BEING HIS SERVANT

A portrait of HOPE fulfilled, found in the wisdom in a turkey's simple purpose! To surrender its life in order to provide sustaining strength to others. My HOPE was to host Thanks Giving in my new home and serve a meal that would bless the souls of all those who have touched my life. My son and his friend Caroline, Sue and David, and Doyle genuinely enjoyed the meal and the atmosphere was filled with God's loving presence. Admitting a recent disenchantment as I got not what I had hoped for on match.com ~ my HOPE renewed as I felt His "well done" in this extra-ordinary moment of Thanksgiving! A picture of my HOPE in 1979 ~ My single soul, as promised has never been forsaken or rejected by God. My dream to re-marry never happened. People over the years have disappointed, abandoned, and rejected me and caused me to whimper and desire to become more acceptable to man. ALAS, an interior revolution occurred while questioning WHY God did not respond according to my requests. GOD is NOT my servant! In a manner quite unexpected, in the midst of one of my darkest days ~ when the sweetness of scriptural revelation was gone along with my will to love God and seek Him above all else! My soul was diseased by selfishness and discontent and the light of God and His love defeated my natural notions of Who God is. Ever wonder "Is this all there is"? ~ or "Why am I here"? When we are denied the expected pathway, or the life we have long HOPED for ~ for Barbara it has been to marry a man of God ~ Barb's 2010 Thanks Giving AHA is to praise God for His persistent denial, His sovereign witholding! At long last, like the turkey, I surrender my life that He can use it to fulfill His purpose. God's plan for me as a single woman, is that I remain faithful to Him in spite of not getting all my prayers answered. "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you...do not be afraid, Sue and Barbara, you have found favor with God. You will marry, then be widowed and remain single as the Lord's servant. The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will over-shadow you. Thank You Jesus, may it be unto us as You have said, blessed among people as single women. My soul praises the Lord and my spirit rejoices in Jesus my Savior, for He is mindful of the humble state of His servants. He has performed mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. God has helped His servants Barbara and Sue, He rescued them from the evil one and extended His mercy that they may serve Him, as His LIGHT shining on those living in darkness all the days of their life. Oh Lord guide our feet into the path of peace. (Be refreshed by LUKE 1:46-80) As we are hungry for more blessings, our Lord waits to commune with us. Our deepest level of satisfaction is not in a single meal, or bite of scripture. We are not fully satisfied when we are surrounded by family, or in communicating, talking with others ~ we are only deeply satisfied in our holy communion with our Father. Communion is wordless, timeless, tasteless and beyond speech and concept. We enter the AHA ~ not a new unity with God, but the ancient day of being One. While we wonder and hunger for more ~ we only imagine that we are NOT connected, NOT already One with the Peace, the Way, the Light of the world. Authentic communication is more than a sharing of ideas, knowledge or a formulated truth. Above and beyond the hearing of words, the reading of scripture ~ communion or being in the Presence, being infused by His Spirit is the experience, at the deepest level of knowing, that we are connected, we are One, we are close, we are His, we are loved and in communication with God. Jesus is the bridge that connects us to the Holy of Holiness. "God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in His holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." Hebrews 12:10 ~ It seemed as though I had made every human effort to live in peace, to be holy, to embrace the grace of God, to change my mind to that of Christ, in order to inherit God's blessing. I attended conferences, church and led women's groups in prayer - Thousands and thousands of angels in joyful assembly rejoiced as I sought the voice of God, vowing to not refuse Him who spoke 'Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.' The words 'once more' indicate the removing of what can be shaken ~ that is created things ~ so that what cannot be shaken may remain." Hebrews 12:26 ~ Today God overwhelms my senses to another great epiphany ~ that in all that man has created or become, there is nothing more important than the reality of God. The darkness, the challenge of my flesh and its desires shall remain as dark as ever ~ yet somehow my soul is illumined with the clarity of Christ Himself. At this moment, my soul enters a new world, a world of rich experience that transcends natural knowledge and what the world defines love