M.C. Wright

Yes You Can!

I think I have said the words "Yes you can!" more times than I can count. Maybe it's because I have a knack to see the hidden potential buried in people. Maybe it's because most people don't believe in themselves. Maybe it's because our performance oriented culture keeps people locked in a dungeon of fear, so they just never even try to experience their dreams.

Whatever the reasons may be, nothing excites me more than when people begin to tap into the God-potential that they posses, or a better way to say it is, that posses them!

One thing I have noticed is that we tend to become most like the people we hang around with. Therefore, if I spend alot of time with people who are negative, never take risks, or don't believe in themselves, I will soon begin to think just like them.

This isn't to say that you cut yourself off from every person who has the Eeyore syndrome, but it does mean that you need to manage how much of your time and energy you invest in them if you want to live your life to the full.

If you spend time with people who think big and positive, and see God-possibilities all around them, guess what? You got it, you will also start to think positively, big, and begin to see the limitless potentialities that surround you each and every day!

There is a story called the Golden Eagle that speaks to this:

A man found an eagle's egg and put it in the nest of a backyard hen. The eagle hatched with the brood of chicks and grew up with them.

All his life the eagle did what the backyard chickens did, thinking he was a backyard chicken. He scratched the earth for worms and insects. He clucked and cackled. And he would thrash his wings and fly a few feet into the air.

Years passed and the eagle grew very old. One day he saw a magnificent bird far above him in the cloudless sky. It glided in graceful majesty among the powerful wind currents, with scarcely a beat of its strong golden wings.

The old eagle looked up in awe. "Who's that?" he asked.

"That's the eagle, the king of the birds," said his neighbor. "He belongs to the sky. We belong to the earth-we're chickens."

So the eagle lived and died a chicken, for that's what he thought he was.

That is so sad to me. We have one go around at this thing called life, and to have wasted all of our potential, and in fact, to have never entered into the gifts, talents and abilities that God created you with, is wasting the beautiful gift of life that God has given us.

Maybe you need a nudge today. Here it is, you are an incredible person, created by God to do amazing things! You are a son or a daughter of the king. You are royal.You can do it!

Here is an important life changing truth: If you have said yes to following Christ, you have all the power that created the universe dwelling within you! That kind of power is limitless, powerful, dynamic and has the potential to move mountains.

One of my all time most favorite (and for those who know me, most quoted verses) is Philippians 4:13 which says: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!"

That is not an egotistical belief because it is not about me, but about the incredible God who made me, and loves me. He is infinite, sovereign, merciful, loving, powerful, beautiful...

So maybe you are looking at a project, a possibility, or a problem right now and your reaction to the circumstance is, "I can't do it."

Let me lovingly yet and powerfully remind you...Yes You Can!

Here are some things to consider to help you develop a different way of thinking and looking at the circumstances of your life:

1. Ask yourself about the the friends you spend the largest amount of time with. Are they negative or positive. Are they healthy and encouraging you, or are they drawing energy out of you. You need to have balance with the friends in your life. You should have friends who you pour truth, love and energy towards, as well as have friends who pour into you. If all of your friends tend to be more on the "taker" side of things, it is definitely time to hang with some people who will "give" you some positive encouragement!

2. Ask yourself if you believe that God is more powerful than your circumstances.What you believe about God will affect how you see things including yourself. A healthy view and understanding of God will help you develop a healthy view of yourself and vice-versa.If you don't go to church, then it is time to go to a church that challenges, energizes, and grows you. I'd invite you to check out http://www.svaonline.org of course :-)

3. Remind yourself that you are royalty, a son or daughter of the king. You an heir of all things. Would your circumstance be changeable by a king's kid? Well, that's who you are! Too many people have such a low estimate of themselves, that they don't believe they are worth God's attention. John 3:16 reminds us that God so loves all His creation, that He sent His Son on a rescue mission to pull you out of the despair, depression, struggles that life throws at us. Not only that, but He longs to spend eternity with you...come on, eternity is a long time to spend with someone you really don't like! God loves you, and chose you...now let Him be God in your life and experience His strength, power, and hope.

Step out this week...and as you begin to recognize the limiting belief's that are buried inside you, remind yourself that: Yes you can!

Dei Gratia

Monty

Web Site Story

Leonard Sweet sent out a link for this as a tweet and it is pretty funny. Time to get web savvy :-)

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

The Hungry Birds...Sadhu Sundar Singh

One of my favorite spiritual authors is Sadhu Sundar Singh. His story is amazing. Born in 1889 into a Sikh family in India (Sikh is a mix of Hindu and Islamic beliefs) he had a hunger to really know God. His father enrolled him in a Christian missionary school where he was introduced to yet another God option, Jesus.

Singh's heart became even more troubled about who or what to believe, and when he was 16 years old, he yelled out to God that if He didn't reveal Himself he was going to place his head on the train tracks and wait for the next train to take his life. Since God had eluded Singh in this life hopefully he would find Him in the next life.

That night at 3:00 am, Sundar Singh had an encounter with Jesus Christ, and for the rest of his life traveled as a Sadhu (holy man) in the Sikh fashion, but his heart and life belonged solely to Jesus.

He refused to clothe his faith with Western trappings, and lived his life in prayer at Jesus' feet, sharing what he was learning from the heart of the Master, as he spoke in parables all over the world. He roomed for a while with C.F Andrew, who wrote a memoir on Singh, and who also spent much time with Gandhi in India.

The Western world was at a loss with what to do with Singh...He challenged the way Western Christianity worshiped intellectualism and structure more than they spent time learning and listening to Jesus, and simply following him. That is a challenge that Western Christianity still needs to heed.

Here is one of his parables called the Hungry Birds...read, think, meditate and apply :-)

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Once as I wandered in the mountains, I came upon an outcropping of rocks, and as I sat on the highest rock to rest and look over the valley, I saw a nest in the branches of a tree. The young birds in the nest were crying noisily.

Then I saw how the mother bird returned with food for her young ones. When they heard the sound of her wings and felt her presence nearby, they cried all the more loudly and opened their beaks wide. But after the mother bird fed them and flew away again, they were quiet.

Climbing down to look more closely, I saw that the newly hatched birds had not yet opened their eyes. Without even being able to see their mother, they opened their beaks and begged for nourishment whenever she approached.

