"Either God isn't personal and I've wasted my time, or he is personal and he hates me."
"There's a third option," Rudy suggested. "God loves you, but crappy things still happen."
- From Angry Conversations With God by Susan Isaacs
Monday, October 31, 2011
God's Silence
This entry is for all of us. We've all had those times when God FEELS far away. And completely silent. Here are some thoughts on that.
"So what if my lifelong dream and my relationship tanked? These were nothing but middle-class white girl's tragedies. But I was a middle-class white girl, with middle-class white girl's faith. In fact, my middle-class white girl's tragedies ceased to be the tragedy at all: the tragedy was God's response--total silence. I couldn't hear God or see God or sense God anywhere or in anything. Some people call this the Dark Night of the Soul. It was dark, all right. And silent. And I was alone."
- Susan Isaacs
But that's the way it is isn't it? I mean, think about it:
Job loses everything and what does God do or say? Nothing. For 37 chapters it's nothing but rambling and complaining and humans thinking they know what's going on and why this happened to Job. And God just listens to it!
Job has his ideas. His friends have theirs. His wife has hers. [None of which are right. None of which are God's Truth.] And God? God is silent.
Do you know what I'm talking about? If you don't, I'm pretty sure you repressed it or are lying to yourself and to us and to God.
Here's the thing though. I'm thinking that so called "dark silent time" is partially if not completely for two reasons.
The first being if we don't get all those emotions out while they are freshly thrust inside of us, they will only grow quickly in resentment, hatred and over-emotionalism, only damaging our relationship with God and Christ more.
Secondly, it is just as Rick Warren says in Purpose Driven Life: Life is a test and a trust. God wants to see how we will react to such tragedies. If we react wrong, He knows what work needs to be done still. If we react as correctly as any stereotypical self-serving human could, then He knows we can handle even more the next time.
"Tribulations cannot cease until God either sees us remade or sees that our remaking is now hopeless."
- C. S. Lewis
And the thing of the matter is...is that WE are the ones with work to do when tragedy strikes, not God. Because honestly, what more could He really do for us compared to all He has done and is doing already? To ask for more is to say what He is doing isn't perfect enough. But He is perfect.
The problem isn't God. The problem is we are spoiled. And the problem that's even bigger than that, is that God is not in the business of creating spoiled children.
But its just so frustrating, isn't it? Because right there, in that moment, in the bottom of the chasm of the blackest of holes, we aren't capable of doing anything! Anything but complaining, and whining, and crying, and questioning God, when we should be questioning ourselves.
Ok, look. I know you think I'm crazy, because we all know writing about what we should do and actually doing it couldn't be farther from being the same thing. But...
But I have been there...
I was there two days ago. And tonight I'm back where God wants me to be. Well, I'm at least closer to where He wants me to be than I was two days ago.
You CAN do this. Get through God's silence. And don't ever think you are the only one who feels this way. Because I promise you you aren't. It's just that admitting God feels far away is embarrassing. We think it makes us weak Christians. It doesn't! Being thrust into tribulation doesn't and will never make you a weak Christian: It's what MAKES you Christian! And how we respond to trials and tribulations is what defines us. It's what gives our spark of God--our soul--an identity (John Keats). An identity set apart.
So if you are drowning in tragedy today, tomorrow, or anytime in the future, and you FEEL like you cant find, see, or hear God, remember...remember this blog post. Remember that while Job was sitting by a fire mourning the loss of everything he had, while still picking the scabs from his wounds, he responded to the whirlwind God spoke through by saying, "All this is too wonderful for me!"
And you may not be able to do that right away, but neither was Job, and he was "a righteous man" in God's eyes. And remember that God gave them, Job and his wife and friends, up until and through the 37th chapter to rant, vent, complain, and to try to figure out why.
Only God knows how long your 37 chapters will be, but be patient. If He thinks you need 37 chapters to get all of "it" out of you before you can listen to Him, then there's a reason for that. Use those 37 chapters as wisely as you can.
