Author: rkcdlitt

Go in Peace

Our minds are filled with the peace of God. With God’s peace and love, and our faith in God’s presence within us, removes fear of troubles in our lives; faith becomes our guiding light, and in this light, we overcome all worries, are healed from evil threats. 

When we live with the faith in God, we experience a great hope that supports are efforts to continue on the lighted journey of our life. We never give in to our bodily troubles. We are blessed that the Holy Spirit, which wraps us in protection, is shared by others, and when we recognize others as children of God also, our hearts are lifted by joyous goodness.

When we share, we see the brightness of God in their hearts, and this good news brings us and all gracious health from our Lord. How many times in the Bible did Jesus tell us that faith has saved us, and we are to go in peace. We listen, we learn, we hear and feel the Holy Spirit. Let our faith support us as we turn the corner on the new year.

Cherub, go in peace

It is the way of the lord

In faith find release

© Russell Kendall Carter

Body and Soul

It is good to have a body. Without this necessary entity, we cannot do what we are asked to do. Primarily, what we are invited to do by Jesus: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” A simple but many times a difficult invitation to uphold. We are too quick to judge others by their appearance.  

Just take a look at that family on the side of the road; you know, the one with the father standing there with a cardboard sign reading, “Help, we have no jobs and no place to live.” How many of us just pass them by, perhaps thinking that if we stopped, we might be infected by the filth they are forced to live in. Or, worse still, we say to ourselves and sometimes shout it out the window telling them to get a job and stop cluttering up the highways.

What we think affects our bodies. But negative feelings about these poor people, many times people pf color or immigrants, do affect the way our bodies respond. Stress, acidity in the stomach are two symptoms that come to mind. But when we look at these people with sympathy and reach out to them giving the a few dollars, our opinions of them change, as do the reflections within our bodies.

Personally, I feel pity, anger, and shame. Pity comes first because I came from a relatively poor background in the 1950s; not a beggar’s life, but a life of an unsure future. What we had back then was hope. Hope is a spiritual refuge that secures our souls directly to the loving arms of God. hope protects us from the depths of depression that can overwhelm us in hard times. Anger and shame because our society of greed causes this grief.

Hope also in couples with faith; faith that ties us directly to God. Hope is repeated many, many times in the stories of Jesus that we read in the New Testament; but is also is present in the promises of God’s Love in the Old Testament, when the prophets speak of the coming Messiah. Hope is not present unless we also have faith, a faith in an every-loving God. our faith is in something not visible to the human eye; it is only visible when seen and received from the heart.

How many times did Jesus, say that faith has healed you? Healed, not cured, a healing is much more permanent than a cure. A healing cleanses one’s soul, that part of the human existence directly tied to God’s Love and Compassion. Your faith has freed you, so you can live in peace. Let our body, our soul, and our faith be one.

Our body, our soul

One is limited by time

One is saved by faith

© Russell Kendall Carter

Being a Watchman

God offers so much; we are born to live for such a short while. We cannot allow our neighbors to live in ruins. They are in pain because of our turning away from what we are too ashamed to see. We know we are wrong when we feast at the table and others go hungry. It is not enough to just open food kitchens. Our neighbors need these kitchens because we close the door to their prosperity.

We have the strength to lift them from poverty, keeping them healthy, and giving them well-paying employment. Yet we keep them from this because we do not want to give others a place at the table. We fear that what God produces in His abundant fields will not be enough; therefore, we hoard.

We forget that when others suffer needlessly, we also feel their pain; we just turn from it in embarrassment or fear. We forget that we are on earth to serve, not to hoard. We cannot love unless we allow God’s light to shine upon all. We celebrate the birth of Jesus every year, but we forget that He was born into poverty and lived His entire life in poverty. Yet He rose to great heights, inviting us to come with Him and walk in God’s light.

His lessons are of truth, eternal abundance, love, peace, and community through our sharing the Eucharist. All He asks is for us to open our hearts, listen . . . to understand our lives, the lives of others and how that without God, we are all weak. If we walk the lighted path shown to us by Jesus, our journey will lead to wonder.

In a world suffering with war and pandemic, we can rise above the turmoil by listening to God with our open hearts to receive true wisdom and love. We cannot heal others of their problems unless we ourselves are healed. This occurs only through God’s love and grace.

When we arm ourselves with God’s Love and Grace, we can rise above all earthly cares and not be slaves to the evils of war and pandemics. For your sake and mine, we must not be silent and turn our eyes from the hardships of life that are created by our fears. It is time to free our self-imposed shackles and live the lives that only God can provide.

© Russell Kendall Carter

In Him is Life, and the Life is the Light.

The light of all people shines on a bright Christmas morning. As the shepherds I the fields, the world is filled with wonder, the wonder of a grace-filled God born among us to suffer the hardships of mortal life. This is not just an experience for those of us who are called Christians. This light is for all people, all of God’s creation. Nothing can separate us from God’s Love and Grace. The Love that Jesus brings is so massive and so bright, we must close our eyes and see it with our hearts.