These tiny birds did not say: "We will not open our beaks until we can see our mother clearly and also see what kind of food she offers. Perhaps it is not our mother at all but instead some dangerous enemy. And who knows if it is proper nourishment or some kind of poison that is being fed to us?"

If they had reasoned thus, they would never have discovered the truth. Before they were eve strong enough to open their eyes, they would have starved to death. But they held no such doubts about the presence and love of their mother, and so, after a few days, they opened their eyes and rejoiced to see her with them.

Day by day they grew stronger and developed into the form and likeness of the mother, and soon they were able to soar up into the freedom of the skies.

We humans often think of ourselves as the greatest living beings, but do we not have something to learn from these common birds? We often question the reality and the loving nature of God. But the Master has said: "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe."

Whenever we open our hearts to God, we receive spiritual nourishment and grow more and more into the likeness of God until we reach spiritual maturity. And once we open our spiritual eyes and see God's presence, we find indescribable and unending bliss.

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Dei Gratia,

MC

Chasing God

Language often has a way of either helping or hindering us in life. For example, when I read what the prophet Jeremiah wrote, "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart, (29:13) my mind immediately translates the passage in such a way that I sense a need to chase God if I want to find Him.

Striving, is a word that comes to mind...but striving is not what Jeremiah is really saying. My mind and body often strive, but my heart works on a completely different plane. The heart, or the seat of my soul, is a feeling, sensing, experiential part of who I am. To seek God with all my heart is really a call to allow myself to be loved by a mysterious, un-catchable, and un-tameable God.

Perhaps our problem with experiencing God in real-time is that we are trying to chase Him down with our intellect, and grab ahold of Him with our hands, which is utterly impossible, because God, who is Spirit, is always beyond our imagining, and able to break free from any human hold.

In a paradoxical way, the path to a God-encounter is to be caught and loved...this is a dependent act of receiving... not winning or earning.

There is an ancient story entitled "The Little Fish" that speaks to this journey:

"Excuse me," said an ocean fish.
"You are older than I, so
can you tell me where to find
this thing they call the ocean?"

"The ocean," said the older fish," is the thing
you are in now."

"Oh, this? But this is water. What I'm seeking
is the ocean," said the disappointed fish
as he swam away to search elsewhere.

Very often, the God who loves you, the God you so long to know and encounter is surrounding you, but instead of simply seeing Him, we wrongly assume we must chase Him...a God that can simply be seen can't possible be the One, we misguidedly think. So we rush off again in search of the God who is always there.

There is another story about a person in search of God who encounters a traveling holy man. The seeker said to the holy man, "For years I have been searching for God. I have looked for Him everywhere that people have told me that He can be found: on the peaks of mountains, the loneliness of the desert, the silence of the cloister, and in the company of the poor."

"Have you found Him?" the master asked.

"No I have not. Have you?"

What could the holy man say? The evening sun was sending shafts of golden light into the room. Hundreds of sparrows were twittering on a nearby tree. In the distance you could hear the hum of people experiencing life together. A mosquito buzzed near warning that it would soon strike...And yet this man could sit in the same sounds and experiences and say he had not found God.

After a while, the seeker left, disappointed, to search elsewhere.

Have you been frustrated in your pursuit of God? Have you been searching everywhere people have told you to search but still haven't found what your looking for?

Maybe it's time to learn the lesson of the Little Fish...There isn't anything to look for, all you need to do is simply look, then you will finally see.

The God who is there is found not with your eyes or your hands, but your heart.

Dei Gratia

Monty

Let's Say Thanks To Our Troops...

No matter what your war philosophy is...when it comes down to our friends and neighbors who serve in the US military, they are worthy of our thoughts, prayers, and thanks.

As we continue through Memorial Day week...let me encourage you to say some prayers for the people serving in our armed forces, also pray for peace and resolution.

I got an email today from Michelle, a friend of mine, and she sent me this great web link. They have put together a collection cool, hand drawn thank you cards that you can simply click on, select some text, and it will get sent to a soldier just like that.

So take a moment and portal over to: http://www.letssaythanks.com/Home1280.html

and tell someone that you appreciate their sacrifice for our country.

Dei Gratia
MC

We Are Three You Are Three

Have you noticed that our energies often get "all-in-a-tizzie" ( that's a nice way to say we loose it :-) when someone does something in a fashion that is different from the way we do it, or the way we think it should be done?  Suddenly we become the champion and expert of our way of doing things and decide that we must teach all others the correct way for it to be done!

I see this far too often in the church. In everything from "this is how you pray" to " this is how you read the Bible" or even "you're not really following God unless you..." I wonder where our need to correct everybody else comes from.

I came across this parable that just made me smile...meditate on this today.

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We Are Three You Are Three

When the Bishop's ship stopped at a remote island for a day, he determined to use the time as profitably as possible. He strolled along the seashore and came across three fishermen mending their nets. In pidgin English they explained to him that centuries before they had been Christianized by missionaries. "We Christians!" they said, proudly pointing to one another.

The bishop was impressed. Did they know the Lord's prayer? They had never heard of it. The bishop was shocked.

"What do you say, then, when you pray?"

"We lift eyes in heaven. We pray, 'We are three, you are three, have mercy on us.' The bishop was appalled at the primitive, the downright heretical nature of their prayer. So he spent the whole day teaching them the Lord's Prayer. The fishermen were poor learners, but they gave it all they had and before the bishop sailed away the next day he had the satisfaction of hearing them go through the whole formula without a fault.

Months later, the bishop's ship happened to pass by those islands again and the bishop, as he paced the deck saying h is evening prayers, recalled with pleasure the three men on the island ho were now able to pray, thanks to his patient efforts.

While he was lost in thought he happened to look up and noticed a spot of light in the East. The light kept approaching the ship and, as the bishop gazed in wonder, he saw three figures WALKING ON  THE WATER!

The captain stopped the boat and everyone leaned over the rails to see this sight. When they were within speaking distance, the bishop recognized his three friends, the fishermen.

"Bishop!" they exclaimed. "We hear your boat go past island and come hurry-hurry meet you."

"What is it you want?" asked the awe-stricken bishop.

"Bishop," they said, "we, so sorry. We forget lovely prayer. We say, 'Our Father in heaven, holy be your name, your kingdom come...' then we forget. Please tell us prayer again."