Because "the answer to this pain, or the cure for this pain, is not given in explanation; rather, God offers to this pain, or this life experience, Himself. Not steps, not an understanding, not a philosophy, but Himself. I take this to mean the first thing God wanted to communicate to humanity was that He was God, He was very large and in control, storing snow in Kansas, stopping waves at a certain point on the beach, causing clouds to carry rain, causing wind to race down imaginary hills of barometric pressure, and that if he could do all this, then he could be trusted, and that, perhaps, this would help us through our lives. And so from the beginning, from the very first story told in Scripture, God presents life, as it is, without escape, with only Himself to cling to."
- Donald Miller, Searching For God Knows What
So what if you aren't ready right away. That's what those 37 chapters are for.
Well, You don't think you will be or are ready. At least not quite yet...
You know, there is this vista in Northern California that I cherish. At over 6,000 feet, if cars aren't speeding by, and if no one else has stopped there, there is absolutely nothing but the purest of silence.
And this silence, while staring out at all God's created just to dazzle us, its sometimes so loud it's almost deafening.
You can feel its weight on your skin.
You can breathe it in.
It's thick.
It's clean.
It's awe inspiring.
And That, my friends, IS God!
"So what if my lifelong dream and my relationship tanked? These were nothing but middle-class white girl's tragedies. But I was a middle-class white girl, with middle-class white girl's faith. In fact, my middle-class white girl's tragedies ceased to be the tragedy at all: the tragedy was God's response--total silence. I couldn't hear God or see God or sense God anywhere or in anything. Some people call this the Dark Night of the Soul. It was dark, all right. And silent. And I was alone."
- Susan Isaacs
But that's the way it is isn't it? I mean, think about it:
Job loses everything and what does God do or say? Nothing. For 37 chapters it's nothing but rambling and complaining and humans thinking they know what's going on and why this happened to Job. And God just listens to it!
Job has his ideas. His friends have theirs. His wife has hers. [None of which are right. None of which are God's Truth.] And God? God is silent.
Do you know what I'm talking about? If you don't, I'm pretty sure you repressed it or are lying to yourself and to us and to God.
Here's the thing though. I'm thinking that so called "dark silent time" is partially if not completely for two reasons.
The first being if we don't get all those emotions out while they are freshly thrust inside of us, they will only grow quickly in resentment, hatred and over-emotionalism, only damaging our relationship with God and Christ more.
Secondly, it is just as Rick Warren says in Purpose Driven Life: Life is a test and a trust. God wants to see how we will react to such tragedies. If we react wrong, He knows what work needs to be done still. If we react as correctly as any stereotypical self-serving human could, then He knows we can handle even more the next time.
"Tribulations cannot cease until God either sees us remade or sees that our remaking is now hopeless."
- C. S. Lewis
And the thing of the matter is...is that WE are the ones with work to do when tragedy strikes, not God. Because honestly, what more could He really do for us compared to all He has done and is doing already? To ask for more is to say what He is doing isn't perfect enough. But He is perfect.
The problem isn't God. The problem is we are spoiled. And the problem that's even bigger than that, is that God is not in the business of creating spoiled children.
But its just so frustrating, isn't it? Because right there, in that moment, in the bottom of the chasm of the blackest of holes, we aren't capable of doing anything! Anything but complaining, and whining, and crying, and questioning God, when we should be questioning ourselves.
Ok, look. I know you think I'm crazy, because we all know writing about what we should do and actually doing it couldn't be farther from being the same thing. But...
But I have been there...
I was there two days ago. And tonight I'm back where God wants me to be. Well, I'm at least closer to where He wants me to be than I was two days ago.
You CAN do this. Get through God's silence. And don't ever think you are the only one who feels this way. Because I promise you you aren't. It's just that admitting God feels far away is embarrassing. We think it makes us weak Christians. It doesn't! Being thrust into tribulation doesn't and will never make you a weak Christian: It's what MAKES you Christian! And how we respond to trials and tribulations is what defines us. It's what gives our spark of God--our soul--an identity (John Keats). An identity set apart.
