Meditating to Heal

Passion is good; passion is not so good!

Okay, that’s out of the way. Passion is described as a compelling emotion or feeling, as love or hate. It is also defined as lust, a strong sexual desire. A milder definition is a strong enthusiasm. In the Bible, The Passion of Christ is the story of Jesus Christ’s arrest, trial, and death. In this case, passion means suffering.

So, what does it mean to live with passion?

Every minute of our existence is like a precious pearl pulled from the deep. This is true because we are God’s agents of grace and unlimited sources of hope to all creation – our God-given duty. We are born into passion by the will of God who asks us to live a life of love and giving. We are to live a spiritual life filled with words of comfort, filled with a life of joy and sharing, and led by universal love with no prejudice or malice. We are loved; therefore, we love in return.

We free our spiritual energy boosting the Goodness. When we open our hearts to other people, we open ourselves for God to enter and something wonderful begins to happen to all. As our passion grows, so does our love; as our love grows, our lives become whole. We are calm; we are as a carnival, a place of joy and wonder. We hear the hush of the birds as they laugh at us while walking with nature and suddenly knowing all of their individual names. The calmness of the soothing breeze testifies to our reverence of life.

My passion grows and I appreciate all of God’s nature; love surrounds me; my happiness is your happiness; my success is your success. My laughter is your laughter. We are one with nature. We are nature’s passion. We are God’s passion!

© Russell Kendall Carter                                           

I reported to Parris Island, South Caroline in February 1964. While I was there the Beatles came to the United States and had hit upon hit in the rock charts. I came home in late August and heard them for the first time, exclaiming how unique and great they were. My friends laughed at me and asked where I had been for the past six months. To say the least, I felt a little foolish.

One of their early songs was “Help.” The opening lines are: “Help, I need somebody, (Help) not just anybody, (Help) you know I need someone, help.”

Recently, I was discussing the Beatles with a friend. I said that both McCartney and Lennon were very spiritual and probably very religious. He laughed, almost a horse laugh of guffaw. I reminded him of Lennon’s Imagine, where he asks us to “imagine there’s no heaven.” I went on to quote Let it Be, “Mother Mary comes to me;” and Hey Jude, “Hey Jude (Jesus), don’t let me down.”

There are others in Rock with religious meanings also; one in particular: The Byrds, Turn, Turn, Turn, (written by Pete Seeger) taken directly from Ecclesiastes.

God surrounds us wherever we go, thankfully. Humanity is filled with worry; we do it all the time. But if we have faith, we can leave our despair behind us. Our fathers and grandfathers are calling to us, telling us not to fear trials and tribulations, for Jesus walks with us. God hears our worries and sends the Holy Spirit to comfort us.

Isaiah reminds us, “Fear thou not, I am with thee.”  So. . .

“When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me, speaking words of Wisdom. . .”

Amen.

© Russell Kendall Carter

I begin my daily meditations with a simple line, “Please God, hear my prayer; Wisdom, hear my prayer.” I rarely ask anything for myself. My thoughts are always on others. I do have problems; the same problems that all seventy-nine-year-old people face; but I will not ask something for myself; God always provides!

From my very first Sunday school lesson, I learned and believed that God is Love. And because God is Love, He gifts us Wisdom.

The more I age and experience life, the stronger and more important  

Wisdom is the Divine Feminine, the nurturer we all need. If we lack the Wisdom sent by God, we can be lost in a never-ending forest of confusion and grief. One way to avoid this is to meet God everywhere. If needed, and it is, our entire focus of life must be on God. He knows where we are; remember Jesus telling Philip that He saw him under the fig tree; this reminds us that we are never out of the sight of God.

Clothe yourself in God! Set your heart on the simple, the thin; find God within where He dwells. Lift your heart and mind above, not on earthly troubles. Have faith! Concentrate on your future; the past is gone. God will always be with you.

God, hear my prayer; Wisdom, hear my prayer. God of deliverance, You are always in my life; Your Grace and Love carry me through the day.

O Wisdom hear my prayer; O God deliver me to do your wishes.

