I was reflecting on all the crazy events in our world as the year 2012 draws to a close.
Then it hit me that Jesus was born in the stable to offer to the world the stability of peace, hope, love, and joy which are the gifts of advent, the gifts of God to our world.
I know that God's peace, hope, love and joy are the things the make the most unstable of times stable.
In your stable, know God's stability. For whatever was in the past and whatever is to come know the stable assurance of God's love.
About Me
- Don Paine
- I am a pastor and a clinical psychotherapist. My life's passion is defining healthiness from a human perspective and paralleling it to the holiness of God, divine perspective. Shifting perspectives creates a paradigm that is alongside of rather than over and against. The parakalein of God and the paradoxes of humanity are redefined. Humanity is all about winning and yet we are losing ground everywhere. Divinity is all about letting go of the desire to win and the fear of loss. The Divine embraces the world with loving care regardless of anything.
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What was easy about that first Christmas Day, 2000 plus years ago?
Not much. There was the difficulty for Mary of what people were thinking about her and for Joseph the same. There was the necessary trip to register at the census/tax office at the worst of times in her 8th month of pregnancy. There was the "no place to stay message" and the "no vacancy" signs everywhere. It was a difficult time, not easy by any stretch of the imagination.
Imagine in the presence of all that uneasiness that the message of the angels was a simple "be at ease".
"Be at ease" does not mean that things are easy or that it is easy to be calm in difficult times or in the storm.
It means that when you cultivate an internal space of calmness whatever is not easy becomes more easy.
So the next time you are uneasy about something anything see if you can step out of that feeling and hear and "be at ease".
It is a message of Christmas!
I imagine the God of love and peace awaiting this first advent. Since the beginning of time, which God began and marks, God knew the day would come that it would be time, to send his son into the world made for and of God.
He knew as Paul comments in one of his letter that the time was just right. “In the fullness of time, God sent his son”. In the fullness of time, at the exact right moment God is present in every moment with love and peace. God offers us the way to give our hearts rest and peace. God orders the world to acts of love and kindness.
We forget that every moment is pregnant with the presence of God’s love, every situation is made better when looked at through the lens of peace and love, and all the world will become a better place when we all see "the way of grace" and embrace that way as the way of life. It is the Jesus way that is bigger and broader than any ecclesiastical way.
It is the Jesus Way that is the Way of and to heaven. It is not about church or religion it is about relationship and relatedness.
That is the message of Christmas. It is not about Christmas. It is about the love that produced Christmas That love is in all of us regardless.
I heard of a woman in Bethlehem, PA who is attempting to form a museum of nativities from all over the world. She collected them from many nations and tribes of people all over the world. Over the years she has stored them in her home and now wants to create a museum of Nativities. At 71 she wants to leave a legacy. The interesting thing is she said she does not believe in Christ or Christmas but just likes the nativity scene, loves babies, and so has collected them from everywhere.
That is the true Spirit of Christmas: seeing the beauty and message of the baby of love laid in a bed of hay so that all may lay their head in the lap of God’s love.
That is the true Spirit of Christmas: seeing the beauty and message of the baby of love laid in a bed of hay so that all may lay their head in the lap of God’s love.
What a mess.
Imagine Joseph and Mary walking out into that smelly nature
infested stable. They had learned
that God was in this and with them no matter what. I imagine Joseph telling her not to worry that it will all
work out. Another part of me
imagines that it was Marry the one pregnant and uncomfortable that was
reassuring the Joseph who was feeling badly, not to worry that it will all work
out. Maybe they were speaking this
truth into each other’s life. It
was and is true.
No matter how messy it is in your life, the message is the
same: the I will be with you God will be with you no
matter what.
God will be with you!
I imagine the God of love and peace awaiting this first
advent. Since the beginning of
time, which God began and marks, God knew the day would come that it would be
time, to send his son into the world made for and of God.
He knew as Paul comments in one of his letter that the time
was just right. “In the fullness
of time, God sent his son”. In the
fullness of time, at the exact right moment God is present in every moment with
love and peace. God offers us the
way to give our hearts rest and peace.
God orders the world to acts of love and kindness.
We forget that every moment is pregnant with the presence of
God’s love, every situation is made better when looked at through the lens of
peace and love, and all the world will become a better place when we all get
the way of grace and embrace that way as the way of life. It is the Jesus way that is bigger and
broader than any ecclesiastical way.
Lots of religious groups, churches, mosques, synagogues, temples etc declare "their way" as the only way, the best way, or the better way". It is the way of most to define their unique or special insight on the way and the what that people should believe. Few if any define "the way" as living in peace and loving all people regardless of anything. Some would argue: that definition of "the way" is too all inclusive.
Everyone seems to think that the way needs to be a specific or narrowly defined way and that the broad way that leads to destruction is "specific and narrow".
I believe that the narrowly defined way to God is what everyone thinks is right but it is inherently self-serving, self-indulgent and therefore inherently counterproductive. The narrow way, that few people accept or find because they are busy trying to define their way to God, is really the broadly defined "way of love and peace". The previously narrowly defined way to God serves tension and contention so itself leads to competition and destruction. The new narrow way serves what is its core: peace and love.
In the fullness of time, in our day, we can begin defining the narrow way as the way that defines the way to God in more inclusive and coalescing language and breeds the same: love and peace in all for all.
Yesterday I was on the phone with an insurance agent who was
trying to help me resolve a problem.