So if you are drowning in tragedy today, tomorrow, or anytime in the future, and you FEEL like you cant find, see, or hear God, remember...remember this blog post. Remember that while Job was sitting by a fire mourning the loss of everything he had, while still picking the scabs from his wounds, he responded to the whirlwind God spoke through by saying, "All this is too wonderful for me!"
And you may not be able to do that right away, but neither was Job, and he was "a righteous man" in God's eyes. And remember that God gave them, Job and his wife and friends, up until and through the 37th chapter to rant, vent, complain, and to try to figure out why.
Only God knows how long your 37 chapters will be, but be patient. If He thinks you need 37 chapters to get all of "it" out of you before you can listen to Him, then there's a reason for that. Use those 37 chapters as wisely as you can.
Because "the answer to this pain, or the cure for this pain, is not given in explanation; rather, God offers to this pain, or this life experience, Himself. Not steps, not an understanding, not a philosophy, but Himself. I take this to mean the first thing God wanted to communicate to humanity was that He was God, He was very large and in control, storing snow in Kansas, stopping waves at a certain point on the beach, causing clouds to carry rain, causing wind to race down imaginary hills of barometric pressure, and that if he could do all this, then he could be trusted, and that, perhaps, this would help us through our lives. And so from the beginning, from the very first story told in Scripture, God presents life, as it is, without escape, with only Himself to cling to."
- Donald Miller, Searching For God Knows What
So what if you aren't ready right away. That's what those 37 chapters are for.
Well, You don't think you will be or are ready. At least not quite yet...
You know, there is this vista in Northern California that I cherish. At over 6,000 feet, if cars aren't speeding by, and if no one else has stopped there, there is absolutely nothing but the purest of silence.
And this silence, while staring out at all God's created just to dazzle us, its sometimes so loud it's almost deafening.
You can feel its weight on your skin.
You can breathe it in.
It's thick.
It's clean.
It's awe inspiring.
And That, my friends, IS God!
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Hope
TWLOHA (@TWLOHA) Tweet
10/30/11 7:15 AM
"Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible and achieves the impossible."
- Charles Caleb Colton
10/30/11 7:15 AM
"Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible and achieves the impossible."
- Charles Caleb Colton
A Longer Lasting Wholeness
“You extended the time he might live in the body until You should give him a greater and longer lasting wholeness.”
- St. Augustine
I approached the abyss seven years ago. And I bargained with God in the beginning. But seven years ago today is when a shady peace entered my hospital room. And it was that fog of death that led me to give up. To give in.
My body was in a living hell and all I longed for was heaven. But You, oh Lord, knew. You knew I couldn't go to heaven in the state I was in. No, You were planning a longer lasting wholeness for me God...
Thank you will never be enough. Mere words mean nothing if I don't live a life that shows You and everyone else how grateful I am.
I have no reason to wallow or hide or play hermit on this seven year anniversary. I can and should only be eternally grateful. Eternally filled with thanks and joy. Eternally in awe of Your story telling. How blessed are we to be a character in Your story!?
- St. Augustine
I approached the abyss seven years ago. And I bargained with God in the beginning. But seven years ago today is when a shady peace entered my hospital room. And it was that fog of death that led me to give up. To give in.
My body was in a living hell and all I longed for was heaven. But You, oh Lord, knew. You knew I couldn't go to heaven in the state I was in. No, You were planning a longer lasting wholeness for me God...
Thank you will never be enough. Mere words mean nothing if I don't live a life that shows You and everyone else how grateful I am.
I have no reason to wallow or hide or play hermit on this seven year anniversary. I can and should only be eternally grateful. Eternally filled with thanks and joy. Eternally in awe of Your story telling. How blessed are we to be a character in Your story!?
How Well You Know Me Augustine
“Is it any wonder that this straying, hapless sheep, who was dissatisfied with Your shepherding, was infected with a foul disease? [His was of the heart, but nonetheless, I guess mine was of the heart too. In addition to the physical disease.] … Since I had forsaken You, You allowed me to approach the treacherous edge of the abyss… how I loved mine own ways and not Yours.”
