In Yoke

At the center of our being is a point or nothingness which is untouched by sin or illusion, a point of pure truth which belongs entirely to God, which is never at our disposal, from which God disposes of our lives, which is inaccessible to the fantasies of our own mind or the brutalities of our own will. This little point of nothingness and of absolute poverty is the pure glory of God in us. It is, so to speak, His name written in us, as our poverty, as our indigence, as our dependence, as our son-ship. It is like a pure diamond, blazing with the invisible light of heaven. ~Thomas Merton, essay-“A Member of the Human Race”, as quoted by Cynthia Bourgeault

The best, like water, Benefit all and do not compete. They dwell in lowly spots that everyone else scorns. Putting others before themselves, They find themselves in the foremost place And come very near to the Tao.   – Lao Tzu Easwaran muses : In today’s competitive climate, often those who are aggressive about imposing their will on others are labeled “successful.” But the accomplishments of such people are often sadly short-lived, while the damage they do themselves and others can be far-reaching. When competitiveness is excessive, we end up offending others, feeling offended, and lashing back, and that undoes everything worthwhile we might achieve. People who do not compete, on the other hand, seldom get upset when life goes against them. They do not try to impose their way on others, or get agitated or depressed or defensive when people hold different views. Gandhi was an excellent example of this. It is said that he was at...

“Each day is a little life; every waking and rising a little birth; every fresh morning a little youth; every going to rest and sleep a little death.”   – Arthur Schopenhauer Easwaran tells the story of his grandmother who was his spiritual teacher. Her lesson one day was that the pain we associate with the great change of life called death arises from our innumerable selfish attachments. This can be illustrated in a simple way—EE continues, “she began by asking me to sit in a chair and hold tight to the arms. Then she tried to pull me out of the chair. She tugged and pulled at me, and I held on tight. It was painful. She was a strong person, and even though I held on with all my strength, she pulled me out.” “Then she told me to sit down again, but this time not to hold on anywhere, just to get up and come to her when she called. With ease I got out of the chair and went to her. This, she told me, is how to overcome the fear and pain of death. When we hold onto things ...

The heart benevolent and kind The most resembles God.                            – Robert Burns Our college ministry at Calvary from 1999-2008 functioned with this motto and carried on in this way(one relationship at a time), hoping to form meaningful relationships  with college students, just trying to keep our focus on one at a time…looking for the spark of Christ within the heart of each individual. As we begin a new chapter in our college ministry, this heart desire and focus is the motto once more. This underscores a basic fact of community life…and that is this: It is through Christ centered personal relationships that we learn to function beautifully in our walk of life throughout its ups and downs. We all need the little human contacts of life, and we all need intimate personal relationships with family or friends. Many peop...

“Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you.”                                                                                                -The Gospel According to Saint Matthew This is love at its most magnificent. In order to love like this, we cannot be attached to ourselves. It is because we think so much about ourselves that we strike back, show resentment, speak harshly, move away. I have witnessed this phenomenon up close in the past couple of years. I am unable to understand m...

“No prolonged infancies among us, please. We'll not tolerate babes in the woods, small children who are an easy mark for impostors. God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love—like Christ in everything. We take our lead from Christ, who is the source of everything we do. He keeps us in step with each other. His very breath and blood flow through us, nourishing us so that we will grow up healthy in God, robust in love.”-Ephesians 4:14-16-The Message The bottom line—our lives are to continue to more and more reflect the character of Christ—ever increasing to full maturity. The fruits of the Spirit will continue to grow in abundance in the rich soil of the Body of Christ, so we must work through all adversity and resistance against trying to go it alone…and seek first His Kingdom—within the church, and learn to live in love. Help me, Holy Spirit, to be faithful to you still, small voice and your call…

The wine of life is oozing drop by drop, The leaves of life are falling one by one.   – Omar Khayyam Easwaran muses: Like leaves, we come into this life, are here for a few days, and then are gone. Nobody remembers us, and nobody misses us. As long as we believe that we are separate, we inevitably have to die. Our immortality is in the whole, which never dies. In living just for personal profit and pleasure, no matter under what philosophical name we may call it, our real personality withers away. It cannot be otherwise. When you become aware that you are not a leaf but the tree , something amazing happens in your life: you are able to act spontaneously, almost effortlessly, for the good of all. This is the proof of your awareness that you are the tree: everywhere it will motivate you, everywhere you will see what contribution you can make. You won’t have to deliberate the pros and cons. You won’t need a computer to provide you with a plan of action. You will kn...