The bishop felt humbled. "Go back to your homes, my friends." he said, "and each time you pray, say, 'We are three, you are three, have mercy on us!'"

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Today, release others from having to do everything "your way," In many ways we are as limited by our knowledge as we are by our lack of knowledge. Wisdom teaches us the application in our souls of our understanding. Wisdom also teaches us to smile and then release our need to rule, judge, control, and correct those who do it different than we do. When was the last time you walked on water?

Dei Gratia

Monty

Powerful Prayers Vol. V: Reinhold Niebuhr

The Serenity Prayer has been instrumental for millions of people working through all the hard stuff of life. It was penned in 1943 by Reinhold Niebuhr who was an activist, theologian, and pastor. Niebuhr spoke out against the Ku Klux Klan, and even spoke against what he saw as deplorable worker conditions under Henry Ford.

The heart of the man that is credited for this month's Powerful Prayer is clearly articulated in the words that follow. So, find a quiet spot...get comfortable...breathe in God's goodness...breathe out the days struggle...open your eyes...and slowly read the prayer. I will post some ruminations at the end of the prayer.

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God grant me the serenity
    to accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
And wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is,
    not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
    if I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life
    and supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next.

Amen.
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Monty's Rumination...

There are at least five powerful movements in this prayer, and each movement builds upon the other to lead us to a place of surrender, empowerment, and peace.

1. God-reality

The first movement is the most important. From the first word of this prayer we are immersed in the truth that "I am not the center of the world." So often we live and interact with others as if we believed we were the epicenter of the universe. An overinflated view of self always disconnects us from the love of others and places us as an adversary with God...not a great place to be!

Movement #1: God is...and if God is, then I am not God. If I am not God, I can begin to give up my tendency to try to control the world, other people, and all my circumstances. When we begin to play God through the vehicle of control, it wears us out...wipes us out...and makes us weary. Take this step...peace is coming soon!

Prayer Point: Tell God you are ready for Him to be in charge, not only in your words, but in your actions. Ask Him to help you decrease so that He can increase.

2. Acceptance

Health and peace and balance are available when we decide to accept our current reality. Denial very often warps our perception, that is why we need other people who we trust to tell us the truth about our circumstances. I call that person a true friend! Someone who will point out the relational, emotional, or even physical realities of our life. When we hold onto a false reality we lengthen our struggle and pain. Some things are so hard to accept. Illness, injustice, given-talents verses wanted talents, or even another person withdrawing their love from us. All these things wound deeply and can be a causation where we try to fix, change, manipulate or morph the actual reality into desired reality. Eventually we learn that the only thing in this life that we are able to control is "me."But changing me is the way to changing my world!

As a pastor I have watched and encouraged people as they struggled with what they wanted to do, verses what God had created them to do. When they got their will in alignment with God's plan they had epiphanies and wondered why they had ever wanted to do that other thing! I just smile and remind myself there is no need to say "I told you so!" Acceptance, then, can even be applied to accepting the good things God has given us. Sometimes we feel unworthy, or undeserving of the blessings we encounter...Are you allowing mistakes from the past to keep you from accepting a God-reality today...this one works both sides of the track.

Spiritual growth happens as we step out of denial into God's grace and accept our current reality for what it is...then we are ready for the next movement...wisdom!

Prayer Point: Ask God to help you see and accept your life as it is, not as you want it, or think it should be. Thank God that you are right where you need to be to experience more of Him. Pray that you would be honest with yourself, others, and God in all that you say and do.

3. Wisdom

After we center our hearts and lives on the God-reality, we pray about the circumstances that we encounter each and every day. Some things in this life we have absolutely no ability or possibility to change, morph or control. Do you try to control your spouse, your kids, your boss, the weather, the stock market? I know that in my own life, I have very often relied up and trusted my abilities, my savvy, my entrepreneurial spirit, or my talents to change my reality. And do you know what? Many times I was able to do some pretty incredible things!

Then one unsuspecting day, a situation or three came along that God did not intend me to change, and bang...I hit a wall that I didn't know what to do with. So I tried harder...worked harder...and still nothing. That lead to some anger, resentment and frustration...I desperately needed to breath this prayer!

Finally, when God breaks through, we realize that if we are to experience peace, balance and passion in this life, we need to hold things lightly. That means we need this prayer. We need wisdom to know what is changeable (my choices, my issues, my life) and what is out of my control (most everything else!) But this is huge...when we enter into the awareness of what is changeable, and what is not, we will journey to the next movement...courage.

Prayer Point: Pray for supernatural wisdom to discern what God is up to in your life. Also pray that God would lead you to some incredible friends who will stand with you, be honest with you, and love you on your good days and your bad days!

4. Courage

Making changes in our lives (the things that we can control) is not easy...in fact, this is hard work! Courage is not the absence of fear as some people believe, rather courage is doing what we know we need to do in spite of the fear! I like what 17th century writer Baltasar Gracian said: "Without courage, wisdom bears no fruit." So courage is like the miracle grow formula for wisdom!

When God reveals the changes we can and need to make...sometimes our feet feel like they are encased in concrete, unable to move. Your stomach is in knots, you begin to weigh the potential losses and assess whether or not you think your heart can take the hits that might come. You wonder if it is possible for this thing to change, for you to change, and you wonder how things will be different if they do change!

The courage necessary to move through the growth challenges must come from a source much stronger than you! You need the God's power to infuse you and unleash your courage to help you choose the next step!

Prayer Point: Pray that God would fill you, flood you, and infuse you with His Spirit of power. That is the same Spirit that rose Jesus from the dead! Ask the Spirit of God to give you the courage you need in every situation...then move!

5. Trust

What is it that truly unleashes a man or a woman to do the impossible? What is the difference between the person who says "it can't be done," and the one who says "why not?" It is the depth of their faith. But faith must have an object...in otherwords, the power of your faith is determined by who or what you put your faith in. If my faith is in a door-knob, there probably will not be a whole lot of change, peace or healing taking place in my life. However, if my faith is placed in God who has proven Himself faithful and able, I begin to trust the outcomes of my life.

This is critical. If  believe that God truly loves and cares for me. If I believe that God has my best interests at heart. If I believe that nothing is impossible for God...then I am faced with a choice as good and bad situations invade my life.

