Listening to teachers today, and letting them converse and dialogue:(here’s a collage of excerpts of some of my favorites this week….) I like putting wisdom notes in the same room, and see how they converse!

Song of ascents as a metaphor of the spiritual journey. Starting with being fed up with the world entirely. Then setting out on a pilgrimage into God. You start in “trouble” (Ps 120), but necessary trouble to want to thirst and hunger and go on a pilgrimage.
Help me Lord who is the Author and The Finisher. I do not know You well as a Finisher. I have known you as Vision and Creator, but not as Finisher. Help me to learn to know You also as a Finisher. I start so many things, and rarely finish—even my sentences. Help me to walk farther into You as One who both Visions and Finishes. If You were not a Finisher, the entire universe would be a great peril! Thank You for attracting me to these parts of You Father, through Your Son Jesus and His Finished work, and the works, even in me, which He is still finishing.

Also help me not to live by the world’s pressures and anxieties, but to bring my inner being to Your Gentle Being more hourly, so I can stay resonating in and with You. Just to practice being with and in You Lord. Help me often to return to You, and place my being in Your Being. I want that. It is the only safe house, and home. You are my home, help me to live in You.

Meaning is “going towards God”—it is knowing you are going some place—heading deeper into His Character and Nature. That journey never ends, so life is entirely meaningful. We are all getting to know God once we turn towards Him. He is in every direction. And life is worth living, because He lives, as the old song goes. Life is meaningful, because we have met and are getting to know God daily and through all our sufferings and trials and joys. If meaning is man’s central need. God meets that need, as soon as we turn to Him, and try even to follow Him. Life becomes meaningful. It has a purpose. Namely, to know and love God more and more.

Thank You Father for meaning!

Pray scriptures-ie enter, reading as actually listening to God through them—that ignites their living word aspect. We come expectantly listening, and He meets us. So we are transformed. Approach them to meet God, not just to use and find information. We are a user culture-we use one another, we use and brand our gifts and we do the same the sacred text-we use it for our own enlightenment or self help—when the reverse is true. Encountering the Sacred through scriptures is more about God reaching out to us, than us reaching out to Him. The Holy scriptures are an invitation to encounter, be loved, and therefore start loving

Nouwen taught us to be frank and vulnerable with God and one another, but also that we really are each included in The Father’s Love towards His Son—we are actually Loved, so we have to live through our particular struggles through that lens of Love. Since we are beloved…..we are included, adored, poetic wonders, and pleasures to Him; live accordingly!

The songs of Ascent (Psalm 120-134) are a model for the whole spiritual journey. Starting with turning from the world’s systems, and towards God. Saying no, then yes; and then going out on a pilgrimage to God, and continuing to go…as we go, we are discipled by Him. That’s the spiritual journey in a nutshell.

Actually listening to God, not just talking at Him. Christianity is a listening spirituality! It’s relational. A loving relationship is what Jesus made available.

Crisis of meaning. What God does is give you a purpose. The purpose is spiritual growth with Him through life’s circumstances.

An argument for turning towards, because God is turned towards us…

How Desire is meant to work!
“We are God’s desire. And He becomes more and more ours, once we realize His. God actually desires us! Both to know and love us, and therefore guide and comfort us. That is a mystery—the fact that He actually desires to know us, and be with us! God’s search for man! The Hound of Heaven. This is why the prophet’s response is: here I am Lord! It is what Adam and Eve could not say, after the fall. Here I am Lord. Dwell here, with and in me! We most often think of our thwarted desire for God; but rarely risk, thinking about it more from His perspective-more empathetically. If God wants to know and love us, who are we not to say yes! If we realize that God desires us, and we are willing to empathize with that, we attain another motivation for turning towards, and, once we do, find ourselves desiring Him! This is the true nature of how desire is meant to work.”

I let go of ALL my plans, and seek to rest in Yours Father.

Good teachers teach you the architecture of the house before they take you into the house. So you remain oriented throughout the rooms to the whole. This requires humility, but also the gift of teaching.

You have to appreciate teachers who are humble enough and still not too bitter, even after having dealt with the church and many many people through the years, to share what they’ve learned at the end of their lives. Thanks Eugene Peterson. Love endures! And wisdom is actually helpful from those no longer in competition with others. Just trying to help other along the long obedience in the same direction.

Nice letting a few of mine converse here today in a collage form!

For Valentine’s Day I’m visiting a friend whose mom’s dying. And being thankful for Love’s potential to heal us all.
I’m thankful for every ounce of Love in my life. Including the poem of my wife which was given to me as a gift, certainly not based on my merits.
Here’s to Love today, in all its myriad and indomitable forms! Love is labor and the greatest Grace imaginable!

Reviewing several books by my old professor friend this year about where art and spirituality and culture intersect in the life of Vincent Van Gogh. So good to reconnect to this wise teacher, after many years, and sit with his life findings around and through the life of this fascinating and still mysterious artist; and to get to read newer manuscripts, just sent. We both have a passion for art, culture and deep faith.

Nice reconsidering Van Gogh as a spiritual figure outside of just art history-more as a visual theologian, not just a failed minister or famous icon, but a man on spiritual pilgrimage.

