I tilted my sails, somewhere between the art world and the church world, and what I found was The Holy Spirit beckoning me towards…a Higher Realm which contextualized them both!

I think our friendship with God is symbiotic, though He does most of the giving!
Still a friendship spirituality is what we are offered, so we must bless Him also, maybe most by just constantly recognizing how Loving and cool amazing He is, and how much, for some reason, He digs us also, especially when we are being ourselves! Seeing spirituality as friendship was one of His themes in the book.
I don’t know if God “needs” us (that’s a deep theological question), but He certainly likes and loves us! And wants to be friends! That much I know. We’ve been friends as long as i can recall.
Entering as friends is the way and tone of Love. I try to practice that tone in my friendships on earth as well. Why not! If we are all eternal friends in the end, start practicing it here!

In my other dream…about identity—
In the other dream, i was fully myself, had feathers in my hair, a great costume, and was running around talking to all sorts of people and nations in joy, and in lots of languages; and was giving my treasures without fear of other’s rejections or opinions.

It felt like King David dancing before the Ark! Love that freedom space!
I was completely myself before God, as if it were just us two on earth–that inner garden space of communion of beings. Ourselves, outside all our fleeting roles in life!

In the dream, I was not yet perfect or whole, and was older, maybe just before death, but comfortable being who I was where I was at in my growth journey before Him, and others.

I was not defined by others, nor afraid that they could take anything away from me, or even pressured by their needs. I was living before God in that one on One freedom. I was free to be me.

He took great pleasure in me just being myself. And it gave room for Him to walk on earth in pleasure. What a great dream! I hope i incarnate that one! Nice to think that being our real selves, makes God happy! After all, we are His poetry, why not let Him pronounce us as we are!

I love it when things are just being themselves! As Thomas Merton said, “A tree praises God by being a tree!”
Why not we!!!

More from dream:

Had two really cool dreams last night. In the first, I was in outer space looking at the earth, and I heard a Voice say God is One, then i panned all the way down to earth and saw all the cancerous divisions in things–people, nature, leaves everything.

Things were either increasing in chaos and decay and deterioration, and division or coming together into integrated identities. Everything was either rotting or coming into wholeness–distintegrating or integrating! Things in or receptive to His Presence were gathering into identity, things not in Him were dividing and disintegrating.

Then i panned back up and heard Him say, “And My attention is undivided.”

I immediately sensed that God’s entire heart was on this project of making things whole or themselves through His Son, and that Father was already leaning in, and considering standing up and coming more fully into His Creation again. Cosmic dreams are the best. Somehow it was comforting to think about the Oneness of God coming to earth! Especially when i saw how cancerous and divided things were becoming. It was like I was inside the Shema prayer in this dream. Thanks, I needed that one! Plus, I like the idea of God having “undivided attention”! Never thought of oneness like that! I learn so much from dreams!

Look above in Love more often, until everything is leaning towards the right Polar Star, as Heschel called it. Lean your entire life towards One Star, and make sure it’s the right star, then just lean it all in, every part of the soul’s life including the physical body. Just align it with that star—when we draw near, so does God.

What would it look like if we were just fully being ourselves before God. That’s the feeling i had in my dream last night. I was just fully living before Him even in my imperfections. And one of the fruits is I had no fear of others–either their judgements, rejections, or that they could steal some part of me, because I was living fully before God who was pleased that I was. God is not looking for our perfection, but for intimacy with us.

Had two really cool dreams last night. In the first I was in outer space looking at the earth, and I heard a Voice say God is One, then i panned all the way down to earth and saw all the cancerous divisions in things–people, nature, leaves everything. Things were either increasing in chaos and decay and deterioration, and division or coming together into integrated identities. Things in Him were gathering into identity, things not in Him were dividing and disintegrating. Then i panned back up and heard Him say, “And My attention is undivided.” I immediately sensed that God’s entire heart was on this project of making things whole or themselves through His Son, and that Father was already leaning in, and considering standing up and coming more fully into His Creation again. Cosmic dreams are the best. Somehow it was comforting to think about the Oneness of God coming to earth! Especially when i saw how cancerous and divided things were becoming.

In the other dream i was fully myself, had feathers in my hair and was giving my treasures without fear to others. I was completely myself before God. Not yet perfect, but comfortable being who I was where I was at in my growth before Him, and others. I was not defined by others, nor afraid that they could take anything away from me. I was living before God. I was free to be me. He took great pleasure in me just being myself. It was a great dream, i woke up feeling His pleasure, and very much myself. Just to know that no matter our level of spiritual growth, if we are living before God He is happy with us, gave me such Peace. I didn’t need to get to a certain stage before I could bring Him pleasure, just by turning and living before Him in humility and trust, made Him Happy. He is not looking for our perfection, but for intimacy. We get intimate by confessing and admitting our need for and wonder in Him. This is the pleasing sacrifice of our self sufficiency. Having the full permission to be completely ourselves before God, to stop hiding, was so liberating. Realizing i did not need to be perfect before living before Him.