Only the majesty of this loving God can invite us to understand it, then, and only then, can we out our trust in the message that Jesus brings. As Christians, our God-given duty is to pray that others will be opened to realize and be strengthened by this Love. We must not force them to do so; we must only offer God’s invitation to do so. The Spirit of God is within us all to realize when we listen for His words with our open hearts.

Jesus asks that we love God, love ourselves, and love one another. We cannot love God, nor can we love Jesus, if we do not love one another. That means that no matter what a person looks like, what religion or gender that person is, or what color that person is, he/she is invited to hear the light of Jesus and the light of God wit their open hearts. If we do not love one another, we cannot absolutely love God, for God created all on this earth and love and respect for all His creation is all He asks of us. Remember, Love is the very character of God.

We spiritually climb to the heights of the His holy mountain to truly feel the warmth of Love that is all around us. We step carefully to show respect for God’s creation. We feel the warmth and bask in the light that only God can give, and Jesus can bring to us. The Lord our God will keep us from all harm and watch over us for eternity. This is the message of Jesus.

               Proclaim
  
 Proclaim the greatness of our Lord!
 Proclaim the good news to all!
 Proclaim the coming of eternal love for all!
 Proclaim the humility and love
 For those who hear the Word and obey!
 O Creator of all, O majesty of Grace. Let us
 proclaim the lowness, the humility,
 the caring for the least on earth!
 Proclaim that the kingdom of the world 
 is again in our midst!
 Proclaim the patience, kindness, and love of
 Jesus Christ who showed us the way!
 Proclaim the greatness of our Lord! 

 
 
                     Holy – A Simple Advent Prayer
  
      God, you made the earth before us; sanctified our existence by forming us from elements in your creation. You made the earth holy; therefore, we also are holy. As you look upon Your Son, we praise You for being among us. Holy is His name. He brings peace to all who accept Your Word. During Advent, we remind ourselves that His presence and Your Love are gifts we must cherish.
      Each year, you open our door to the Holy One, reminding us that we too are holy in your eyes. May our actions during the holy season let our Love for You and Your Love for us shine brightly, restoring the eternal bond between Us. As Mary said, “Holy is His name.” may we keep His holiness in our lives throughout this coming year.
  
   

 Diamonds! Everybody has them, too many to count; but we walk around keeping them hidden. We listen not; we hear not; we share not. Our diamonds are hidden , in a jewel box, or a safe, out of touch, out of reach, out of sight. Our diamonds are hidden by our pasts, by our fears. 
 We dress in them, in our ears, in our noses, hanging on a change, or around our wrists. We show them off; see, I am rich, rich with my diamonds. Sometimes we put them on the soles of our shoes. Then we return them to our hidey-holes. Hidden, worthless; we think they have value. We think we are rich. How blind we are.
 Take them out; give them away; give them away. After this, look around; see all the diamonds you have. More than before, give them away. If we don’t keep them, we have more, many, many more. Our diamonds are not baubles to hide and bring out only when we try to impress. If we hide them, they fade away and are worthless.
 Our diamonds come from within. They are treasures meant to share. The more we give them away, the more we have. We sparkle like diamonds when we share.
   

 
 Pray
  
 Our ever-present communication with God,
 we pray without ceasing
 living our life as Jesus evinced,
 awaiting God’s response,
 which forever comes.
 Leaving anxiety and affliction
 to wander alone apart from us,
 we receive God’s compassion,
 immediate, everlasting
  joy, and gladness.
 Our humility in prayer
 accords power, love, and self-discipline each day.
  
 The Holy Spirit is forever,
 ever present with divine comfort;
 we dance to its music,
 keeping awake, alert, and forever
 conscious of God’s presence in our lives. 
 We are freed from our problems
 when Jesus walks alongside.
 God hears our prayers
 and always answers, 
 unceasingly, but in His time
 not ours.
 Pray – listen with God. 

 Worship
  
 I worship in my quiet room;
 I need not dress up; 
 I empty myself 
 alone with God.
  
 My room becomes a desert;
 as Jesus went to the desert,
 I face the Lord with all my failures;
 I empty myself in His presence.
  
 My worship flows from my heart;
 my soul magnifies in God’s presence,
 and He smooths my rocky path of life,
 lifting me to the height of Mount Zion.
  
 I cherish my solitude in worship;
 I am closer to God, and
 am able to be humble and honest,
 and obey His words for my life.
  
   

 God rests on day seven
 Jesus suggested, “Come with me 
 by yourselves to a quiet place and rest.”
  
 We rest in God’s presence,
 His angels give protection.
 Our minds are renewed;
 we learn to rely on God.
 In His ever-present being,
 God, our provider,
 gives us fulfillment.
 In our holy resting,
 we feel the power of change,
 realized by our rest,
 our fears are subtracted
 and we find God.