to be. Realizing and accepting that all external sufferings and life's difficulties at times shall continue to multiply, however, today my soul's interior shall remain calm and simplified by His abiding Presence. My mind, heart, body and soul contains one thought, one love: Jesus Christ. This love, infused unto my soul by God, unifies all its powers and raises them up to the fire of His infused love. Lord help me to NOT forget Your blessed words of encouragement "My daughter, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those He loves ...endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as His son." ~ Personalized from Hebrew 12:5~ "Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and AWE, for our God is a consuming fire." Hebrew 12:28 ~ God responded to my souls's cry. On my Birthday 2010, my son returned to Christ and attended church! Bottom line, for me, my maturity in Christ is a process of elimination of all external distractions. My hunger for unity, for Love itself, finds me feeding on what the world has to offer. My human nature is impatient and self-serving, and God watches me take another detour while in transit towards Him. My desire for unity with another human distracts me from the only love that will outlast my yearning. Where I am, is where ever He is, and all I need to be is the being He created for His pleasure ~ and 'be' His as is. The powerful and mysterious ways of God are a marvel to navigate ~ to soul fully consider in the calm of a stilled floating pause, to be still, to be infused in an aware state of contemplate. Indeed the world is full of attractions to legitimate pleasures. My soul drifted out to see ~ and was washed ashore, illumined once again while waiting for a man of God to respond ~ All music, movies and scenic drives do nothing but cause a rebellion in my soul. Knowing that all these temporal things will surely pass away ~ that nothing compares to the Light and Love that dwells within me, that all the pleasures, riches and beauty of the world cannot satisfy the cry of my soul for more. His response to my angst was "From the moment you accepted Me into your heart, you received all of Me ~ there is no more than "ALL" available ~ all the wisdom and Love that will ever be has been deposited in FULL and merely waits for your full acceptance of how much you are loved, and of all that you have already been given." My joy and conviction grew immensely with this revelation of God Himself, within me. The peace that surpasses all understanding, for today, has consumed me. Halleluiah! Barbara

YOSEMITE

Tis time to take my body up to a mountain peak that speaks. Tis my soul that longs to sing in the wind and spend a night in the wild among the beasts and the blooms. A three day get-away into the sculptures fashioned by the Father for my leisure and pleasure. To smile awhile in His presence -- to accept His most generous present of mighty trees that dwarf me into thanksgiving. Responding to Thy precious call, I run. In 1851 the astonishing beauty of Yosemite Valley and the geyser wonderland of Yellowstone give birth to the radical idea of creating national parks for the enjoyment of everyone. John Muir is the eloquent defender of nature and the poet of the trees, canyons and uninterrupted vista's created by God to nurture the souls of mankind. Because the magnificent natural wonders of the land should be available not to a privileged few, but to everyone, on June 30, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln signed a law to preserve forever a beautiful valley and a grove of trees that he had never seen. John Muir believed when he looked upon the mountains he saw what God created to restore the soul of man. The winds sing, and the clouds hover atop the mountain where all our answers lay. Our non-verbal response to nature, our reply to the lesson of towering tall trees, is that we stand erect, that we look across time and know that this too shall pass, but while we are here, we can weather any storm with the dignity of swaying trees. The Rock of ages can only be heard as we stand still, and in awe --- it is then that we hear the voice of God. The gospel of nature was written by John Muir and as a result 60 acres wisely were set aside public use, to dwell within the sacred and refresh and bask in the garden of Eden as God intended. Born in Dunbar, Scotland and raised in Wisconsin, John Muir was a natural-born scientist who studied geology and botany at the University of Wisconsin. By the age 11, Muir was able to recite three-quarters of the Old Testament by heart, and all of the New Testament. Muir felt a spiritual connection to nature; he believed that mankind is just one part of an interconnected natural world, not its master, and that God is revealed through nature. Muir wrote of Yosemite that it was "by far the grandest of all the special temples of Nature I was ever permitted to enter...the sanctum sanctorum of the Sierra." When he was not running the sawmill, Muir devoted all his free time to exploring the valley. Like Muir I too feel a deep, spiritual connection to the moss covered rocks, the redwoods that direct me to look up, the creatures that crawl, and the eagles that soar. While I yet live close enough to drive up Priest Grade Road, I choose to loose all the burdens of this world and devote myself to under
