Meditating to Heal

We are of God!
Look beyond the day;
listen for the change.
The world is harsh;
loss, suffering abound,
yet God believes!

We are worthy.
We are of God!
We truly do not know . . . 
who we are, or
who others are;
God enlightens us to each other! 

The wilderness is all around,
yet we are safe.
We are of God!
We are ministers of God’s word;
not literally, but of the spirit.
Let us hold fast our faith.

Lord, awaken us;
help us make our world . . .
Your Garden of Eden.
We are of God!
We are here to shepherd . . .
his people, his earth.

We are of God!



© Russell Kendall Carter

Evolutionary Love

God is Love;
Love is God;
Love is Jesus;
Love is the Holy Spirit;
Love is eternal;
Love is spiritual;
Love is enlightening;
Love is personal;
Love is community;
Love is commitment;
Love is sharing;
Love is giving;
Love is receiving;
Love is faith;
Love is prayer;
Love is God;
God is Love!


© Russell Kendall Carter
    March 2021

God, silent, distant;
not really, God is within,
always with us.

We are never lifted to God;
He joins us in our peril,
In our suffering here on earth.
We cannot hear Him.

He is silent to us - 
unless . . . unless -
our souls are open,
our hearts are clean,
awaiting God’s perfect Love.

We listen, heeding, praying.
For Jesus healed by faith
He shares his faith, and
we listen, love, hope, pray.

Hear God as a little child;
have the faith of Abraham,
ready to sacrifice all.
And God is no longer muted.


© Russell Kendall Carter

      Wisdom brings us from the darkness of despair and the fear of death. Wisdom takes us from the why the world is so stressed to what is causing the stress. Perhaps it is the internet world with instant misinformation that brings early demise. Wisdom overcomes Facebook. The wisdom of Sophia allows us to survive in this world of over information and a constant barrage of depressing news.
      All wisdom and discipline are from God, not from the news, not from our political leaders, not from the talking heads who always declare the truth. When we listen to this false prophets I am reminded of the wisdom of Solomon, “. . . (we) live in the constant warfare of ignorance and call this monstrous evil peace.” Peace does not come from mankind. We don’t know what true peace is.
      This evil overcomes us when we deny the authority and grace of God. It forces us to focus on that which is false testament over the Word that came to live with us throughout eternity . . . if we only listen. Proverbs tells us: “Wisdom will multiply your days and add years to your life.” Let us think about this in our daily meditation. I don’t believe that our days as mortals will necessarily increase, but the days we have are much richer and when we are born into the new world of God’s eternity, we will be better prepared for the glory and wonder, just as when we were born into this world, learning the glory and wonder that God invited us to.
      My goal in the time I remain mortal is to get closer to the true wisdom offered by Sophia, so that when I enter God’s glorious domain, I am not the uninformed man I am in this world.



© Russell Kendall Carter

      I am a rock; God made me this way. You also are a rock; God made you this way. Some may say that I am the king of my own self and castle, but that is wrong information and a wrong opinion. Through the wisdom given me by God, my spiritual intellect is enhance by the teachings of Sophia; and through Her I gain both temperance and prudence in all of my thinking, my writing, and my interactions with humanity and all of God’s creatures. As Jesus says in Matthew, we must let our light shine within and around us. This brings God into all of our lives and shows His goodness and glory to all humanity.
     I always ask myself whether we, as normal humans, can emulate and follow Jesus as his original disciples did. We have some of the power of Jesus to heal others. Of course, we do not do the healing, just as Jesus did not heal. Jesus brought the love and power of God down to earth; it was God who healed through Jesus. I wonder if it is possible for us to have the strong enough faith and commitment to God that Jesus shows us in his three years of teaching. Do we have enough righteousness of God’s word to bring His power of healing to others?
      I think we do! This is not an egotistical statement. This is asking for a solution to the needs of others in our conflicted world where everyone seems to disagree and even hate others. It is the love of Jesus that brought God into our lives, and I believe it is the love of Jesus that will get us out of our divisions. If we look for the face of God in all whom we meet, perhaps we can join in brotherly love to solve the problems and divisions we experience.



© Russell Kendall Carter

      I think of all my friends whom I haven’t seen in such a long time, and I think of those I am able to see through Facetime and Zoom. The one word I constantly hear is loneliness. This is such a tragedy for all my friends separated from children, grandchildren, and close friends. The sorrow in their voices is heartrending. 
      With little imagination, I can see people all around our tiny planet feeling the same desolation, sorrow, and in some cases terror. There is real terror in their voices; will I die alone, never to see my family and friends again. I know that we are probably nearing the end of our isolation with the introduction of the vaccines that will protect us from serious illness, but this feeling of isolation will be with many of our brothers and sisters for months even years to come. Many are unable to make up for the lost time, psychologically and emotionally, with our families.
      This is when I turn to God. I am fortunate enough to be able to visit my family. Saying this my true power has come from God. I know that I am in God and God is within me. This is most comforting. I know that my existence is in fact living in God’s heaven, and when living in heaven, I am not alone. I only pray that others will realize this. God keeps my memories alive and retells my story to others, as he does with all His children, all humanity. Our most comforting move is to take God’s presence into hour hearts and minds, remembering the story of God’s love for humanity as we learn in the Bible. Good looks at his creation, man, and adores us. Loves us as we are unable to love, until we fully immerse ourselves in His love, then we can truly adore others.
     Our interrelationship with the rest of humanity is the very lifeblood that God offers us. Through God, we are connected to all of humanity; we are loved by all of humanity; and we love all humanity. The second greatest commandment is this: Love your neighbor as you love yourself, and you will never be alone, never be abandoned. 

