In Yoke

Romans 8:25-30 (ESV) - But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. My devotional life really does dynamically move into deep contemplation as I read and reread the words of Richard Rohr* , one of my favorite authors. “The contemplative or non-dual mind, which for me is the essential self, is a tree of life , and brings about continual fruitfulness for the soul. Rohr reminds me of this in the discussion of how we usually make judgments based on our binary, or “either/or” false self/or/ego”. “A binary system of either/or choices is good and necessary in the lofty worlds of logic, mechanics, math and science…and in the everyday worlds of getting from po...

In order to progress along “the path of spiritual progress”, or “spiritual formation”, Jim Marion, author of Putting on the Mind of Christ, shares this step by step pathway. This is not unlike the “eightfold path” taught by meditation masters of Buddhism or Hinduism, however, my tradition is to be an ever growing Christ follower. That is my path, my leading…but the wisdom of other masters, other than Christ, can be helpful. 1. First and foremost, in a humble, prayerful attitude, honestly and truthfully, I must allow the Holy Spirit to assist me in assessing where I am. “ Where I am” today is perfect for the lessons that the Holy Spirit wants me to learn. The Spirit is providing “mirrors”, that is, other people who reflect back to us our level of consciousness. What is it that I fear? What are my strengths? What are the areas of my own life where I am weak? What are my aptitudes? What is the practice I am applying to growing my strengths and allowing the Spirit to decrease or...

In these final days of 2011, I am faced with a liminal space in life. There are decisions and doors that I must cross through and it is difficult to know what are my own individual, ego driven decisions and what things I am to simply listen to the voice of the Spirit and obey. I know that I am not able to abide by and follow the direction of “the world”—which is the guidance provided by those who own the stock and the little tech company I have sold, yet I am bound to it because of the payout that awaits me…if I can assist the company in achieving the modicum of stability that it has maintained for the past 5 years. That is dependent on so many factors, and so much future goodwill of our clients. It can create anxiety, if I but allow the anxiety to exist. I have faced such a point several times before—where I stood on the precipice of the future with darkness and change ahead. In fact, I have and you most likely have- faced a future where it is dark and the way of God’s will was n...

We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. –2nd Letter of Paul to the Corinthians, Ch. 10:v. 5 When thoughts arise, then do all things arise. When thoughts vanish, then do all things vanish.   – Huang Po Sri Easwaran approaches the topic of thought control from the perspective of taking time off and simply stopping the thought process. He elaborates: “When meditation deepens, and the thinking process slows down, we will find that we don’t have to think all the time. It sounds simple, even scary, but it is a mighty achievement that yields unimaginable peace. Thoughts are no longer compulsive.“ Paul comes at it in subjecting our thinking to the “mind of Christ”. These two perspectives are similar and lend credence to one other. In my understanding, they are quite the same—in that one must allow the Spirit within to control the thoughts that we “employ”. It is the ...

As an entrepreneur, and a former banker, I have dealt with the element of risk continually. I was interested to read the chapter on risk in Erwin Raphael McManus’ book, “Chasing Daylight”. These thoughts come from chapter 5, “Risk”, pp. 132-142. I felt it exigent to express these ideas in “In Yoke”. My comments are in bold font, his words are in italics. References to scripture are in blue font. I Samuel 14: 1-11- McManus alludes to the story of Jonathan risking his life against the Philistines while Saul sat under a pomegranate tree with his 600 soldiers all around him. Jonathan chose not to approach the Philistines by stealth, which is to try to become invisible, but to make himself visible. This involved tremendous risk. This seems foolhardy in the ways of battle, especially guerrilla warfare. Seems that Jonathan was more concerned with doing what seemed right because of his trust in the power of the God of Israel. Many of us live our lives making sure we are not seen. We choose...

Are you familiar with “wandering Jews”? No, not the Diaspora kind, the backyard plant kind. As the hellish summer of 2011 brought so many of our backyard plants to an end, due to the heat, these Jews simply thrive in all kinds of soil, with little or no water for long periods. Unlike other plants in the beds, and in the pots surrounding our backyard, I have not killed them! Here’s what a web resource for House Plants described them as-- Common Name: Wandering Jew, Chain Plant, Purple Heart Plant; Genus:   Tradescantia Family:   Commelinaceae; Plant Type: Perennial; Origin: South America These plants have proliferated all over our backyard. The origin of this planting is my mother-in-law, Fran Porter, who was enthusiastic about these miracle plants( Fran was enthusiastic about many things, mostly encouraging others to live up to their potential!) and gave us a few sprigs back before she got ill, sometime before 2005. Now I see these plants growing freely and exhibiti...

I found this blurb in an article on the Baylor University website. http://www.baylor.edu/pr/news.php?action=story&story=100503 Very interesting, and I can personally attest to its findings. American Entrepreneurs Pray More.   Starting a business is not for the faint of heart. Days, months and years may be spent toiling in financial uncertainty and meeting the demands of running a business, leaving little time for other endeavors, including religious involvement. But the survey found that religion does not impede starting a new business. The Baylor Religion Survey found that entrepreneurs are as likely as non-entrepreneurs to believe in God, to participate in a congregation and to read Scripture. Where American entrepreneurs do stand out is that they pray and meditate more than non-entrepreneurs. A third pray several times a day or meditate, in contrast to a quarter or less of non-entrepreneurs. "The differences are modest but meaningful," said Kevin D. D...