standing His wild invigorating creation. To allow the flower to speak in the language of beauty and to be transformed once again by our communication. Muir moved to Oakland to begin work on a series of reports and articles about Yosemite. Barbara shall move to Lake Chapala to begin a report of what else God has created for my soul. The written Word that inspired Muir to marvel at the majesty of the whole creation, is the same living Word that compels Barbara to write and articulate a heart that overflows with graditude to simply breathe the crisp air while dazzling in the depth and height of a God that gives all of this to us. His abiding Love for us is evidenced in whatever shouts natural beauty at us. Nature is essential to our ability to walk this earth at any length --- "wildness is a necessity". We were created to appreciate places like Yosemite for reasons greater than their economic value. A wild forest still ministers to the souls of people, as it did John the Baptist. After five years of writing in Oakland, John Muir had become a famous voice for nature. Soon Muir began to yearn for the wilderness. Upon returning to Yosemite, Muir discovered that California had neglected his "sacred temple." Tunnels had been carved through the hearts of some of the big trees, meadows had been converted into hayfields and pastures, and the valley was littered with tin cans and garbage. As if that were not enough, the mountain ramparts in the Sierras above were being destroyed by sheep and lumbermen. Muir threw himself into what became a pitched battle to preserve the high country. He once again wrote articles describing both the region's beauty and its vulnerability and soon Congress was flooded with public petitions. Muir endured attacks on his integrity by opposing politicians, but finally, on October 1, 1890, President Benjamin Harrison signed into law a bill creating Yosemite National Park, and Sequoia National Park to protect two groves of Big Trees on the western flank of the Sierra Nevada, up highway 4 just outside of Arnold, California. Muir's three-night camping trip with President Theodore Roosevelt in 1903, was a night under the stars that forever changed conservation history. Muir was able to persuade Roosevelt to return Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove to federal protection as part of Yosemite National Park. The trip had a lasting impact on the president. Roosevelt made a speech in Sacramento the next week saying "The night was clear and in the darkening isles of the great Sequioa grove, with the majestic trunks beautiful in color and semetry, rose around us like the pillars of the most ideal cathedral that was ever conceived, even by the fervor of the middle ages. Hermit Thrushes sang beautifully in the evening. Surely our people do not understand the rich heritage that is theirs. There is nothing more beautiful than Yosemite. Having the unchanged view of the Grand Canyon or the summit of Yosemite, the natural environment is infinitely more valuable spiritually and economically than anything man made or achieved. We must leave it as it is." These two greatly esteemed men John Muir and Teddy Roosevelt agreed that God touches our souls with His creation. Muir said of his time with Teddy "I had a perfectly glowing time with the president and the mountains. I never had a more interesting, hearty and manly companion. I stuffed him pretty well regarding the timber thieves and other spoilers of the forest." Muir was a founder and the first president of the Sierra Club. Muir Woods National Monument, is a grove of redwoods north of San Francisco named in his honor. John Muir remained a deeply religious man writing, "We all flow from one fountain—Soul. All are expressions of one love. God does not appear, and flow out, only from narrow chinks and round bored wells here and there in favored races and places, but He flows in grand undivided currents, shoreless and boundless over creeds and forms and all kinds of civilizations and peoples and beasts, saturating all and fountainizing all." He described the beauty of the Sierra Nevada as the Range of Light. "After spending time in the heart of it, rejoicing in the glorious floods of light, seeing the sunburst over icy peaks, the noonday radiance across the trees, a thousand dashing waterfalls, it is the most divinely beautiful mountain range I have ever seen." John Muir

Blessed by His Will

