Wednesday, May 13, 2009

From Kalyn-I Asked For Wonder

A few paragraphs from the book I Asked For Wonder by Abraham Joshua Heschel, and what it means to me.

Surrendering to Stillness

"We do not refuse to pray; we abstain from it. We ring the hollow bell of selfishness rather than absorb the stillness that surrounds the world, hovering over all the restlessness and fear of life-the secret stillness that precedes our birth and succeeds our death. Futile self-indulgence brings us out of tune with the gentle song of nature's waiting, of mankind's striving of salvation.

Is not listening to the pulse of wonder worth silence and abstinence from self-asserting? Why do we not set apart an hour of living for devotion to God by surrendering to stillness?

We dwell on the edge of mystery and ignore it, wasting our souls, risking our stake in God. We constantly pour our inner light away from Him, setting up the thick screen of self between Him and us, adding more shadows to the darkness that already hovers between Him and our wayward reason. Accepting surmises as dogmas and prejudices as solutions, we ridicule the evidence of life for what is more than life. Our mind has ceased to be sensitive to the wonder...

Rushing through the ecstasies of ambition, we only awake when plunged into dread or grief. In darkness, then, we grope for solace, for meaning, for prayer."

Sometime I get so caught up in the things of life that I push God of to the side. It is so easy to get wrapped up in daily life. When I am not doing school I am helping mom or the kids or just having some time to myself. I find other things I would rather be doing then listening to Gods word. Its so easy for all of us to get lost in the world. In what needs done today and what we need to buy and who needs what. We get caught up in the stress and worry of the week. Jesus actually address this subject in Matthew 6:25-34. I have read this verse several times and love it. It reminds me not to be anxious about today or tomorrow for each day is in Gods control and he has already provided for us.

"But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."

Lord help me to seek first you kingdom. To fall more and more in love with You everyday. Help me to resist the temptations of the devil and to not worry about life but to leave it in Your capable hands. Help me to discipline my heart and mind and to surrender to stillness and just listen to You. To listen to the voice of nature, to stop and just look around me. At the majestic mountains, the bubbling rivers, the colorful flowers, the wind blowing through the tree tops. I love living in this amazing world You have given us to enjoy.
Every time I look around I think of Psalms 19.
"The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims His handiwork."

5 comments:

  1. Wow, Kalyn. I loved how you tagged this Motivational. You have motivated me. I'm going to print this post out and read it over several times and meditate on it and let it motivate me to brush my selfish time hoarding thoughts and activities and duties away each day to spend time with my creator in His word.
    Blessings,
    Kelly

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  2. Beautiful post. Sometimes life is moving at such a high speed that we forget to stop and praise God.

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  3. Oh my, Kalyn that was beautiful! Such wisdom and truth- thank you for sharing this with us. Your words have hit home with me- I need to make some changes in my life.

    Somewhere I heard that you were gong to Uganda with your Mom! How awesome!! My daughter, Katie and I thought about going but it just didn't work out for us. We are working and saving for another China adoption.
    Blessings to you,
    Jean

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  4. this is a super momtivational post. I love your prayer. A prayer we all need to pray often...

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  5. Oh wow, Kalyn, you have SUCH a sweet and tender heart toward the Father. Thank you for sharing your insight and wisdom with all of us. What a joy to read the amazing things God leads you in.

    Can't wait to see what He does in your heart in Uganda!

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