- St. Augustine
- St. Augustine
How I Feel RIGHT Now Looking Back 7 Years
“Narrow is the mansion of my soul. Enlarge it so that You can enter. It lies in ruins. Repair it.”
-St. Augustine
-St. Augustine
The Problem With Life
"Your problem is how you are going to spend this one and precious life you have been issued. Whether you’re going to live in it creating the illusion that you have power over people and circumstances, or whether you are going to taste it, enjoy it, and find out the truth about who you are."
-Anne Lamott
-Anne Lamott
And Yet...
If the disciples needed proof about the Son of God rising from the dead, even though He spent His entire time with them telling them what was going to happen, then why does it shock me that people don't believe I'm sick, that sick, or that my faith is as strong as it is? And yet...
Brokenness Aside
I can't think of a better song to describe myself seven years ago today...
God I am so sorry. For the me I was, and for the me I still am. And God, i am so grateful You cared/care so much about me, just me, to make me beautiful. Thank you.
Brokenness Aside by All Sons And Daughters
Will your grace run out
If I let you down
‘Cause all I know
Is how to run
Chorus:
‘Cause I am a sinner
If its not one thing its another
Caught up in words
Tangled in lies
You are the Savior
And you take brokenness aside
And make it beautiful
Beautiful
Verse 2:
Will you call me child
When I tell you lies
Cause all I know Is how to cry
Bridge:
You make it beautiful
You make it beautiful
God I am so sorry. For the me I was, and for the me I still am. And God, i am so grateful You cared/care so much about me, just me, to make me beautiful. Thank you.
Brokenness Aside by All Sons And Daughters
Will your grace run out
If I let you down
‘Cause all I know
Is how to run
Chorus:
‘Cause I am a sinner
If its not one thing its another
Caught up in words
Tangled in lies
You are the Savior
And you take brokenness aside
And make it beautiful
Beautiful
Verse 2:
Will you call me child
When I tell you lies
Cause all I know Is how to cry
Bridge:
You make it beautiful
You make it beautiful
All Sons And Daughters
This is a beautiful worship album with a sweet, subtle singer-songwriter undertone. It takes you to another place. Especially if you are me on this fall Saturday night--well, or Sunday early morning--in the dark, in my room, in bed, eyes closed, headphones on so I can blast it into my being and not wake the parentals, all on my vinyl app that gives the music that classic crackle.
They really have beautiful harmonies together, and I feel like I'm not in my room, but at a soul-grabbing worship service lit only by candle light and God's Love. Please check out their Ep. Thank you! Happy Sunday! May the worship music transform you this morning!
They really have beautiful harmonies together, and I feel like I'm not in my room, but at a soul-grabbing worship service lit only by candle light and God's Love. Please check out their Ep. Thank you! Happy Sunday! May the worship music transform you this morning!
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Passion Play
Passion Play by William Fitzsimmons
I should not have hid where my heart can't follow
'cause this grace gets so far and too hard to swallow.
I've been running from Saul, he's been giving chase;
when I look in his eyes, all I see is my face.
You're still on my back after all these years,
chasing me out of hell and my nice veneers.
I don't know how you stand when you've got no floor,
or how you can breathe with your hands on boards.
I just want to be not what I am today,
I just want to be better than my friends might say,
I just want a small part in your passion play.
Do you hear when I call in the midst of wrong?
Do you hear these here words while I sing this song?
Are you caught up in me like I heard you say,
or just some big cashier that I'll have to pay?
'Just want to be not what I am today,
I just want to be better than my friends might say,
I just want a small part in your passion play.
I should not have hid where my heart can't follow
'cause this grace gets so far and too hard to swallow.
I've been running from Saul, he's been giving chase;
when I look in his eyes, all I see is my face.
You're still on my back after all these years,
chasing me out of hell and my nice veneers.
I don't know how you stand when you've got no floor,
or how you can breathe with your hands on boards.
