Haunted by Goodness

God, Joy, Life 0

It strikes us that to hope in the kind of goodness that would set our heart free, we must be willing to allow our desire to remain haunted.  This side of the Fall, true goodness comes by surprise, the old writings tell us, enthralling us for a moment in heaven’s time.  They warn us it cannot be held.  Something inside knows they are right, that if we could do so, we would set up temples to worship it and the Sacred Romance would become prostitution.  We understand that we must allow our desire to haunt us like Indian summer, where the last lavish banquet of golds and yellows and reds stirs our deepest joy and sadness, even as they promise us they will return in the fragrance of spring.

— Brent Curtis & John Eldredge, The Sacred Romance, p. 140

Valuing Our Needs

Core Value, Relationships, Truth 0

When we don’t ask for what we want and need, we discount ourselves.  We deserve better.

Maybe others taught us it wasn’t polite or appropriate to speak up for ourselves.  The truth is, if we don’t, our unmet wants and needs may ultimately come back to haunt our relationships.  We may end up feeling angry or resentful, or we may begin to punish someone else for not guessing what we need.  We may end the relationship because it doesn’t meet our needs.

— Melody Beattie, The Language of Letting Go, p. 355

Loving What Is

Letting Go, Life 0

I am a lover of what is, not because I’m a spiritual person, but because it hurts when I argue with reality.  We can know that reality is good just as it is, because when we argue with it, we experience tension and frustration.  We don’t feel natural or balanced.  When we stop opposing reality, action becomes simple, fluid, kind, and fearless.

— Loving What Is, by Byron Katie, p. 2

The Best Attitude

Gratitude, Life, Love 0

Giving up judgmental attitudes requires that we replace them with some other attitude.  Our minds will not remain idle.  The best attitude to cultivate and the one that changes everything and everyone — you and all of the people you formerly judged — is gratitude.  Having an attitude of gratitude is what allows us to see everyone in our path as necessary and an opportunity for us to express unconditional love.  You see, judgment and love cannot coexist, and we’re expressing one or the other almost all the time.  Seldom are we indifferent to our experiences, to the people we are sharing those experiences with, and to the set of expectations we have created around those experiences.  Becoming more loving, attempting to develop the attitude of unconditional love, in fact, is the real assignment we have been given in this life.  No one can do the work for us.  No one can prevent us from doing the work.  And everyone benefits every time any one of us makes even a tiny effort to grow in our willingness to love rather than judge.

— Karen Casey, Change Your Mind and Your Life Will Follow, p. 53-54

God Knows Our Stories

Forgiveness, God, Story 0

But the God of Scripture is also the God who refused to nuke Nineveh, even though that’s what Jonah wanted; who forgave David for a really staggering list of wrongdoings; who wants only for us stiff-necked people to repent and come home; who goes out into the stormy night for the one lost black sheep; who throws a party when the Prodigal Son returns; who loves us so much that God did indeed send his only begotten son to come live with us, as one of us, to help understand our stories — each one unique, infinitely valuable, irreplaceable.

— Madeleine L’Engle, The Rock That Is Higher, quoted in Glimpses of Grace, collected by Carole F. Chase, p. 323

Angry or Joyful

Joy, Letting Go, Life, Peace 0

Starting arguments, blaming others, or internalizing anger is not the way to go through life.  Treat the problem knowing that you will get through it, and you will be a better person because of it.  Remember, you can spend your life being angry or joyful.  You control only one thing: your thoughts.  So find the serenity within yourself.  Or as my wife says, “Never go to bed mad.  Stay up and fight.”  Keep your sense of humor, express your feelings, and recognize your power, and you will spend more time at peace than at war.

— Bernie Siegal, M.D., Love, Magic & Mudpies, p. 186

A Gift to Yourself

Forgiveness 0

It’s one of the toughest things in the world when somebody has hurt you, and you can find within yourself the strength to begin the whole process of forgiveness.  And it turns out to be the gift to you, not so much the gift to the person you’re forgiving.

— Fred Rogers, quoted in The Simple Faith of Mr. Rogers, by Amy Hollingsworth, p. 98

God’s Fatherly Love

Forgiveness, God 0

I have been asked, and many times, “But can’t we choose to exclude ourselves?”  Of course.  Haven’t we, as children, haven’t our own children flung out of the room in anger?  And haven’t we waited for them to come back?  We have not slammed the door in their faces.  We have welcomed them home.  Jesus said, “If you . . . know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”

— Madeleine L’Engle, The Rock That Is Higher, quoted in Glimpses of Grace, compiled by Carole F. Chase, p. 318

Enjoy the Wait

Joy, Letting Go 0

While waiting for direction, we do not have to put our life on hold.  Let go of anxiety and enjoy life.  Relax.  Do something fun.  Enjoy the love and beauty in your life.  Accomplish small tasks.  They may have nothing to do with solving the problem, or finding direction, but this is what we can do in the interim.

— Melody Beattie, The Language of Letting Go, p. 355

Clutter Steals Our Space

Letting Go, Life 0

Repeat after me:  I only have the space I have.  It comes back to living in the present.  You need space to live a happy, fruitful life.  If you fill up that space with stuff for “the next house,” your present life suffers.  Stop claiming your house is too small.  The amount of space you have cannot be changed — the amount of stuff you have can. . . .  Hoarding for “someday” is never worth it.  If you’re really going to be that much richer, you’ll be able to afford the stuff you need when you need it.

— Peter Walsh, It’s All Too Much:  An Easy Plan for Living a Richer Life with Less Stuff, p. 40