© Russell Kendall Carter

We have too much anger in our lives, anger that is stoked by television news, social media sites, and newspapers. Society has faced many times of trial, what some have called the hot winds of war. Born in the middle of World War 2, I lived through the struggles of the Civil Rights movements of the 1950s and 1960s, the Vietnam War, and the medical emergencies created by Polio, AIDs, E bola, and now Covid. All life is filled with these problems.

Unfortunately, I have also lived through many struggles in church leadership. I remember times when women could not be ordained ministers and priests, or when Gays were not pure enough. And my goodness, we now experience a rise in leadership both in the church and in politics with people of color. What’s next? Open and affirming churches that welcome anyone in, no matter what lifestyle they live . . . oops, these are already with us. I happen to belong to a very open and affirming church. Isn’t that wonderful? As I look to the future, I am encouraged that finally we as people of humanity are beginning to realize that every creature created by God is worthy to be called brother or sister.

All of the above negative thoughts and practices create a hidden anger living beneath the surface of society that periodically raises its ugly head to disrupt any progress, creating problems, creating hate. I fail to remember where I read this, but someone once said that problems are just solutions in disguise. The more we muse on this, the more we realize the truth of this simple sentence. I pray that we can solve present and future problems by recognizing how foolish negativity is.

One sure way of cooling the effects of this negativity of power and greed is to bring God back into the life of community. It is up to us to share the genuine self of God’s unchanging hand of Love.

We struggle to understand God, understand why there is pain and suffering in the world. But we cannot concentrate on these negative thoughts and practices. We will never understand God’s purpose if we avoid accepting the intimacy that God offers. We fear the unknown, and God can be one of the most mysterious unknown parts of our lives. However, we must recognize the light of Truth at the end of any tunnel.

We live in an unfair and unequal world; it seems that all news is harmful. It is understandable that we are filled with anger, but anger will not help us. It is only through the love and presence of the flicker of God in our lives that we can avoid having the hidden anger affect us. All we must do is change this small flicker into the roaring fire of Love.

© Russell Kendall Carter

Our lives are tradition without a doubt. We live in society; therefore, we are part of a tradition. Unfortunately, the tradition we celebrate originates in humanity and therefore is doomed to failure and death. Nothing man-made is eternal.

God is the creator of all; God creates all human beings, all genders. Thus, all are holy. All of nature knows that God created every living thing, all living things. . . as they are. We are not to judge. God made us strong, giving us the power of love and self-discipline. These are from His Wisdom; His Wisdom is the world as He created it. If we love God, we love Wisdom and we love Life, all life.

Our duty is to be firm in faith, the faith given by a loving god in a community given by a loving god. With our faith in God, we gain the assurance of Hope, all Hope, the hope of the poor, the needy, the hope of the other. All mankind is the manifestation of God. Love God, love self, love all mankind; it is that simple an idea but difficult to achieve, for most of us tend to live in a state of worry. . . mortal, material worry. This prevents us from seeing God in everyone, all around.

If we recognize the Wisdom-gift, we recognize, receive, and give love, justice, protection, faith, and hope to all community in all traditions. Honor yourself, honor your brothers and sisters, honor your neighbors; honor everyone’s uniqueness; this is the work of Love. This is the work of being in the moment of reality with God as our guide.

Live in the moment; live in the tradition and live in the community of Love, of God.

© Russell Kendall Carter

May God’s Peace enfold us; drowning us in the glowing luxury of God’s Holy Word. Open our inner minds to the many mysterious impressions God send to us daily. We study and accept God’s Holy Wisdom, allowing us to listen in silence to the voices within us, teaching us who our true selves are. When the Kingdom of God is in our midst, our breathing becomes an invitation to languish in the desire for God to reach us.

God is our eternal companion; absolutely nothing is more powerful than the love and presence of God in our lives. We live in a dual world of light and dark. These twin pillars can make our lives difficult and make us angry. But when we open ourselves and let our hearts return to God, we restore our beings to the perfect world God wants for us. We are never alone, and therefore, our faith and trust grows with each passing day. We love, we hope; both are lifelines given by God. God is in our lives; let the Peace of God enfold us every day.

© Russell Kendall Carter

There are many views as to when God created the Earth and the infinity of planets and stars. Being an educator, I believe in was many trillions of years ago. Saying this, I also believe that God is not finished creating the universe. With each birth of a human, a dog, a bird, or even the smallest aphid on the planet God’s creation is happening all around us.