I just want to be not what I am today,
I just want to be better than my friends might say,
I just want a small part in your passion play.
Do you hear when I call in the midst of wrong?
Do you hear these here words while I sing this song?
Are you caught up in me like I heard you say,
or just some big cashier that I'll have to pay?
'Just want to be not what I am today,
I just want to be better than my friends might say,
I just want a small part in your passion play.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
The Soul And The Self: Do I Believe In Miracles?
Yesterday marked the seven year anniversary of when Stills Disease first onset October 22, 2004. Yesterday and mainly tonight my mind, heart, and soul have been wandering around in my past.
Seven years...my word. When did that happen?
I think about miracles a lot. About how I think there are a lot of people who are just waiting for God to heal me instead of just being here for me. Who question whether or not I believe in miracles, and trust me, I've been asked that question a number of times, and each time it hurts me that they would ask and it saddens me that they don't know the answer.
I often think about what would happen or what I would do first-or last-if I were suddenly healed. Suddenly healthy. To be honest, really honest, the thought scares me.
It's such a responsibility to be healthy. You have so many more choices to make, and with more choices comes more chances of choosing wrong.
Often my days consist of just thanking God I got out of bed, eating, and then trying to go back to bed. But when you could technically do anything with your time, my word! God have mercy on us as we try to choose what to do and what not to do! To choose God over ourselves...
When I first got sick I was so self centered I'm disgusted when I look back. I tried to convince myself I was an authentic Christian, but I learned I wasn't. It was and still is dehumanizing. I'm afraid of the next time I look back and am disgusted by the self I am right now...It will probably be in an hour.
So, being afraid of the decisions I made when I was healthy worries me when I think of having the responsibility to have to make those decisions again. I'm so afraid I will revert back to older me and choose self over God. That He will get the rest of me and not all of me. That I will no longer be aware with every quark of myself that I need Him all day every day. That I will become self-sufficient and forget I need Him.
Miracles.
C. S. Lewis says, "That God can and does, on occasions, modify the behavior of matter and produce what we call miracles, is part of Christian faith; but the very conception of a common, and therefore stable, world, demands that these occasions should be extremely rare." And his words help me breathe and sleep easier at night. (a gentle smile is inserted here)
So, where do we land for real? Do I want a miracle? Do I want to be healed of Stills Disease and everything else and be healthy again? Yes. And no...
You see, I learned something six and a half years ago. I learned that--are you sitting down? You are going to want to be sitting down because this is going to sound CRAZY--Stills Disease was and is my miracle.
The Soul And The Self
"In the life of every man there occurs at least one epoch, when the spirit seems to abandon, for a brief period, the body, and, elevating itself above mortal affairs just so far as to get a comprehensive and general view, makes thus an estimate of it's humanity, as accurate as is possible, under any circumstances, to that particular spirit. The soul here separates itself from its own idiosyncrasy, or individuality, and considers its own being, not as appertaining solely to itself, but as a portion of the universal Ens.1 All the important good resolutions which we keep--all startling, marked regenerations of character--are brought about at these crises of life. And thus it is our intense sense of self which debases, and which keeps us debased."
1. Entity or real thing
- Edgar Allen Poe,The Opal, 1845
Stills took away everything I ever wanted. But that showed me God had already given me everything I ever needed, and because of Stills I finally realized that, saw it, and appreciated it for the first time.
Stills debased me and...it keeps me debased. It makes me know everyday that I need God. That I need love. That I need community, even when I'm too tired and achy to create it, if not especially then! It made me see the whole picture and not just a mirror image of myself.
God, via Stills, saved me, from me. And that made me a much more authentic Christian, and not one "Whose love did read by rote that could not spell" or who was doting the moon her first 18 years instead of loving the Sun (William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet). That, my friends and family, is the greatest miracle of all. Thank You. Thank You. Thank You.
May all of you be so fully aware of all the miracles you've already experienced it stuns you into awe of the Numinous. God Bless you always in the ways He knows are best. Love! Hugs!