We are assured in Matthew 5:3 that we will receive the Kingdom of Heaven, we will be comforted, that we will inherit the earth, we will be filled, we will be shown mercy, we will see God, and as the world insults us and says all kinds of false things about us, we will be called the children of God and we shall REJOICE! God's promises are fulfilled as we BECOME more like Jesus. As we admit that we are bankrupt before God, that we have nothing to impress God with, that His holiness shines as a light on our depraved poverty---that we are authentically poor in spirit---THEN we begin to mourn our short-comings and ASK that God break our hearts that we may have a need for the Comforter. As we humble ourselves, as we become content that only God is worthy of our praise, by becoming transparent before our Father, we realize that only His parenting will grow us into becoming good stewards on this earth. As our hunger is satisfied by the Word of God, and as our thirst for truth is quenched by the indwelt Holy Spirit, we become right before God. As we affirm that our debt has been paid in full, that we inhabit His mercy --- THEN we can spill mercy on those God brings into our lives. As we become laser focused on what delights our Lord, as we remain in Him as He dwells in us, we will SEE God at work in His creation. As we speak the truth in love, as we work to reconcile differences in His name, and by His authority, we become the Peace Makers that bring all glory to God. As we mix our TIME with the TALENT God has given us, and as we TREASURE the desire of God that none should perish, our purpose becomes clear. Our hunger and thirst, our desire to become right before God is satisfied by The Beatitudes taught by Jesus Christ. The sermon on the mount is the first recorded teaching of Jesus. Compared to the rules that Moses was chosen to teach in order to receive God's blessing, Jesus came down to teach us the blessings that result from surrendering our mind, body and soul to the One God sent. Matthew 5:1 Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them saying:
"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. AMEN

DELIGHT IN YOUR WORK

"The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and He delights in his way." Psalm 37:28 ~ My Lord Jesus, before I begin my work this day ~ I want to thank You for the sunrise and for the fresh eyes You give me. Your holy presence is ever with me, so as I enter my work place ~ I ask You Father to take command of my tongue so that what words I speak will be full of mercy, grace and Thy peace. Order my steps this day and as I walk the halls, answer the phones, or respond in emails ~ I expect that all words spoken, each decision and thought would be full of Your purpose and power. Lord Jesus I thank You for the numerous gifts You have blessed me with and I commit to using them responsibly in Your honor. Refresh my body with supernatural strength that I may do my job with excellence. Infuse me with the Light and Love of Your Holy Spirit, anoint my mind, guide my steps and energize me when I grow weary. May the path I walk and the work that I do ~ inspire and encourage all those that I come in contact with. May my example increase joy and bring smiles in the work place ~ and Father when I leave this place, I ask for travelling mercies. Bless my family and my home with Your divine protection and safety. As I write to You my Lord, I know that You are watching and that You know that my intention is pure, that I write to bring You pleasure and Your Holy Name glory. In the precious Name of Jesus I submit these words with much love and thanksgiving. AMEN "Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, LORD." Psalm 89:15 ~ “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls." Jeremiah 6:16 "When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12 ~ "walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." Ephesians 5:2 ~ "So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh." Galatians 5:16

A Living Sacrifice

"To offer your bodies as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to God" Paul wrote to the Romans that we offer God a worthy, acceptable mind, heart and soul to our perfect, merciful Father. Monks and Nuns elect a monastic lifestyle in response to an inner call to 'seek God'. In our quest, our desire to trust and obey ~ the 'becoming' more like Christ is a mindful choice to grow apart from titles and possessions of things ~ that we might be purified from elevating ourselves by vocation or contribution. "You shall love your God with all your heart...and your neighbor as yourself." The three objects of love that the Holy Spirit refers to are: God, Neighbor, Self. Prior to his calling, Thomas Merton was a complete agnostic. At the age of 18 he entered Clare College, Cambridge. He began attending churches and admired the eloquence of the silence more than the message spoken. A great