Will I trust that God has me, or will I try to control what I don't like. When I trust God in all things and circumstances, I stop second guessing the pain or hardship in my life as signs that He is angry with me. They are in fact, just a part of life. BUT...if I belong to God, He promises to use those experiences to grow me, strengthen me, and heal me...the one ingredient needed is trust. Trust is like the activator agent for all the movements we have talked about. Trust doesn't second guess...deny its reality...whither at the challenge...or fail to see the truth. No, trust merely clings and believes in the goodness of God which sustains all things.

Prayer Point: Ask God to help you identity the things that have caused you not to trust Him. Ask Him to heal those wounds and bless you with a faith-filled and trusting heart.

When we practice these prayer movements we begin to experience happiness and joy in this life no matter what the circumstances. Your world is no longer controlled by externals, but your soul is growing stronger in the grace and presence of God in your life.

Dei Gratia,
Monty

Making Sense Of Social Media: The Rebirth of "Tribe"

Many people wonder what the big deal is about social media. Others wonder what social media is, while others are twittering, facebooking, myspacing, digging, youtubing, tumbler-ing, friendfeeding, kindle-ing, blogging....the list seems endless!

Social media played a powerful role in the last election, not only in votes, but in donations. Social media has, in many ways, changed the way we interact, reconnect with friends from ages past, and have interactions on some level with people who are continents away, as well as in the other room!

As I look at the fabric of social media, I see opportunities to create change by connecting with people of like mind and heart. Not only do you get to connect on a social level, but you are also able to connect "tribal-ly" whether you want to be in a "conservative or liberal tribe," a "vegan or a red-meat tribe," or even a "online or a board gamer tribe." The type and affinity of tribes is limitless, and the potentialities of what a tribe that is focused can do is amazing.

The ability to create and form tribes is the catalyst that can change the world, it has already changed the rules of almost everything we experience.

Seth Godin, an entrepreneur, writer and blogger, has written some fascinating books. From "Purple Cow, and the Big Moo" to his new book "Tribes." He is the creator of Squidoo, a web site where uses share links, ideas and so much more. Take a moment and watch this video of Seth giving a talk about "Tribes." In the video Seth argues that the Internet has ended mass marketing and revived a human social unit from the distant past: tribes. Founded on shared ideas and values, tribes give ordinary people the power to lead and make big change. He urges us to do so.

Dei Gratia,
Monty

Morning Rhythm

Morning is an opportunity for newness...possibilities...potentialities. If the night has brought you some sleep (hopefully!) and some closure to the previous day, we can enter into the fresh canvas of life that awaits with the morning dew. Practicing the night rhythm will dramatically improve your experience of encountering the rhythm of God in the morning!

More often than not, our mornings become a rush of timed rituals to get us out of the door and onto the road. "Coffee...newspaper...shower...teeth...what to wear...coffee again...toast...work stuff...car keys...see ya later!"

There is a rhythm there, but the rhythm is chaotic and hurried...forced. The pulsating, resonating voice of God gets buried somewhere between the first cup of coffee and the news blaring from the speakers in your car as you scan traffic reports.

Establishing a centered morning rhythm will bring balance to your day, give you the ability to better deal with the stresses on the road, and in the workplace. Your morning rhythm, like the night rhythm, is nothing huge, overwhelming, or forced. The morning rhythm is allowing your first conscious breath to acknowledge that God is, and you belong to Him.

I like to start my morning rhythm while I am still in bed. As soon as I start to re-enter the world of stress and chaos, while my eyes are still heavy and the bed is still warm, the rhythm begins as I say, "Good morning Abba...it's good to be with you...let's make this day a work of art."

While there are many rhythm tools (spiritual disciplines) that you can use to establish your morning rhythm, let me again encourage you to simply "be" with God.

Maybe you could keep some of these ongoing rhythm Scriptures on your bedside table so that you could begin your day with God even before your feet hit the ground. Or, if you have a moment to find a place to sit for a few minutes to create your day and how you would like it to go with God definitely do that!

Before I read a Psalm...I begin with simply centering my day with God. "Abba (Jesus' choice of name for God the Father, it means daddy)...I belong to you." Let God know the way you desire to react and respond to the demands of your day...the kind of person you want to be to those around you. Give God permission to get your attention throughout the day so that you can become what you desire.

After this, slowly read the Psalm and then listen for what God might say to you. You might experience a stillness filled with direction, or simply silence. There is no "right" outcome, only what is...so be grateful for the moment ad take it with you throughout the day. Here is a morning rhythm Psalm to add to your collection:

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Psalm 63

O God, you are my God,
for you I long;
for you my soul is thristing.
I long for you
like dry, weary land without water.
Give me your strength and your glory.

I wish to praise you all my life
fill my soul as with a banquet.
I cling to you;
hold me close in your hands.

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May your day have the fingerprints of God all over it!

Dei Gratia
Monty

Night Rhythm

As I move through the day, so often the rhythms of life, grace, and peace fade against the banging non-life-giving beats that flood my ears with noise. At first, the gradual fading seems unnoticeable, and then suddenly you realize you are out of sync with reality, life, others and mainly God.

As I purposefully practice the God-rhythms of life during each day, I find myself experiencing a connectedness to God and others that begs for better words to describe. Practicing and entering into the God-rhythm of life is not a check list of spiritual practices that you must master in order to have an enlightened moment. It is also not some secret extra knowledge that you must search for...God is not that capricious.

Experiencing God-rhythm, and sensing His presence in your heart,is possible. No matter what is happening in the world, or what is going on around you, you can begin to pull yourself back from the four corners of the world that your soul has migrated too, and become grateful for the moment that you have...right now.

Even as you are reading this entry, your mind, or a portion of your conscious and subconscious thought-life, has taken a trip somewhere. Maybe it soared to a person that you are just head-over-heels in love with. Maybe, it went to the warm memory of you mom or dad who are no longer with you, but you miss them. Perhaps it is sermonizing at someone who hurt you, and in your mind you are dumping a verbal barge on them! Or just maybe, you are thinking about your to-do list, or what needs to get done at work tomorrow.

Regardless of where some part of your thought-life has gone, you now realize that you are not completely present at this moment. When we are not present, it is very hard, maybe even impossible, to feel and enter into God's divine rhythm.

What should we do?