- Zoe
Seven years...my word. When did that happen?
I think about miracles a lot. About how I think there are a lot of people who are just waiting for God to heal me instead of just being here for me. Who question whether or not I believe in miracles, and trust me, I've been asked that question a number of times, and each time it hurts me that they would ask and it saddens me that they don't know the answer.
I often think about what would happen or what I would do first-or last-if I were suddenly healed. Suddenly healthy. To be honest, really honest, the thought scares me.
It's such a responsibility to be healthy. You have so many more choices to make, and with more choices comes more chances of choosing wrong.
Often my days consist of just thanking God I got out of bed, eating, and then trying to go back to bed. But when you could technically do anything with your time, my word! God have mercy on us as we try to choose what to do and what not to do! To choose God over ourselves...
When I first got sick I was so self centered I'm disgusted when I look back. I tried to convince myself I was an authentic Christian, but I learned I wasn't. It was and still is dehumanizing. I'm afraid of the next time I look back and am disgusted by the self I am right now...It will probably be in an hour.
So, being afraid of the decisions I made when I was healthy worries me when I think of having the responsibility to have to make those decisions again. I'm so afraid I will revert back to older me and choose self over God. That He will get the rest of me and not all of me. That I will no longer be aware with every quark of myself that I need Him all day every day. That I will become self-sufficient and forget I need Him.
Miracles.
C. S. Lewis says, "That God can and does, on occasions, modify the behavior of matter and produce what we call miracles, is part of Christian faith; but the very conception of a common, and therefore stable, world, demands that these occasions should be extremely rare." And his words help me breathe and sleep easier at night. (a gentle smile is inserted here)
So, where do we land for real? Do I want a miracle? Do I want to be healed of Stills Disease and everything else and be healthy again? Yes. And no...
You see, I learned something six and a half years ago. I learned that--are you sitting down? You are going to want to be sitting down because this is going to sound CRAZY--Stills Disease was and is my miracle.
The Soul And The Self
"In the life of every man there occurs at least one epoch, when the spirit seems to abandon, for a brief period, the body, and, elevating itself above mortal affairs just so far as to get a comprehensive and general view, makes thus an estimate of it's humanity, as accurate as is possible, under any circumstances, to that particular spirit. The soul here separates itself from its own idiosyncrasy, or individuality, and considers its own being, not as appertaining solely to itself, but as a portion of the universal Ens.1 All the important good resolutions which we keep--all startling, marked regenerations of character--are brought about at these crises of life. And thus it is our intense sense of self which debases, and which keeps us debased."
1. Entity or real thing
- Edgar Allen Poe,The Opal, 1845
Stills took away everything I ever wanted. But that showed me God had already given me everything I ever needed, and because of Stills I finally realized that, saw it, and appreciated it for the first time.
Stills debased me and...it keeps me debased. It makes me know everyday that I need God. That I need love. That I need community, even when I'm too tired and achy to create it, if not especially then! It made me see the whole picture and not just a mirror image of myself.
God, via Stills, saved me, from me. And that made me a much more authentic Christian, and not one "Whose love did read by rote that could not spell" or who was doting the moon her first 18 years instead of loving the Sun (William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet). That, my friends and family, is the greatest miracle of all. Thank You. Thank You. Thank You.
May all of you be so fully aware of all the miracles you've already experienced it stuns you into awe of the Numinous. God Bless you always in the ways He knows are best. Love! Hugs!
- Zoe
Monday, October 10, 2011
Jon Foreman Tweet: The Heart Of Man
Jon Foreman (@jonforeman)
10/9/11 4:36 PM
"Beauty is mysterious... God and the devil are fighting there, and the battlefield is the heart of man."
-Dostoyevsky
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Tree Of Life
I first came up with this concept in 2006. I just brought it to life/made this tonight.
We are not of this world just as Christ is not of this world (John 17:16). We are not home yet. We should live in this world, not of it. And especially not chained to it.