She was so respectful and cooperative I became increasingly relaxed and
confident that we could together resolve the problem without attacking each
other or defending ourselves. We
laughed about several things and even before I knew the problem had been
respectfully resolved I told her that it was delightful and sort of Christmassy
to make the best of a mess. She thank
me and I said, So I want to wish you “Merry Christmases all around”. She commented that she had never heard
that expression before and really liked it and wanted to use it. I told her it was not mine that I had
never said it to anyone and I sort of liked it so would use it myself. She laughed and we all felt Christmassy
all around us. I had never used that expression before it just came up from somewhere inside me. Interesting.
It did not just happen. We made it happen by making the best of a troubling
situation. That is what Christmas
is: the gift of making good in the midst of something bad or just not good!
Merry Christmases all around!
I have not been able to blog for 7 days.
It has been seven days side the horrific tragedy of 12/14 where 20 children and 6 adults working a school in Newtown, CT, were killed. Also killed that day was the mother of the shooter and the shooter himself.
Every time I went to blog I felt like "silence was the best way" to represent the horror of the moment. Words fail us when there are no words to describe what you feel inside and the compassion of silence is your only true friend.
I noticed that each day I looked for children walking, shopping, at a funeral, and just went up to them and their parents in a light and caring way to honor their living with a sense that there are people in the world that care. Who will go out of their way to offer an "intention act of kindness and goodness".
Maybe that is what I needed to do to break the silence. I did not have to share my thoughts on the tragedy what I need to do is break the silence of seeing people but not speaking love and kindness into their lives.
So do something in memory of those who died that day by "contributing something to the presence of goodness in the world. Maybe the good answer to the violence in the world.
"Peace in you and on earth, and Good will, goodness and kindness to all"
Tears of the eyes
Water the soul
Troubles of the heart
Temper the spirit
Sorrows of the Mind
Comforted by the soul and spirit!
I just received an email from a good friend reminding me of humanities political correctness which is the more modern pc having replaced the pc of personal computer.
It reminded me of another maybe the best kind of hallmark "PC": "Peaceful Contentment" which is the message of all the angels of Christmas to Zechariah, Elizabeth, Mary, Joseph, the Shepherds, and everyone: Be Still and Don't Worry for the I will be with God is With You! Now that breeds the pc of personal contentment!
PC to you this Christmas Season!
Yesterday I heard a research project declare that "counting sheep" is not as effective a strategy for creating calmness as picturing a beach. Interesting that in the 21st century so many get to the beach that that is a comforting scene. At the same time, centuries ago not many got to the beach but many had sheep farms. The image of the "sheep jumping over the fence" created movement and a soft comfortable cushiony image that was familiar so it worked.
So different things at different times create the same "calming effect and affect".
Dualism can create balance not tension, conflict or duplicity.
Tough as nails and soft like wool.
Tender as sheep and a tender of sheep.
Maybe that is why there is so much duality to invite us to balance and harmony not to foster conflcit and duplicity.
Imagine the world with dualities but no duplicity!
It was a mess. It was messy. Was I the cause or had I just stepped into a mess? I asked.
Then I took a step back and saw a message to me.
So often when there is a mess or when life seems messy I have a "you messed up" part that speaks to me (making me feel it is all my fault) or to someone else who I want to blame or shame.
This is as old as Genesis 3 and what we have referred to as the "fall". God refereed that moment and took on no shame or blame and released the couple from the need to blame or shame each other.
So I learn, when there is a mess or a messy situation to take a step back and look for a message. The message always massages meaning and learning into the mess.
Robert Bly, a well-known poet, has a wonderful analogy. He says that we arrive from the far reaches
of the Universe as 360-degree balls of radiance, place ourselves at our parent’s feet, and say, “Here I
am.” And they say, “I didn’t want you. I wanted a good little girl or boy.” That’s where the Judger
begins. It points out all of the unacceptable parts and shoves them back into what Bly calls the long,
dark bag we drag behind us. What we hide composts in the bag, gets wild and builds up a big head
of steam while we expend all our energy maintaining a mask by which we purchase love and
affection. Whenever these wild parts threaten to break through the mask—our power, stubbornness,
exuberance, terror, curiosity, rage—we deny, numb out or project them onto someone else as fast as
we can. We relate to these parts exactly as they were met when we were developing the image of
ourselves, usually with fear and rejection.
I just finished a training that uses parts language to assist in people welcoming all parts of themselves and others and offering those parts the attention of compassion that they need to release overwhelming burdens and unhelpful beliefs. They then breathe in the qualities of compassion and calmness for healing and restoration.
I had an image come up in me that was a ball of light filled with calmness and compassion that then sprouted arms and legs and a variety of parts with which to engage the world. When injured they become inflamed with protectors and preservers that only serve to frustrate the system. When balance and harmony are achieved they see and feel the wonder and witness of the calmness and compassion that is their essence.
Yesterday, I was up did my walk with my dog, started my truck and was off to work so I thought. I stopped at the local market for a coffee and while in their my truth which I had left running as it was a cold day, had quit on me. Without previous warning of any kind it just would not start.
At first I was upset even a little mad at my good truck. Then I was frantic about what to do, how to get to work and what to say to clients who were waiting for me at my office and hour away! It was like a first I shook my fist, then pointed finger, and then began to fret. Ten I opened m hand and heart to the flow of the day and the sense that all would be well, it could be worse, and suddenly I was thankful that my truck did not strand me on the highway where i had little resources and bigger problems.
I even decided to not call AAA but just call a friend, rent a car and be on my way which I was able to be within an hour.
I "paused, stepped back, and breathed" and the flow of my day shifted. I only missed one appointment and the rest of my day went smoothly.
So life lessen for me: whenever you are frazzled and at first clench your fist, or cave in on your self, open your hand and heart and you will find things go better with an open heart and mind.
Oh and my truck is being cared for by a friend who picked it up. I and my truck are glad for good friends as well.
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