So...we grace ourselves as our mind wanders...and we grace ourselves as our focus seems minuscule...and we grace ourselves when we struggle to be present...We grace ourselves because God would, and God does...but we have a hard time letting ourselves off the hook. But when we don't grace ourselves we force the rhythm.

Forced rhythm defeats your goal, it overshadows your desire, it makes mechanical that which God intended to be natural...grace yourself...let yourself off the hook...take advantage of this imperfect moment of your spirituality and simply enjoy it...soon you will feel the rhythm.

God's rhythm is always pulsating...it is always there...our need is to simply leave our baggage of performance, perfection, and professional religion at the door and take a deep breath and say..."Hey, Abba...I'm here, would you slowly reign in the rest of me so that we can dance?"

If this concept if utterly foreign to you, and your moments with God have looked more like a shotgunned monologue of wants and needs, then it is time for you to experience God's true rhythm in your life.

It would be good to gracefully look for some time in the morning and some time in the evening to reign in all of you to be with God...Nothing fancy, nothing to memorize, no religious shtick...just you and God.

One rhythm prop that I like to use to still my thoughts, and bring my wandering heart home is reading a Psalm...The Psalms are authentic, honest, real. They give words to doubt, anger and struggles, as well as redirect the wandering mind to the source of all life-rhythm.

Here is a night rhythm Psalm for you...all you need is a moment...find a quiet corner...turn off the electronics...get comfortable...breath deeply...and tell God you really need to rest in His presence and feel the rhythm of His heart. When you are ready, read the Psalm slowly...don't force it...release your expectations...and simply enjoy the words, they were inspired by God, and they have a life and a rhythm of their own!
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Psalm 131

    Lord, as this day ends,
    soul and body, I am tired.
    And all I have done:
    is it worthwhile?
    I need you, Lord,
    where can I turn, except to you?

    O Lord, my heart is not proud, nor are my eyes haughty;
    I busy not myself with great things too sublime for me.
    Nay rather, I have stilled and quieted my soul like a weaned child.
    Like a weaned child on its mother's lap,
    so is my soul within me.
    O Israel, hope in the Lord,
    both now and forever.
________________

As you begin to build a natural rhythm of God-connection in your daily life...you will want to keep an eye on your motivations and expectations. So quickly, we turn what is a natural and life-giving rhythm into a formula or rigid "must-do-to-get-through" religious exercise.

So relax, enjoy a rhythm section in the morning, and a rhythm section in the evening...enter into the unforced rhythm of God's grace. I will post some more morning and night rhythms for you to use, and I pray that the beats of the world would dissipate as the rhythm of God crescendos in your soul.

Dei Gratia,
Monty

Night Owls More Productive

The word vindication is what quickly springs to mind. Night Owls have long been the Black Sheep of the proverbial "this-is-the-right-way-to-live" world. I have always been more creative, focused, and productive when others are fast asleep. Even in the church...yes it's true....even in the church we celebrate the early risers and decry the late-nighter, as if God only listens and hears and interacts in the early morning hours.

This causes me to feel bad for the people all over the world who have night when we have morning, because obviously God doesn't hear them right :-)

All kidding aside, we are all wired differently, and for those of us who love the night time more than the morning, it's good to know that science has come to our rescue!

A recent study in Switzerland shows that night owls have more perseverance throughout the day. Their productivity levels remain up while the early risers are winding down and getting ready for bed.

So if you are a night owl and need some ammo for your morning glory friends, check out this article:

http://www.rodale.com/sleeping-late-and-productivity?cm_mmc=DailyNewsNL-_-2009_05_01-_-Top5-_-NA

Sleep well everyone!

Monty

Listen To The Wind

In Brennan Manning's Latest book, "The Furious Longing of God" there is a short interlude that caused me to slow down, pause, and ponder. Enjoy the interlude...Monty

_____________________________________
Brennan writes:

"If there were ever words written by another author for which I would swap every one of my own, they would be the words of the following paragraph by Hans Urs Von Balthasar:

I say to you, Blessed is he who exposes himself to an existance never brought under mastery, who does not transcend, but rather abandons himself to my ever-transcending grace.

Blessed are not the enlightened whose every question has been answered and who are delighted with their own sublime insight, the mature and ripe ones whose one remaining action is to fall from the tree.

Blessed, rather, are the chased, the harassed who must daily stand before my enigmas and cannot solve them. Blessed are the poor in spirit, those who lack a spirit of cleverness.

Woe to the rich, and woe to the doubly rich in spirit! Although nothing is impossible with God, it is difficult for the Spirit to move their fat hearts. The poor are willing and easy to direct. Like little puppies they do not take their eyes from their master's hand to see if perhaps he may throw them a little morsel from his plate.

So carefully do the poor follow my promptings that they listen to the wind (which blows where it pleases), even when it changes. From the sky they can read the weather and interpret the signs of the times.

My grace is unpretentious, but the poor are satisfied with little gifts.

Rhythm...new series...get ready...

This Sunday I will be kicking off a new series called Rhythm.

Have you ever felt like you were out of sync with life? The music was playing, but your feet and body just couldn’t move with the music! Or maybe you were trying to feel the rhythm but your movements were stiff, lacking beauty and a connection to the music. God is the master artist and life’s ultimate rhythm. When we experience divine syncopation we begin to to experience the God-rhythm of life that brings about happiness, hope, healing and health!

If you are ready to find your God-groove, then join me...we will be grooving our way through the book of Colossians. I hope you are ready for God to do some incredible work in your soul!

Monty

RHYTHM Bumper from MC Wright on Vimeo.

Review: The Furious Longing of God

" The manila package stared at me without giving away the cargo it carried. "Hmm, what has come today? I wondered." As soon as I pulled the compact volume of Brennan Manning's newest work from the package I felt a literal surge of gratitude in my soul. "It's here, it's here!" I have been excited to receive the latest compilation or passionate prose from Brennan for an Ooze review! (http://viralbloggers.com)(www.theooze.com)

I have also had the privilege of inviting Brennan to spend a weekend with me and the church I pastor just outside of Seattle. He inspired, challenged, and helped us all to center on the person, work, and love of God through Jesus.

As I began to pour through the pages, the words were not ancient mysteries newly unveiled, or some new angle on God's truth, but rather, I felt as though Brennan and I were sitting next to a fire, having a spiritual conversation about our journeys with Jesus.

