I had a wonderful time in Shanghai...
Tea room in the heart of the city... near the temple park
The Heart of the Old Market area
Perhaps the hardest working student in the city over an exotic meal
"The Bund" a lovely evening stroll on the riverfront
several images in a slide show below:
Rejection is the Deepest Suffering
For many years now I have had the privilege of living with men and women with disabilities. I have discovered that even though a person may have severe brain damage, that is not the source of his or her greatest pain. The greatest pain is rejection, the feeling that nobody really wants you like that. The feeling that you are seen as ugly, dirty, a burden, of no value. That is the pain I have discovered in the hearts of our people.
- Jean Vanier, From Brokenness to Community, p.13
Dear One,
Let difficulties and temptations be a sign to encourage you.
These mark the path of patience and perseverance.
This leads to character, creativity and compassion.
From this place of abundant life other will find hope.
Your words will feed the hungry.
Your actions will quench the thirst for Reality.
Let Love
Rest on
Awaken to the joy of a shimmering future.
Thrum with enthusiasm for tomorrow.
Embrace the the glorious beauty all around.
Dear One,
Rest, recline, retreat...
into my care, my way and my will.
Taste and see that I am good.
I am pleasant.
I am fun.
I will satisfy... every desire.
I will quench... every thirst.
I will heal... every wound.
My ways are higher
My thoughts are humble
I am ever present, ever powerful and all, ALL, knowing.
I know and feel your sorrows, your grief, your struggles, your awkwardnesses.
My broken one, it is from your deepest wounds life will spring forth.
That which was torn asunder will be mended.
May wide your heart for my return.
Open your home to my presence.
Turn your life toward my faithfulness.
In this place of readiness I can reveal a true righteousness.
Be prepared to make way
for peace
for joy
for LIFE.
Dear One,
Set aside your concerns.
Enter the calm center of Love.
From this place of peace be available to others.
Listen to sacred stories of celebration and lament,
of shy delights and holy sorrow.
Return to my calm to sort and sift.
Weigh the value of the wisdom shared.
Release all back into my infinite mercy.
Let each story be wrapped by my compassion and grace.
The fiercest confusion is untangled by the oil of my joy.
In my presence is also fullness of Life.
A good life, a life to be savored.
A meaningful life, a life to be celebrated.
A full life to be enjoyed.
Face forward into the bright beauty of your future.
Embrace everyone's hope with the same enthusiasm.
Dear One,
Enjoy the life I have set before you.
Enjoy the friends and family.
Enjoy the places and tasks.
Enjoy gifts and giving.
Enjoy my beauty
my truth
my wisdom.
Remember how that which you feared was a way to truth, life and love in abundance.
By embracing all possibilities you will deepen in character.
Your stories will bring freedom.
Your songs will be sung.
Your path will help others find their way.
Your celebrating and your lamenting will be witnessed.
Those who see will be encouraged to live their own lives truly too.
They will discover and enjoy their adventure more because of you.
Be courageous in the face of fear.
Your courage will make a way for you to
know me deeply,
love me more truly and
perceive reality more honestly.
In this honesty you will feel my Presence.
Humility founded in this truthfulness will bring you closer to your deepest desires.
Dear One,
I will never leave you or forsake you.
I will never leave.
I will never forsake.
Nothing is sure except change.
I am Changeless.
All of life and love will leave you wanting more.
You will desire and seek after life and love always.
Your desire for others to know
freedom, strength and joy is shared by me.
There will be many who remain hidden by my shadow.
Their humility causes them to stay clear of notice.
They serve the most vulnerable.
As you imagine their place in my plans,
realize they are my most protected,
a garment of grace enfolds them.
These are the ones closest to my creativity.
They truly know the truth of the common good.
They embrace my peace and my peaceable kingdom.
They see me in each moment, in each face and in each idea.
They will see my kingdom come.
They will see my will being done.
They will see this glory because they are participating fully in it.
They are going out to spread my peace.
They are doing the work of my love where they live.
Allow yourself to be blessed by them.
Seek ways to return the blessing.
amen
p.s. This lecture was a big part of my morning... I was deeply blessed by the way this hidden one, Jackie Pullinger, serves the vulnerable and finds them family. She worked in Hong Kong for many many years after moving there in the 60s. More of her talks here.
Dear One,
Let Peace be your compass.
Let stillness guide.
Let quietness restore.
Let calm comfort.
Be blanketed by blessing.
Be covered by mercy.
Be cloaked by reality.
That which is real holds all manner of truth.
That which is seen directs thoughts toward what is unseen.
My desire for your love creates your desire for mine.
The same is true of mercy, compassion and grace.
I am the creator of all goodness.
Each joyful moment is sourced in my joy.
Each forgiven act finds fullness in my forgiveness.
Each graced encounter with one another is anchored in
my grace and my otherness.
Enjoy this slice of truth fully.
amen
Dear One,
As you think forward and watchfully wait, remember my faithfulness.
Remember the promises I've kept.
Remember the desires fulfilled.
Remember the sorrows comforted.
I am with you.
There is no where you can go inaccessible to my care.
There is no choice you can make which limits my creative power.
There is no one who can change the way I love you.
I am with you.
I will guide you as you move into your tasks.
I will show you those who you might serve.
I will show you what I would do if I were you.
I will give you words to speak.
I will give you hope to share.
I will give you dreams to ponder.
I will lead you as you return home to rest.
I am with you.
Find me in the beauty you glimpse and in the sorrows you carry.
Find me in the hope you are revealing to others through your presence.
Find me anew in ordinary moments made sacred by your gratitude.
I am with you.
amen
Dear One,
As with all change, the darkest night falls before the brightest dawn.
The change you are anticipating is shaped by my love and care.
I am deeply present in each breath, each thought and each sigh.
Though the weight of decisions made weigh heavy on your heart,
know my faithfulness, my compassion and my mercy.
You are not alone, you are never alone and you will never be alone.
The community I am calling you into is one of laughter.
The life I am leading to is one of deep contentment.
The tasks you will accomplish will be lasting in good ways.
Enjoy the fullness of my Presence in these days.
Know each moment is crafted to serve the future well.
Rest knowing my purpose for you exceeds your expectations.
I will complete in you my creative purposes.
I will reveal in you my transforming power.
I will display in you my abundant life.
amen
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