I was born to do the will of God, which means that I am called to do the work of God’s creation. I was born to believe not only in God, not only in His creation, but I am called simply to believe. I believe in my calling; I believe in your calling. With an open mind, the generous spirit God gave me, and a very caring heart, I am a seeker. God gave me an open mind and the wisdom to use it for the improvement of mankind. I know this because I see goodness all around me; I see goodness all around you. I see God’s face in your face. Every day God speaks your name and my name; our name is love. This name calls us to find our way to doing God’s will. . . always.

The Creation of God, the Kingdom of God is within our very being; it is never out of reach. Jesus tells us that God dwells within us. We know this because each day are renewed by the Holy Spirit living both with us and within us. We are the miracle God created to heal others. We are the miracles working to remove the hardships and terrors others face. We carry the word of God, the fire of God’s language to the door of those in need.

We serve God; we do many things for others. We are people of faith! As Jesus gave His life for us; we give our lives for those who eat the crumbs left over by the dogs. We are seekers of Truth, God’s truth, not man’s. There are terrible things occurring around us each day, violence on the street, violence by our governments,

And violence in the spoken words on the news each night. We ignore these for they are wrongs done by man; we are called to do the work of creation. . . God’s Creation, not man’s. Let all men and women of faith, of character step up to do the work of creation.

© Russell Kendall Carter

When we study and learn Wisdom (not wisdom), we find a timelessness that cannot be compared with anything we previous experienced. We enter a portal that leads directly to God. We learn how to talk with God, and by talk, I mean listen. Because it is in the listening that our voice is stronger!

When I muse on the workings of God, I think of the loave and fishes and know that the word of God is Holy. My understanding of the Word leads me to know that all of His children eternal blessing. I live in my faith and trust in God keeping my promise to God, and God keeps His promise to me. This is my redemption.

God comes to me in my silence, but He does not come silently. He is a roaring lion, reminding me we are all here for a purpose; no one is to be left behind. The appalling silence of most people is a great disappointment. He speaks to me to recognize that all people are His children. All people are placed here for a purpose; we cannot judge what that purpose is. God has His Holy plan; He reveals this to us in our actions in helping others. That is our Holy destiny.

As the Psalmist writes, “O Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.” Everyone matters, everyone is welcome, everyone is loved, everyone loves; there are no exceptions; there are no conditions. As we cast our fortunes with God, we are sustained in God’s Life, Love, and Blessings. May we all live to God’s holy wish for our lives.

“Yea, though I walk through the shadow of evil. . .”

© Russell Kendall Carter

I am a social person, but I love my quiet times. I put aside my restless heart, my restless mind and feel the spirit of God’s Creation. I listen; I learn. I enter the silence of Zen. God leads me into the quiet hours, where my mind and heart are in His Hands. My Gracious God fills my heart with His words.

My private sanctuary is not private; it is filled with God’s Love, God’s comfort. He teaches me a healing prayer for those with whom I pray. My meditations move from mortal reality to the happy space of God’s Spirituality. My prayers count; let His prayers comfort you. Let our prayers go on forever, going to heaven and then around our tiny globe called Earth.

Let us free ourselves from the shadow of Covid, walking beside the calm waters blessed by Jesus. Let us redeem ourselves with the sanctity of God’s healing. This is our sacred time; this is our quietude.

© Russell Kendall Carter

Our spiritual life grows every time we pray. We meditate silently, awaiting something from God that we cannot ignore. . . or even explain. God is our stronghold; God is our life! Everything we experience is from His grace. Whomever we honor are welcomed to His table of retribution and promise. We experience His love together.

We are sheep who in our prayers and meditations have found The Shepherd. We are purified by Love in our inner most being. We are taught in our meditations by Jesus that Love is most important in our world, even though we rarely practice this. Nothing in the world is more important than the love we share. Love is a gift and a blessing that never tires, purifying our spirits; Love always brings forth the goodness and blessings of God and His Glory.

Whether we are in our times of prayer or times of work; whether we sleep or are awake, when we call upon God to bring love into our lives, we are saved from the perils that surround us.

Heavenly Father, my prayer is that all in our spiritual lives bring praise to Your Creation and magnifies the love, compassion, and community we share in Your name.

© Russell Kendall Carter