Brennan is at his passionate post as this writing centers on "union" which is the heartbeat of his book, "the furious longing of God." On page 65 Brennan writes:

"Words such as union, fusion, and symbiosis hint at the ineffable oneness with Jesus that the apostle Paul experienced: "It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me" (Gal. 2:20). No human word is even remotely adequate to convey the mysterious and furious longing of Jesus for you and me to live in His smile and hang on His words. But union comes close, very close; it is a word pregnant with a reality that surpasses understanding, the only reality worth yearning for with love and patience, the only reality before which we should stay very quiet. "Cease striving and know that I Am God." (Ps. 46:10)

The book is not large, it yields 136 devotional pages. The book is not a new journey, rather it is a trusted reminder of what is true and worth engaging the pharisees of our day over. The book is not flashy, it is Brennan telling you stories interlaced with some insightful exegesis.

If you have never read a book by Brennan before, pick this one up and you will get a glimpse of a man saved by grace who has allowed his wounds to become sacred by the healing touch of Jesus. If you have read books by Brennan, pick this one up, you will feel a refreshing wind reminding you that too often we create religions where Jesus simply says follow me.

From the transformation of Aldonsa to Dulcinea in Don Quixote, to the message found in Shel Silversteins, "The Giving Tree," Brennan delivers the furious punch of divine grace over and over again.

Perhaps Brennan best brings home the concept of union, symbiosis, fusion, or in the apostle John's term "abiding" on page 72:

"The ordinary pablum of popular religion caters to the idealistic, perfectionistic, and neurotic self who fixates on graceless getting worthy for union, while allowing the prostitutes and tax gougers to dance into the kingdom. Our strategies of self-deception persude us that abiding restful union with Jesus is too costly, leaving no room for money, ambition, success, fame, sex, power, control, and pride of place or the fatal trap of self-rejection, thus prohibiting mediocre, disaffected dingbats and dirtballs, like myself, from intimacy with Jesus. Until we learn to live peacefully with what Andre Louf calls "our amazing degree of weakness," until we learn to live gracefully with what Alan Jones calls "our own extreme psychic frailty," until we let the Christ who consorted with hookers and crooks to be our truth, the false, fraudulent self motivated by cowardice and fear will continue to distance us from abiding restful union."

Each chapter concludes with two thought provoking questions titled "Consider This..." I would encourage you to absorb the book and utilize these questions to allow the voice of Christ to speak to the deepest parts of your soul. In this way, "the furious longing of God" will be more than a reminder, and more than an intellectual diversion. It will ignite your faith in an environment where you know that you are loved by God, no matter what.

So, if you are looking for something absolutely new and different from Brennan, this is not your book. But, if you long for a realignment of your soul to the heartbeat of the Father, Abba, as Brennan so powerfully relays...get this book.

Dei Gratia,

Monty

Losing My Religion

I just got a "Tweet-link" off of Twitter, and the short little text message caught my eye, it said: Video of Gregorian Chant version of Losing my Religion...

Well, that intrigued me...since I am a paradoxical human who loves both Gregorian Chant as well as the music of REM, I just had to check it out...

It's different...I like it...let me know your take on Post Modern Chant!

Dei Gratia,

Monty

Gregorian - Losing My Religion - The most amazing bloopers are here

The You Tube Symphony @ Carnegie Hall

I saw this You Tube project last week on Facebook. When I found some time to actually engage in the presentation I was blown away. You Tube put out the call to all the budding musicians who upload their talent on a daily basis, to make an audition piece. The best players would be selected from the You Tube videos and brought together to perform live at Carnegie Hall.

The result is incredible. Since this is a You Tube project, the video quality is exceptional and they allowed the full concert length of about an hour to be seen as one file.

Get comfortable, turn up the sound, check out the visuals and enjoy some incredible talent.

Monty

Jesus Is An Elephant

Steven Colbert takes on Bart Ehrman, who is the current spokesperson/theologian for those who believe more in the theology of the DaVinci Code than the Bible. I don't know if you watch the Colbert report or not, but he is pretty sharp and couches it in satirical humor. 

It amazes how people are still trying to revise history, particularly when it comes to who Jesus was and who He claimed to be. So laugh with Colbert as he picks on the "scholar."

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Bart Ehrman
colbertnation.com

No Security In Nature

A friend of mine sent me this quote. Many of you know I am a quote freak, but this one especially made it into brain. It comes to us from Helen Keller:

"Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. Security is mostly a superstition.
It does not exist in nature."

We tend to spend our lives in pursuit of security. Emotional security...Financial security...Physical security...When the world doesn't respond the way we want, or to put it another way; when our illusory security fall apart we don't know what to do. We either quit or try to re-create the security that we thought we had...kind of a denial mechanism I suppose.

When we live life as an adventure, we realize that that security is a rare commodity, and that adventure contains risk. The global economy experienced a security breach  as our financial institutions unfortunately realized that security can often be a superstition, that right when we think we have everything covered...there always remains the potential for the unexpected.

Security does not exist in nature is a compelling thought...there is raw, natural beauty, but it is always at the disposal of other elements. In an instant that which exuded sheer loveliness can be trampled, crushed or otherwise hurt. There is always a bigger animal, a more threatening danger...true, security is definitely lacking in nature.

As I think through the security question, it does strike me that while security in the realms of the emotional, physical or financial is fleeting...security in the spiritual is the bedrock of our faith. In fact, the only way we can truly live life as an adventure is if we have activated the spiritual component of our lives.

When we know, trust and experience that God is, and that God is actively involved...then we are able to trust in the storm, have faith when our security is breached, and find hope when we have spent our last bit of energy trying to control that which is uncontrollable.

I think Helen was on to something...faith creates the possibility of adventure; adventure embraces risk; risk creates a lack of security; trust in God overrides and keeps us moving forward even when life isn't fair...and that my friends is an adventure.

Thoughts on the quote?

Dei Gratia,

MC

Leadership And The Tao

For the person who would dare to step out front and lead, he/she should know that they have just entered a journey of growth on every level of life. Leaders know all too well that there are many people who seemingly live to attack their leadership filling the air with complaints and accusations that would make your momma blush.

There are decisions to make that are guaranteed to please some and anger others. There are relational concerns, emotional drains and physical tasks that demand far more than they repay.