We are not of this world just as Christ is not of this world (John 17:16). We are not home yet. We should live in this world, not of it. And especially not chained to it.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Relevant Magazine
Relevant Magazine's tagline is "God. Life. Progressive Culture." I agree with their statement. That is exactly what the magazine is, and thank God because it's as if this magazine is being written to me and for me specifically.
If I could have created a magazine, this would pretty much be it. I recommend you check it out.
And just to let you know, their iPAD app is free and you can download the first digital issue for free. It looks gorgeous and it's content is, well, relevant to God, life, and progressive culture. They really get it. And you should too.
If I could have created a magazine, this would pretty much be it. I recommend you check it out.
And just to let you know, their iPAD app is free and you can download the first digital issue for free. It looks gorgeous and it's content is, well, relevant to God, life, and progressive culture. They really get it. And you should too.
Mumford and Sons
If you've listened to their album, you know how wise (with wisdom that has eternal value) and honest the lyrics are- and how stunningly beautiful and heartfelt the music is. If you haven't, you need to. Trust me. They are what music should always be.
Buffy Wisdom
"Bottom line is, even if you see them coming, you're not ready for the big moments. No one asked for their life to change, not really. But it does...So what are we, helpless? Puppets? No. The big moments are going to come. You can't help that. It's what you do afterwards that counts. That's when you find out who you are...You'll see what I mean."
- Whistler, from Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Purpose For The Pain
"Pain makes man think. Thought makes man wise. Wisdom makes life endurable."
- John Patrick
- John Patrick
Knowledge and Wisdom
"Never mistake knowledge for wisdom. One helps you make a living the other helps you make a life."
- Sandra Carey
- Sandra Carey
Listen Up
"It requires wisdom to understand wisdom: The music is nothing if the audience is deaf."
- Walter Lippmann
- Walter Lippmann
Gandhi
"It is unwise to be too sure of one's own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err."
- Mahatma Gandhi
- Mahatma Gandhi
Do The Math: Two Ears. One Mouth.
"It is the province of knowledge to speak and it is the privilege of wisdom to listen."
- Oliver Wendell Holmes
- Oliver Wendell Holmes
In The Now
"It is always wise to stop wishing for things long enough to enjoy the fragrance of those now flowering."
- Patrice Gifford
- Patrice Gifford
Sharing
"If wisdom were offered me with this restriction, that I should keep it close and not communicate it, I would refuse the gift."
- Lucius Anneaus Seneca
- Lucius Anneaus Seneca
Monday, October 3, 2011
Our WyzerCircle
"The next best thing to being wise oneself is to be in a circle with those who are."
- C. S. Lewis
- C. S. Lewis
All Those Wyzer Than I
"I love quotations because it is a joy to find thoughts one might have, beautifully expressed with much authority by someone recognized wiser than oneself."
- Marlene Dietrich
- Marlene Dietrich
Seekers, Finders, Seekers Still
"A man is not old as long as he is seeking something."
- Jean Rostand
"There is a vast and important difference between a Pauline creed and a Pauline life...Tens of thousands of believers who pride themselves on their understanding of Romans and Ephesians cannot conceal the sharp spiritual contradiction that exists between their hearts and the heart of Paul.
"That difference may be stated this way: Paul was a seeker and a finder and a seeker still. They seek and find and seek no more. After 'accepting' Christ they tend to substitute logic for life and doctrine for experience."
- A. W. Tozer
- Jean Rostand
"There is a vast and important difference between a Pauline creed and a Pauline life...Tens of thousands of believers who pride themselves on their understanding of Romans and Ephesians cannot conceal the sharp spiritual contradiction that exists between their hearts and the heart of Paul.
"That difference may be stated this way: Paul was a seeker and a finder and a seeker still. They seek and find and seek no more. After 'accepting' Christ they tend to substitute logic for life and doctrine for experience."
- A. W. Tozer
Written On Your Heart
"There’s a lovely Hasidic story of a rabbi who always told his people that if they studied the Torah, it would put Scripture on their hearts. One of them asked, 'Why on our hearts, and not in them?' The rabbi answered, 'Only God can put Scripture inside. But reading sacred text can put it on your hearts, and then when your hearts break, the holy words will fall inside.'"