 
© Russell Kendall Carter

                           Dust in the Wind

My wife and I, while visiting our grandchildren, were driving along route 25 in New Mexico, on our way to Taos. Not a fan of today’s pop music, when driving I listen to my favorites, such as John Denver, Harry Chapin, Joan Baez, and so may others. Today, as a part of the station on Pandora, we listened to “Dust in the Wind” by the group Kansas in the 1970s. Written by Kerry Livgren, it is a song with deep spiritual undertones, mentioning how delicate our lives are. One of the most profound lines is, “All we are is dust in the wind.” 
We are made from dust and the Bible relates that from dust we come and dust we shall return. We cannot think of our lives as merely dust to be controlled by the wind; unless, of course, we speak of the breath of God. Then we are under His complete control.
We are brought into this world without our consent. It is what we do in our lives that makes it worthwhile. Personally, I believe in service. After almost fifty selfish years, I became a high school teacher and began a life of service. With respect to Kerry Livgren, during my first fifty years I was just dust in the wind. I lived for myself and my immediate family. Although, as a small businessman, I am sure I served some people, but it was not the kind of service that is important.
As a youth, my father took me to the local Christian Science church, which I did not stay with after my years as a Marine in the 1960s. One of my Sunday school teachers had us learn, memorize, and adopt as a credo for life, one verse in the Gospels. I did: Matthew 5:16. (You can look it up). I did not live up to this during my first fifty years; for this I am sorrowful. I began living up to this idea of service to God when I began to teach, and I have enjoyed a world of unasked for and unexpected grandeur ever since. I became alive as a teacher and I truly did the good works God wanted me to do all along. I was no longer dust in the wind. I was giving all glory to God.
As with all people, there are times in my life that I feel alone and totally lost; I say this as a seventy-eight-year-old sometimes frustrated male. However, when I remember that I am made from the dust of the ground and to it I shall return, I rejoice that as a . creation of God, I am entrusted with the divine invitation to share my God-given Love to all whom I meet. This is why I write; God gives me the words and I merely put them on the page.
I may be dust in the wind, but I am God’s dust and I pray that I land on your doorstep and share the Love that is eternal.


© Russell Kendall Carter

Like Jesus, we are examples of how we can help those in need by  serving God. We remember that Jesus preached that it is more blessed to give to those in need and that it is more blessed to give that to  receive. The essence of love is that what is ours should belong to someone else. Feeling the joy of someone else as joy within ourselves — that is loving.

Why do we think that Jesus has mercy on us? We are invited to be receptive to Jesus and his healing power that is present in our lives today. It does not matter what your faith is or what your belief is, put the kindness of God and the love of Jesus into your daily practice. This assures God’s peace is always with us and our ability to share is always present.

Each of us is unique in our world; this is God’s intent; and . . . we must reflect our gifts as given to glorify God. we cannot be formed by what occurs in this world but by what God has planned for us so we can reflect the good and perfect will of God. shares your gifts and please God who made us all. Personally, I listen to God’s voice I pray; it is the only way I utterly understand how to serve God.

© Russell Kendall Carter

     What is our foundation but in the service of God. We are now one full year into this worldwide pandemic. We have quarantined, kept clear of our friends, and given up Sunday services in church. We are like lost sheep trapped in our own gullies called home.
     But it needn’t be like this. Are we people of courage? Is living well in community the only way to survive? One year of isolation. One year of feeling alone against this world filled with disease and angry people.
     We are never truly alone; God is cradling us in His loving arms each and every day. We still have great courage. Courage that is demonstrated by our determination to do what we can in the present moment. In the present moment I ask myself if I can do more than I already am doing. And, if I am called upon to do more, am I willing, am I brave enough, am I strong enough to step up and do what needs to be done.
     My prayer for the day is that all of us find the courage to do what has to be done, when it has to be done. This is the foundation we must build upon. 

 Imagine being in a story with Abram;
 an infinity ago.
 God speaks to him, changes his name,
 not for his sake, but for ours.
 
 Listen as  Abram did,
 not with ears, but with
 heart, with soul, with strength, 
 but mainly with mind.
 Listen and see with thy heart;
 walk with the ears of your heart - 
 wide open.
 Listen – be doers, not just listeners.
 
 Pray the word, returning,
 to the path of life;
 God speaks – we then are refreshed,
 But we understand not.                                                
 We ignore wisdom,
 playing to our prejudices.
 
 Like Peter, we deny the Word,
 deny the path laid before us.
 We ignore where Jesus leads us,
 being flattered by what we are called.
 This is not about us being better than we were,
 but better than we can be.
 God leads us to places we fear to go,
 but we go, listening, stepping carefully,
 fearfully - 
 rewarded by peace, by grace, 
 by Love.
  
 © Russell Kendall Carter