Good leaders are always looking at the areas that they need to grow in, whether it is emotional, spiritual, intellectual or physical. That is one of the main reasons that every great leader that I know is a man or woman who is also a great reader.

They tear into authors old and new to stretch their brain, broaden their vision and equip their teams for the future.

One leader who lived thousands of years ago captured the ancient teaching of the Tao into a document, and in it, there are some truisms that leaders can grab onto, even as we have learned from another ancient leader, Sun Tzu's,  militaristic work, The Art of War.

The Tao has been around for a long time. A compilation of proverbs, so to speak, that instruct the listener on how to live a healthy, happy and balanced life. According to legend Lao Tzu ( a contemporary of Confucius) was keeper of the archives at the imperial court. When he was eighty years old he set out for the western border of China, toward what is now Tibet, saddened and disillusioned that men were unwilling to follow the path to natural goodness. At the border (Hank Pass), a guard, Yin Xi (Yin Hsi), asked Lao Tsu to record his teachings before he left. He then composed in 5,000 characters (or 81 proverbs) the Tao Te Ching (The Way and Its Power).

You may have encountered some of the teachings of the Tao but not have known it was the Tao! For example, one famous saying is, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." Ah, yes, now you remember!  The 17th entry of the Tao Te Ching has some great insight for leaders:
______________________

The best leaders are those the people hardly know exist.
The next best is a leader who is loved and praised.
Next comes the one who is feared.
The worst one is the leader that is despised.

If you don't trust the people,
they will become untrustworthy.

The best leaders value their words, and use them sparingly.
When she has accomplished her task,
the people say, "Amazing:
we did it, all by ourselves!"

________________________

Lao Tzu reveals four levels  or types of leadership.

Leaders that are pleasers...Leaders that get results through threats...Leaders who are so self-interested that no one likes them. You can probably think of one or more leaders that you have had the pleasure of being around that fit one of those three descriptions! I am also betting that you would never want to emulate or become like them. You might even have a nauseous feeling in your stomach right now simply remembering what it was like to work for a person who used threats, intimidation, or was always taking the credit for a job well done even when it was not his or hers to take.

For Lao Tzu the best leader is the one who empowers and lifts up others. This leader does not need to place his face on every promotional item, nor does every good thing have to point towards her, rather when the mission is accomplished, the people say, "Look at what WE did!"

If you are to become a world-class leader there are a few things to remember:

1. Ego is the greatest killer to empowering those around you to become the best that they can become.

2. When you focus on raising the elevation of your team, you too, will be elevated.

3. You will limit the success of your team or organization based upon your need to promote yourself and receive the strokes of accomplishment.

4. When you lead from a spirit of humility, you will accomplish more, live in relational health, empower others, create friends, and find that you don't need accolades from outside to make you feel good about who you are, or to give you a sense of worth.

This week, think about ways that you can empower those around you...share the credit for a job well done...thank someone you work with for their energy and effort on your behalf...resist the temptation to make it all about you.

You will notice at first that this is uncomfortable, perhaps even a bit unnatural. It is. We live in a culture that celebrates the celebrity...where we shout for the home-run hitter far more than the RBI hitter! But remember our God dwells in paradox, and sometimes our best wisdom causes that cosmic eyebrow to raise :-)

Yet...their is a joy that awaits you if you would transition towards this different kind of leadership. John the Baptist said it this way:

"He must increase and I must decrease."

Jesus put it in another way:

"Don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing."

Choose today to become an Incarnational leader, a man or woman who allows God to flow through them creating a preferred reality for everyone around them!

Dei Gratia,

Monty

Powerful Prayers Vol. IV: St. Benedict

This month's Powerful Prayer comes from St. Benedict. He was the creator of what become Western Monasticism living between 480 and 543 AD. The "Rule" that Benedict created, became a way of life and living not just for monks, but for common people as well.

In His Rule, Benedict sought to create a lifestyle that incorporated worship, service and community. Benedict saw the life of Christ as best formed in the context of relationships, not isolation. So, faith then, was to be a shared experience, not a solo gig!

This month's prayer is a long one, so I would encourage you to read it slowly, and perhaps to meditate on each of the prayers stanzas each day. A stanza a day so to speak. That would give you some great prayer and meditation time this month!

Monty
________________________________________________________________

O Lord,

I place myself in Your hands and dedicate myself to You.

I pledge myself to do Your will in all things:
To love the Lord God with all my heart, all my soul, all my strength.

Not to kill, not to steal not to covet, not to bear false witness, to honor all persons.
Not to do to another what I should not want done to myself.
Not to seek after pleasures.

To love fasting.
To relieve the poor.
To clothe the naked.
To visit the sick.

To bury the dead.
To help those in trouble.
To console the sorrowing.
To hold myself aloof from worldly ways.
To prefer nothing to the love of Christ.

Not to give way to anger.
Not to foster a desire for revenge.
Not to entertain deceit in the heart.
Not to make a false peace.

Not to forsake charity.
Not to swear, lest I swear falsely.
To speak the truth with heart and tongue.
Not to return evil for evil

To do no injury, indeed, even to bear patiently any injury done to me.
To love my enemies.
Not to curse those who curse me but rather to bless them.
To bear persecution for justice's sake.

Not to be proud.
Not to be given to intoxicating drink.
Not to be an overeater.
Not to be lazy.
Not to be slothful
Not to be a detractor.

To put my trust in God.
To refer the good I see in myself to God.
To refer any evil I see in myself to myself
To fear the day of judgment.
To be in dread of hell.

To desire eternal life with spiritual longing.
To keep death before my eyes daily.
To keep constant watch over my actions.
To remember that God sees me everywhere.

To call upon Christ for defense against evil thoughts that arise in my heart.
To guard my tongue against wicked speech.
To avoid much speaking.
To avoid idle talk.

Not to seek to appear clever.
To read only what is good to read.
To pray often.
To ask forgiveness daily for my sins, and to seek ways to amend my life.

To obey my superiors in all things rightful.
Not to desire to be thought holy, but to seek holiness.
To fulfill the commandments of God by good works.

To love chastity.
To hate no one.
Not be jealous or envious of anyone.
Not to love strife.
Not to love pride.