mosaic of Jesus Christ compelled him to read the new testament. Merton felt his human emptiness and began to pray and ask God to relieve him of the darkness. In 1938 he attended a Mass at Corpus Christi Church near the university. He was baptized and received Holy Communion on 2/22/39. In October 1939 he told friends he wanted to become a priest. Merton wrote books about his pilgrimage and his dialogue with Asian spiritual leaders. Accept Jesus, Know God, Love all, Serve all."lf ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you." (John 15:7) Out of necessity we must be in Christ to live unto Him, and we must abide in Him to be able to claim the largesse of this promise from Him. To abide in Jesus is never to quit Him for another love or another object, but to remain in living, loving, conscious, willing union with Him. The Monastic lifestyle certainly allows one to not become distracted with the world. All followers of Christ in a sense; abide in Him as He abides always within each soul that accepts Him. "Ask what ye will" Humans believe that the heart MUST remain in love, the mind MUST be rooted in faith, the hope MUST be cemented to the Word, the whole soul MUST be joined unto the Lord ~ at all times ~ however, we only can KNOW with certainty that God created us for His pleasure and that we are in constant need of His grace. Merton was an orphan at the age of 15. To love God, to love our neighbor as our self ~ is to trust and obey that we are to come together in community that we may encourage one another that we are beloved of God. When Jesus came He chose to walk among us, talk with us, go fishing with us, teach us, drink wine and show us His ways in action. WHAT IS CONTEMPLATION? A small booklet written in 1950 by Merton makes the Christian life so simple to understand. "These things I have spoken to you that My joy may be in you, and your joy may be filled" ~ "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give you. Not as the world giveth do I give unto you." What JOY it is to contemplate what Jesus entrusted with us ~ what our Lord and Savior gave us! Indeed it is a magnificent vocation to "be" or "live in response" to our call by God to be holy as He is holy. Like when our mother reminds her child "BE GOOD" ~ Our holy Father is honored, as is our mother, when we choose to delight Him ~ to be His best creation ~ that we may bring Him glory! What a living sacrifice to do His will and not mine! Contemplate His love. Excerpt from WHAT IS CONTEMPLATION by Thomas Merton: "Why do we think of the gift of contemplation, infused contemplation, mystical prayer, as something essentially strange and esoteric reserved for a small class of almost un-natural beings (monks and nuns) and prohibited to everyone else? It is perhaps because we have forgotten that contemplation is the work of the Holy Ghost acting on our souls through His gifts of Wisdom and Understanding with special intensity to increase and perfect our love for Him. These gifts are part of the normal equipment of Christian sanctity. They are given to ALL in Baptism, and if they are given it is presumably because God wants them to be developed. Their development will always remain the free gift of God and it is true that His wise Providence sees fit to develop them less in some saints than in others. But it is also true that God often measures His gifts by our desire to receive them, and by our cooperation with His grace, and the Holy Spirit will not waste any of His gifts on people who have little or no interest in them. It would be a great mistake to think that mystical contemplation necessarily brings with it a whole litany of weird phenomena ~ ecstasies, raptures, sigmata and so on. These belong to quite a different order of things. They are 'charismatic' gifts, and they are not directly ordered to the sanctification of the one who receives them. Infused contemplation, on the contrary, is a powerful means of sanctification. It is the work of love and nothing is more effective in increasing our love for God. In fact, infused contemplation is intimately connected with the pure and perfect love of God which is God's greatest gift to the soul. It is deep and intimate knowledge of God by a union of love ~ a union in which we learn things about Him that those who have not received such a gift will never discover until they enter heaven. Therefore, if anyone should ask, 'who may desire this gift and pray for it?' the answer is obvious: everybody. But there is only one condition. If you desire intimate union with God you must be willing to pay the price for it. The price is small enough. In fact it is not even a price at all: it only seems to be so with us. We find it difficult to give up our desire for things that can never satisfy us in order to purchase the One Good in Whom is all our joy - and in Whom, moreover, we get back everything else that we renounced