Daily Meditation: A Ministry that Never Ends

Monday December 29, 2014 A Ministry that Never Ends Reconciliation is much more than a one-time event by which a conflict is resolved and peace established.  A ministry of reconciliation goes far beyond problem solving, mediation, and peace agreements.  There is not a moment in our lives without the need for reconciliation.  When we dare to look at the myriad hostile feelings and thoughts in our hearts and minds, we will immediately recognize the many little and big wars in which we take part.  Our enemy can be a parent, a child, a "friendly" neighbor, people with different lifestyles, people who do not think as we think, speak as we speak, or act as we act.  They all can become "them."  Right there is where reconciliation is needed. Reconciliation touches the most hidden parts of our souls.  God gave reconciliation to us as a ministry that never ends.   Comment on this Daily Meditation.   Visit our website for inspiration, resources, news, events, community.     Text excerpts taken from Bread for the Journey, by Henri J.M. Nouwen, ©1997 HarperSanFrancisco. All Scripture from The Jerusalem Bible ©1966, 1967, and 1968 Darton, Longman & Todd and Doubleday & Co. Inc. Photo by V. Dobson.

Forward this Daily Meditation to a friend! This email was sent to cbgamb@gmail.com, by email_lists@henrinouwen.org Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Henri Nouwen Society | PO Box 220522 | St. Louis | MO | 63122 | USA Henri Nouwen Society | 95 St. Joseph Street, Room 214 | Toronto | ON | M5S 2R9 | Canada

Daily Meditation: Being Safe Places for Others

Sunday December 28, 2014 Being Safe Places for Others When we are free from the need to judge or condemn, we can become safe places for people to meet in vulnerability and take down the walls that separate them.   Being deeply rooted in the love of God, we cannot help but invite people to love one another.  When people realise that we have no hidden agendas or unspoken intentions, that we are not trying to gain any profit for ourselves, and that our only desire is for peace and reconciliation, they may find the inner freedom and courage to leave their guns at the door and enter into conversation with their enemies. Many times this happens even without our planning.  Our ministry of reconciliation most often takes place when we ourselves are least aware of it.  Our simple, nonjudgmental presence does it.   Comment on this Daily Meditation.   Visit our website for inspiration, resources, news, events, community.     Text excerpts taken from Bread for the Journey, by Henri J.M. Nouwen, ©1997 HarperSanFrancisco. All Scripture from The Jerusalem Bible ©1966, 1967, and 1968 Darton, Longman & Todd and Doubleday & Co. Inc. Photo by V. Dobson.

Forward this Daily Meditation to a friend! This email was sent to cbgamb@gmail.com, by email_lists@henrinouwen.org Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Henri Nouwen Society | PO Box 220522 | St. Louis | MO | 63122 | USA Henri Nouwen Society | 95 St. Joseph Street, Room 214 | Toronto | ON | M5S 2R9 | Canada

Daily Meditation: A Nonjudgmental Presence

Saturday December 27, 2014 A Nonjudgmental Presence To the degree that we accept that through Christ we ourselves have been reconciled with God we can be messengers of reconciliation for others.  Essential to the work of reconciliation is a nonjudgmental presence.  We are not sent to the world to judge, to condemn, to evaluate, to classify, or to label.  When we walk around as if we have to make up our mind about people and tell them what is wrong with them and how they should change, we will only create more division.   Jesus says it clearly:  "Be compassionate just as your Father is compassionate.  Do not judge; ... do not condemn; ... forgive" (Luke 6:36-37). In a world that constantly asks us to make up our minds about other people, a nonjudgmental presence seems nearly impossible.  But it is one of the most beautiful fruits of a deep spiritual life and will be easily  recognized by those who long for reconciliation.   Comment on this Daily Meditation.   Visit our website for inspiration, resources, news, events, community.     Text excerpts taken from Bread for the Journey, by Henri J.M. Nouwen, ©1997 HarperSanFrancisco. All Scripture from The Jerusalem Bible ©1966, 1967, and 1968 Darton, Longman & Todd and Doubleday & Co. Inc. Photo by V. Dobson.

Forward this Daily Meditation to a friend! This email was sent to cbgamb@gmail.com, by email_lists@henrinouwen.org Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Henri Nouwen Society | PO Box 220522 | St. Louis | MO | 63122 | USA Henri Nouwen Society | 95 St. Joseph Street, Room 214 | Toronto | ON | M5S 2R9 | Canada

Daily Meditation: Claiming our Reconciliation

Friday December 26, 2014 Claiming our Reconciliation How do we work for reconciliation?  First and foremost by claiming for ourselves that God through Christ has reconciled us to God.  It is not enough to believe this with our heads.  We have to let the truth of this reconciliation permeate every part of our beings.  As long as we are not fully and thoroughly convinced that we have been reconciled with God, that we are forgiven, that we have received new hearts,  new spirits, new eyes to see, and new ears to hear, we continue to create divisions among people because we expect from them a healing power they do not possess. Only when we fully trust that we belong to God and can find in our relationship with God all that we need for our minds, hearts, and souls, can we be truly free in this world and be ministers of reconciliation.   This is not easy; we readily fall back into self-doubt and self-rejection.  We need to be constantly reminded through God's Word, the sacraments, and the love of our neighbours that we are indeed reconciled.   Comment on this Daily Meditation.   Visit our website for inspiration, resources, news, events, community.     Text excerpts taken from Bread for the Journey, by Henri J.M. Nouwen, ©1997 HarperSanFrancisco. All Scripture from The Jerusalem Bible ©1966, 1967, and 1968 Darton, Longman & Todd and Doubleday & Co. Inc. Photo by V. Dobson.

Forward this Daily Meditation to a friend! This email was sent to cbgamb@gmail.com, by email_lists@henrinouwen.org Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Henri Nouwen Society | PO Box 220522 | St. Louis | MO | 63122 | USA Henri Nouwen Society | 95 St. Joseph Street, Room 214 | Toronto | ON | M5S 2R9 | Canada