Daniel was a spiritual genius. Not because of his gifts, but because He was completely dependent on God. Dependency pleases God.

Freedom is the right interpretations of things. It is interpreting things from the place where the Tone of His Love is entering. Find that area, and interpret starting there. Even seeing yourself outside of fear, and in the house of love is the most basic way to stay authentically yourself.

It’s a practice–to stay in that part of yourself which senses the tone of God’s Love. God is Love, so that is where you are most yourself. Not afraid of being. To stay authentically free is to stay in the tone of love in yourself and towards others. Nothing can separate us from the Love of God, but we must choose to remain in it. It’s always there. Freedom is to stay there.

Whatever parts are still living in fear of love, are the parts which are dying and trying to control things. Give your fears to Him–of not amounting to much, not living up to your potential etc…given them all to Him, and let Him bath you in Love.

Know the season in Him you are in. This let’s you not interpret the situation through old lens–last season’s. We each go through different seasons of growth. Know which one you are in. The Cloud moves, stay in it. And don’t interpret things through last season’s lens. Again, stay where Love is. Follow That Voice. The Voice of Love is always home.

How to stay in freedom–stay in the Voice of Love; it interprets the situation best. Right interpretation keeps us in true freedom. In one sense, freedom is interpretation more from His Perspective. That occurs in the tone of Love–that funnel, i once saw is our home. Focus only on Him.

I’m, for instance, in a writing season, so I may not be able to bless as many daily for a season. Knowing that this is where I am meeting Him now, helps me not judge by last season’s standards.

The reason we have to renew our minds daily, is we have to get the right interpretation of things from Him, His Word, and His Heart. We have to enter again His Voice of Love even to interpret ourselves well.

My biggest distraction is being worried more about getting it right, than being in His Love. I’m a living perfectionist. If I think i got it wrong, and get blocked and can’t hear anymore that Voice of Love. I get more worried about whether i did it right than i do about God. I’ve worked on it, but it still happens. And when things go flat in life, i have my proof that i screwed it up, as if, even if i did, God could not unscrew it up. I spend a long time accessing whether i did something right. And i often think i missed the choreography of things. Drives me crazy about myself. And blocks God.

How does one get unblocked. Follow the Voice of Love. It I stop and find Love’s Voice, i stop judging myself in the same way, and i start to interpret myself and my situation more accurately. His Grace is indeed sufficient, to help us find His Love which is who He is. Love is God’s identity! His Loving Presence, renews our minds.

Luke 2:41-on…great glimpse into Jesus’ adolescence.

Love this passage, when Jesus decided to stay in Jerusalem to talk with the teachers, even though his parents were heading back home. When they can’t find him anywhere among his cousins, they return to Jerusalem and find him talking in the temple. He’s in trouble at this point, barely 13 and hanging out with the rabbis already, and astounding them with his understanding.

Why did you have to look for me? Jesus asked his parents when they found him in the temple. You knew i would be here learning in my father’s house.

I like the idea of Jesus being slightly annoyed by his parents lack of vision of his own destiny, as he seemed to be with his mom later at the wedding in Cana, and yet, he went home with them, after talking several days with the teachers there. And He continued to grow in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and people.

Great glimpse into Jesus early adulthood, and his own personal growth journey. He stayed under his parents, but already knew where His Father’s House was. I imagine also that he had some questions and answers for the rabbis already, even at that young age. Cool thing also, that his mother “treasured these things in her heart.” She could see what he was becoming, and somehow already was. Nice passage filled with cool mysteries about Jesus’ own growth process and training!
Cool that He GREW in wisdom and stature as well. A mystery there.

How study slips into our sleep…making little homilies while we dream!

Had a dream last night about St John’s three L’s: Light, Life and Love. I had been reading his gospel before i went to bed, so made sense. But in the dream, i saw each illuminated. Light meant understanding, Life meant the power to live well, and Love was the atmosphere of God. I love it when dreams interpret what we read during the day.

So, this morning, i tried to combine that with Jesus’ calling himself the way, the truth and life. The way to live, the truth about what life is, and the power to live that out. Some people or cultures would be drawn more to the way part, or the truth part, or the life part, depending on their personalities. I think that will turn out to be today’s little homily! Although, there are lots of L’s in it. Perhaps i should preach to baptists-they like alliteration!

Hawk life:
I love watching hawks flying over cities. What do they see? What are we looking for today. This one today is a Cooper’s hawk, i saw him earlier in the tree. Now he’s miles high over the skyline of the city. I wish i could fly with him today, and see what he sees.
The hummingbird i also caught glimpse of today, darts at such sharp angles towards color, but the hawk just glides above it all, until the instant it swoops to incarnate like a wide scoped lover, falling elegantly toward earth!
So much to learn from each creature’s ways today, and every day.