To honor the aged.
To pray for my enemies.
To make peace after a quarrel, before the setting of the sun.
Never to despair of your mercy, O God of mercy.
__________________________________________________________

Monty's Rumination

There is much to ponder with this prayer. It is hard to escape the heartbeat of Jesus that pulsates through Benedict's prayer. As I read and prayed through this prayer myself, there were some meditative words that were illuminated for me. Here is what came to my mind with some ruminations...

1. Devotion:

Life starts with and is culminated in God. When we believe we are separate from this reality is when life lacks the beauty and purpose and divine support we long for. Benedict started out with devotion to God, not for what he could get from God, but because God simply is.

2. Others-centeredness:

The Big 10 (commandments) are all about our relationship with and towards God and other people. To be a God-pursuer, we must also be people pursuers. In this prayer, as in the core truth of the Bible, we find that we desperately need a heart change to be "others-oriented." When we begin to live out the reality that our lives are interconnected because of God, and that God dwells in those who choose Him, then we honor God as we love and honor each other.

3. Grace:

The rarest of commodities in a performance based world. Grace is a gift that is unearned...an extension of love to someone not deserving...a sliver of divinity in the plains of desolation. Without grace, life would be a contractual game of tit for tat...someone always loses in this game. But with God's grace, you always win, even when you don't deserve it. Because God dwells within you, you are now able to be a channel of Divine grace to others...especially the ones who don't deserve it. As you grow in grace, you will know that your life is being submerged in God.

4. Integrity:

To live out our beliefs in real time. To begin the morphing of our outward life with our inner soul. To realize that in Christ's love we no longer have to pretend to be someone we aren't. When we live as posers to our true self, with live a disintegrated life and we are often stressed out, depressed, discouraged and disillusioned, and often don't know why. When we embrace Christ who loves us as we are, not as we should be (as Brennan Manning says) we are finally able to bring those shadow parts of our lives into the light where God can heal, restore and reintegrate us towards wholeness.

5. Paradox:

Ah paradox. This is to live life in divine-tension. To embrace the way of Jesus where I love those who don't love me...where I pray for those who plot against me...where I give away what I don't have...where I find energy when my tank is empty...when I heal others when I am broken...paradox is choosing to follow God when we loose the way.

6. Humility:

Humility is knowing who you are. Your strengths and your weakness, and allowing God to lead you in both of these realities. In your strength, you don't need to show the world that you are strong, you can allow others to be strong, to receive the spotlight. You release the need to be right or justified...those needs come from your weakness, or uncertainty of who you are. In your weakness, humility is seen in honesty and authenticity. In being able to be helped and part of community. As Paul said, "We should think of others more highly than ourselves." An others-centric heart will pave the road for humility to grow, and humility is the gateway to a God-infused life.

7. Service:

It seems all these thoughts are interconnected and build upon each other. Worship at it's most powerful pinnacle is seen when we serve each other. For Jesus it was...when you feed a hungry person, clothe someone without clothing...visit someone in prison...and pour out water for the thirsty, you are doing that -to- and -for- me. It amazes me how God continually loves all people through people. We best serve God when we love each other.

8. Surrender:

Pause...this is huge. This word is so needed in our hearts and souls, yet so elusive. To surrender is almost an anti-American statement. We thrive on phrases like "Never Surrender" right? But with God, the pathway to success begins on the trail of surrender...not to the powers around us, but to God. To trust that no matter where we are, or what we are facing, that we are not abandoned. That the good that comes to us is as beneficial as the bad we encounter, and that God allows events and circumstances into our lives to grow us, mold us, morph us, and refine us. The root of surrendered life is a heart that can trust, but trust is hard to come by in a world of broken promises and dreams. The most beautiful picture of trust is Christ upon the cross, at that most painful and intense moment of His life crying out, "Abba, into Your hands I commit My Spirit." In otherwords...Abba, this hurts, I don't get it, but I will move beyond the "why's" of life and simply lay all of who I am into your hands...I trust you. Now that is surrender.

9. Sovereignty:

Benedict gets back to this thought over and over again in his prayer. Sovereignty is the truth that God is God and I am not. We tend to live most of our lives as if we were God. We are control freaks and meddlers of affairs :-) Since God is, I have found that I don't need to be His defense attorney when life is hard or doesn't make sense. I also have found that I don't always need to "fix" things or people, in fact I can't, only God can because He is sovereign. Sovereignty is the most under-taught concept today, and radically needed. When I make myself or someone else God...guess what happens? You got it, tension, anxiety, pain, confusion and a gutting of my energy. Allowing God to be God reminds me that there is help and hope, because it is not based on me or my performance...phew, I am thankful for God's sovereignty.

10. Vigilance:

Vigilance comes out of the depths of our soul when we truly long and desire to know and experience God. We become "hem grabbers." Like the woman who reached through the packed streets to touch the hem of Jesus' robe to receive healing, we know that the best place to be is holding onto Christ with a tenacious grip that says "I will never let go!" Vigilance reminds me that even when something seems to be done or dead, God is the God of resurrection, and nothing is beyond His ability to infuse with new life and hope. Vigilance makes sure the next candle is ready before the current candle burns out. Vigilance trusts in the sovereignty and grace of God creating a heart that trusts...so don't give up!

11. Wisdom:

In the Proverbs, wisdom is personified, and becomes something that is so highly valued that we should do absolutely anything to gain her! Wisdom is the ability to meditate and become proactive people. The opposite of wisdom is reaction without meditation. We live in a reactionary world. This is why we have so many wars, collapsing economies, and disintegrating communities. We react when we should respond. Reactions are generally not full of wisdom, but raw emotion, and we all know that emotions are not always based on a full picture of reality. Godly wisdom comes from reflection, prayer, meditation and the counsel of friends and God.

12. Forgiveness:

What a way to end eh?! Forgiveness happens when we begin to integrate all the words that I have just ruminated through. First, forgiveness is a choice, but later it becomes a state of being as you allow God to do in you what only the love and person of Christ can do. To forgive is to release your offender. You have them dead to rights, but you release them...forgiveness is the actual practice of grace, or the fruit of it. Forgiveness is never easy, but almost impossible towards those who have truly wounded us or someone we love...but forgiveness is also the most transforming agent in the Divine arsenal. Ask God today to help you forgive...then you will experience a level of God-reality like you have never known!

Have an incredible day...keep praying, it truly works.

Monty