be available to simply listen when there is a need. And the result is that two people get better, a great deal better, not just the one who is seeking the guidance. Indeed, what we give away does come back to us ten-fold. Let’s back up a bit, however. Why are we even interested in exploring this topic of sponsorship? I th[...]