-Anne Lamott
So I pray we take the quotes I'm going to post and write the wisdom on our hearts, so that when our hearts break--yes, when--God's wisdom from Scripture will fill in the empty places inside and these quotes will heal the open wound.
-Anne Lamott
So I pray we take the quotes I'm going to post and write the wisdom on our hearts, so that when our hearts break--yes, when--God's wisdom from Scripture will fill in the empty places inside and these quotes will heal the open wound.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
A New Book, A Substory
With an inciting incident comes a new book in our story. A sub story if you will. This blogs current sub story is going to be quotes.
I LOVE quotes! Why use my quickly spat out thoughts when we can hear a dedicated wise author's thoughts that their brains have bled out (see Robert Pinsky's poem, Lair)? That they have labored over for possibly years? And if they put all that effort into their works (sometimes Toni Morrison would spend an entire day trying to find one word!) we can at the very least take a little time to absorb them into our souls and lives and see if they incite change in us.
So I hope you enjoy these quotes. I truly do. I wouldn't make it without them. I hope this experience makes us all the wyzer. Blessings to you all!
Love Always,
Zoe Elizabeth
I LOVE quotes! Why use my quickly spat out thoughts when we can hear a dedicated wise author's thoughts that their brains have bled out (see Robert Pinsky's poem, Lair)? That they have labored over for possibly years? And if they put all that effort into their works (sometimes Toni Morrison would spend an entire day trying to find one word!) we can at the very least take a little time to absorb them into our souls and lives and see if they incite change in us.
So I hope you enjoy these quotes. I truly do. I wouldn't make it without them. I hope this experience makes us all the wyzer. Blessings to you all!
Love Always,
Zoe Elizabeth
An Inciting Incident?
As characters in stories, otherwise known as our lives, we function as characters more than we do as just people. We experience plot, setting, exposition, conflict, climax, and resolution. Life imitating art, imitating life.
Life is a story. We are characters in not only our own story, but we are also characters in The Story as well.
And the thing about characters is they never do what the author wants them to do. They have their own ideas of right and wrong. They have strong desires. And so sometimes we veer off track. And that's what I've been doing. Until now...I hope.
Except characters don't change on their own. You can't just wake up and say, "I want to change." No, it doesn't work like that. We need something to push us in a new direction. We need conflict. Conflict is the only thing that changes a character, ask Robert McKee. And conflict only comes in what story tellers call "an inciting incident."
"James Scott Bell says an inciting incident is a doorway through which a protagonist cannot return." - Donald Miller
And right now I am praying to God every day He, the Author of my story, our story, just brought Liz to me, not just because we need each other, but because He is hoping to bring about my change. To put me on a path. A better path. A path with a bigger purpose.
I mean, after all, the point of story is character transformation, and what's gonna change me more than God working through conflict and an inciting incident. Nothing.
Liz, may you be the inciting incident that gets me back on writing's path.
Life is a story. We are characters in not only our own story, but we are also characters in The Story as well.
And the thing about characters is they never do what the author wants them to do. They have their own ideas of right and wrong. They have strong desires. And so sometimes we veer off track. And that's what I've been doing. Until now...I hope.
Except characters don't change on their own. You can't just wake up and say, "I want to change." No, it doesn't work like that. We need something to push us in a new direction. We need conflict. Conflict is the only thing that changes a character, ask Robert McKee. And conflict only comes in what story tellers call "an inciting incident."
"James Scott Bell says an inciting incident is a doorway through which a protagonist cannot return." - Donald Miller
And right now I am praying to God every day He, the Author of my story, our story, just brought Liz to me, not just because we need each other, but because He is hoping to bring about my change. To put me on a path. A better path. A path with a bigger purpose.
I mean, after all, the point of story is character transformation, and what's gonna change me more than God working through conflict and an inciting incident. Nothing.
Liz, may you be the inciting incident that gets me back on writing's path.
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