besides! The fact is that contemplation will not be given to those who willfully remain at a distance from God, who confine their interior to a few routine exercises of piety and a few external acts of worship and service performed as a matter of duty. Such people are careful to avoid sin. They respect God as a Master. But their heart does not belong to Him. They are not really interested in Him, except in order to insure themselves against losing heaven and going to hell. In actual practice, their minds and hearts are taken up with their own ambitions and troubles and comforts and pleasures and all their worldly interests and anxieties and fears. God is only invited to enter this charmed circle to smooth out difficulties and to dispense rewards." Thomas Merton ~ taken from the first pages of "What is Contemplation" printed in 1950 ~ We repent, most merciful Father God, for all our sins; for each thought that was false, unjust or selfish. For every word spoken that ought not to have been spoken; for each action done that ought not to have been done. We admit that most of our secret, hidden words and thoughts are inspired by selfishness, rebellion, pride or the desire to cause another to suffer. We admit that we are weak and that lust enters at will while we lie to ourselves and deny to God that we have impure thoughts. Forgive us Father for each broken promise, for our joy of gossip, and for participating in slander. We are reduced by our guilt for having brought ruin to others, for every word and deed that caused others pain. In Your unbounded mercy, Lord Jesus we ask You to forgive us. O God, for all these sins committed by us, forgive us for our constant failure to think and speak and act according to Your wish. AMEN

RUBY SLIPPERS

Soul supporters are essential! Diana gave me these ruby slippers and today I wear them as I post this. Watching the life of Di and Katie transform has been like watching a brilliant sunrise in the land of OZ, a place where colors are most vivid, and memories are unforgettable! We are all on the yellow brick road to OZ, the place where it is safe to use the gifts, to employ the talents we were born with. Awe is what I felt this morning as I remembered my hearts hope expressed in July ~ That I would be able to witness Christ alive in my son. Watching Diana and Katie heal and share the RAIN coming down on all four of us at the Shoreline! WOW! Diana's first assignment for her writers group was entitled "A year of Firsts" ~ In reflection, hopefully we can all look back in 2010 and pinpoint a first time ever "I felt love" "I saw light" "I knew truth" "I trusted God" or that "I loved well" and "I witnessed transformation"! 2010 was totally amazing for all who look back and remember the season changing, death, birth, and new beginnings. Dorothy, like many of us had her heart broken. Along her scary path, Dorothy meets a Lion who lost courage, a person dressed in tin to protect their broken heart, and a silly Scarecrow who lost his memory. MY 2010 roster of life changing events included a surprise surgery in August, a delay (for His purpose) in moving into the Fullerton house, a complete MIRACLE in my son, and multiple prayers answered in ASTOUNDING ways ~ a new boss at work, and the JOY of sharing the GOOD, the BAD, and the UGLY, with a motley crew of souls at work! We bond over a cup of Starbucks and journey down the yellow brick road singing some where over the rainbow, where troubles melt like lemon drops, and........ when violent threats and unexpected challenges pop up, the group sticks together with confidence! Lynn the lion laughs, Alma removes her tin armor, and John the scarecrow begins to use his brain -- thanks to Ron the wizard! As the wise wizard, Ron retired his crystal ball and encouraged the trio to help each other melt the wicked witch of doubt! Evaluating their combined talents, they work through matters, overcome obstacles, as they cheer each other to "GO FORTH" and ."BE BOLD" They kick up their heels, laugh and have a good time! Our spirit and talents did not come from our parents, but THEY were placed in us by our Creator! Sometimes our mates, siblings, co-workers, or teachers -- they just do not understand what drives us and makes us thrive! But somewhere out there is a co-worker, a small group, or a soul sister/brother that will walk alongside us and speak to our soul's desire to emerge. That is when we contribute our significant, unique verse! We were not designed to flourish on our own. In order for a flower to bloom it needs to have the weeds pulled, and it needs to be watered with just the right amount of encouragement. We were created and given talents to use, not bury in the ground of fear. IZZY boldly strikes a chord, he appears different, and he found his way home, and his future life, over the rainbow. Wake up where your troubles are behind you, where burdens are light. Dreams