Tuesday, November 30, 2021

Nouwen Meditation: A Prayer


Today is Giving Tuesday.
Thank you so much!
DAILY MEDITATION | NOVEMBER 30, 2021
A Prayer
Dear Lord,

Give me eyes to see and ears to hear. I know there is light in the darkness that makes everything new. I know there is new life in suffering that opens a new earth for me. I know there is a joy beyond sorrow that rejuvenates my heart. Yes, Lord, I know that you are, that you act, that you love, that you indeed are Light, Life, and Truth. People, work, plans, projects, ideas, meetings, buildings, paintings, music, and literature all can only give me real joy and peace when I can see and hear them as reflections of your presence, your glory, your kingdom.

Let me then see and hear. Let me be so taken by what you show me and by what you say to me that your vision and hearing become my guide in life and impart meaning to all my concerns.

Let me see and hear what is really real, and let me have the courage to keep unmasking the endless unrealities, which disturb my life every day. Now I see only in a mirror, but one day, O Lord, I hope to see you face to face.

Amen.
He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them... Immediately he spoke to them and said, "Take courage. It is I. Don't be afraid."

MARK 6:48, 50b (NIV)
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Monday, November 29, 2021

Nouwen Meditation: Our Lives Multiply by Giving Them Away

“Gratitude goes beyond the 'mine' and 'thine' and claims the truth that all of life is a pure gift.”
- Henri Nouwen, The Return of the Prodigal Son
DAILY MEDITATION | NOVEMBER 29, 2021
Our Lives Multiply by Giving Them Away
The fruitfulness of our little life, once we recognize it and live it as the life of the Beloved, is beyond anything we can imagine. One of the greatest acts of faith is to believe that the few years we live on this earth are like a little seed planted in very rich soil. For this seed to bear fruit, it must die. We often see or feel only the dying, but the harvest will be abundant even when we ourselves are the harvesters.

How different would our life be were we truly able to trust that it multiplied in being given away! How different would our life be if we could believe that every little act of faithfulness, every gesture of love, every word of forgiveness, every little bit of joy and peace will multiply and multiply as long as there are people to receive it . . . and that—even then—there will be leftovers!
"Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to set before the people. The number of the men who [ate] was five thousand."

MARK 6:41, 44 (NIV)
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