really do come true! Like a poinsetta can only blossom when it thirsts for more, so do we blossom when we strive for more living water. My ruby slippers clicked me to a place where I felt at home. Arriving in Ajijic was like finding the pot of gold at the end of my work life. As we walk, run, or fly into the unknown, up the yellow brick road, without seeing, only believing, we arrive at the doors that God has opened for us. THE SECRET and world success guru's promote NAME IT and CLAIM IT, or BLAB and GRAB whatever you want in life. However, the truth about the buried talents of any successful person today is that nobody uncovered their unique talent, their gifted treasure overnight! We begin with mustard seeds of faith --- and we must dig through the dirt of doubt to reveal our talents. When our desires and talents are buried, His way is to give us opportunity that requires a shovel, to uncover, to expose, to remove the piled on dirt of doubt one shovel at a time. After years of struggle to believe in ourselves, to trust our instincts, we gotta admit that we NEEDED that kick in the pants, that wake-up dream, those night sweats, or that news release that appeared bad, but - through the eyes of another - an opportunity of GREATNESS became visible and POSSIBLE! WOW - In August 09 my condo foreclosed, then in December 09, my dream Casa in Mexico was purchased! Any desire that we hold and release to God, for His will be done, we then walk in faith and release our dreams, trusting the best outcome. We humans NEED support, we NEED to be cheered - just like the tin man, the lion, Dorothy and the scarecrow! Together, one day at a time, one shovel at a time, one step along the yellow brick road at a time, this motley crew of strugglers - identified each others strengths and voiced them! Our ancestors started out in the garden of Eden where they could just wake up and grab the fruit they wanted from a vast unlimited orchard of trees. On Monday they might have chosen to grab a shiny dress from the Macy tree, and Tuesday to grab a tennis ball from the US OPEN tree. The grace of God paves the long and winding yellow brick road to eternity. He did not promise that it would be easy, but He did say that a full life would take a community of believers sticking together through the good and bad times. FAITH is walking in a way you have never walked. FAITH invloves risking loss, it requires us to stretch and move in scary directions. The first tiny step might be to do things differently than you ever have! Change your comfortable routine, strike out and appear foolish! Perhaps you need to talk to a tin person with a guarded heart, or sit next to a cowardly lion - LISTEN, watch and encourage them! We grow stronger as we acknowledge the reflection of spirit in others! There are scads of folks who would love to walk beside you with their own pair of ruby shoes! Tiny steps of courage may cause a panic attack, your adrenaline to pump, but remember that the witch of doubt, or any fear found on the yellow brick road is NOT REAL! The reality IS that God gave us the VISION and the talent! He placed His spirit within! We KNOW that we can do all things through Him! When God called His people to the promised land, ten spys made the majority of hearts afraid when they reported that there were too many obstacles to overcome. Joshua and Caleb came back and said "we can do this". FEAR is a state of mind, often times unjustifed, but unless we take a step out, we are NOT exercising FAITH.
Journey on the YELLOW BRICK ROAD requires:
1) DIG thru the DIRT and unearth dreams and courage
2) FAITH the wee size of a seed, and tiny steps
3) THE POWER AND FUEL OF A SUPPORT GROUP
God empowers us to do exceedingly more than we can imagine. However, traveling down the road in the way that God compels us, is to travel believing that His presence is with us. God gives us the dream, the vision, our hope and the JOY goose bumps we experience when we arrive at our destination! His spirit is ever in us. He goes before us to open doors. God gave us His invisible, untouchable power and He also gave me the desires of my heart to live near a lake, in a house of light to write! When the people of Israel took the yellow brick road away from Egypt (bondage) to the promised land, there were no solo travelers. People were fueled from the inside by God and outside by the people placed on the path alongside them. We were created by God, He is self-sustaining, but we can only thrive as we come together. There is no such thing as a self-made person. My trip to Ajijic, Jalisco, Mexico was because I felt compelled to go from the inside. Trusting that God's plan for me ~ walking in faith ~ His courage allowed me to trust that He would go before me and open doors in Mexico. I asked God for help and He put Kristina Morgan, Cathy Roberts, Don & Linda Wright, and Michel in my path! Lake Chapala!