Someone who was trying to live an authentic spirituality, both in response to “the church” and the “art world’s” shadows. And, both have their clear shadows! I relate to that. Vincent was fired from the church, and somewhat shunned by the celebrity culture of the art world in Paris; so knew both shadows experientially. This is another thing I’ve always related to from his life and art.

All Dr Edward’s books are good (Van Gogh’s shoes; Van Gogh and God; Night Cafe; and most recently, Ghost Paintings), and trigger fresh thoughts about where faith, art and culture intersect and effect one another!

“Van Gogh and God” which was the original one Cliff was working on back in our day, and now “Ghost Paintings” (with a great forward by the late great priest Henri Nouwen) where he deals with the paintings, specifically of Christ in Gethsemane, which Vincent tore up evidently because he felt he could not depict that level of suffering.

But also, because he felt he could do so more powerfully, by implying the story through the olive trees, instead of direct representation. Tell the bible stories through the art of your life! Art as hermeneutic, or a way of interpreting life, and a place of encountering God, still makes sense to me! Being the gospel, not just “telling” it! Incarnate and become your teachings, as one great teacher put it to me!

Painting, and living, as a parable and dialogue with scriptures was something Vincent never abandoned! Somewhere over, both the church and the art world, there must be a large Kingdom roof! And enormous covering for true contextualization and dialogue! Let’s be the parables, we are talking about!

This last book I’m reviewing now (“Ghost Paintings”) is lots about how what an artist’s takes out, is often the content which is put in. What is negated, tells the true tale. What we erase, reveals who we are!

Good stuff. All of Dr Edward’s books are long earned humble journeys which suggest rather than tell you (show, don’t tell, as the great writers say). He has been with Van Gogh’s work through his art and letters for over 40 years now, and has some subtle insights into specifically what was motivating the artist spiritually.

I’ve always enjoyed the intersection of arts, faith and culture, and all these books trace and map that particular intersection in the life and times of Vincent Van Gogh.

Nice to reconnect with some art father elders who have been considering this intersection for over 50 years at least! Plus, as a fellow pastor’s son and artist, i love Van Gogh’s work, and appreciate his authentic quest! Even, its painful ending made sense to me on some visceral level.

Read more here, in this interview with my old friend and professor Dr Cliff Edwards! A man of books, faith and art, and, as importantly, humor! Good man, thankful for his long quest to ask the right questions, and to teach us to do the same!

It’s been great being on Love’s long priestly road with this shiny star, over these many years. We share and discover the road together. Thankful for her shiny star-ness today! And our shared sense of wonder!!!

When God gives you a poem, you just try to read it, and love it well, in thanks! Love’s a mystery novel. And love is no secret.

Amy is a poem and a deep gem. I’m blessed. He must like me, despite myself! We share wonder and an uncommon awe of life! That “wow” space, we often return to, is home!

Thankful for my love today, as I am every day, not just on holidays! Let’s shine on! It’s been an awe-filled journey thus far!

We’ve lived a lot of lives together already, as they say (started in Europe, and then like Johnny Cash, have been everywhere! This year, got to visit the middle east with my parents who have been married for a million years at least; some of these are in Galilee and Jerusalem from this past year–as she and i both light up there!)—in many cultures and nations (the textures just get richer, if you stay with the collage of marriage!); but as my uncle recommended—we learned to like, not just love one another! It’s been poetic, to say the least. Thankful again today!

A little watermelon wisdom for you today. I use this test often to find the source of my suffering, and make sure it’s genuine or useful.

“He who takes on a duty which is not asked of them, is an ignoramus!” The rabbis (Midrashic literature).

Why am I wearing watermelons on my feet, Mr Furious asks in the comedy film “Mystery Men” during his training. His master—Mr Mysterious-tells him he had never asked him to wear watermelons on his feet.

Often in life, i think we are wearing watermelons on our feet when God did not ask us to. Let’s make sure our sufferings are actually from Him, and not self inflicted. It’s good to access what problems in our lives are self inflicted not places where we are meeting God in His Sufferings, and being transformed by that encounter. Just a thought about wearing watermelons on your feet, and rabbinical wisdom.

Are we wearing watermelons on our feet, or just going through trials meant to grow us?! Good to discern the difference in life!

Some hopeful laments…

“No signs no prophets are left. Psalm 74:9
“A famine of hearing the word of God has come.” Micah
“God will send a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.” Amos

Not on my watch. If He is desirous and willing, i will speak.
God usually speaks in word or vision, but uniquely to each of us. I hear Him constantly, and am willing to share what I hear. I am an idiot, so i know many others do the same.

We are given no signs from God;
no prophets are left,
and none of us knows how long this will be. Psalm 74:9

Now, there is a space for transformation, and spiritual growth!! That internal vacancy is a calling, as all wildernesses are. The vacuous becomes a space of hungry encounter. The dry ground bears the living shoot. The rock produces water…and, eventually, fruit!!!

A sky poem in progress….as we all are, i suppose. (Poetry in Winter makes sense and helps us all along…)

Our names, were already whispered by the Sky!

What do you think dear
should we fear the falling stars of now, the political crises crescendoing hourly, instantly rising and falling, frictioning
and fictioning in and out of time… or reach towards another type of timeless Star, latch onto to this one particular One and live there forever or,
until morning comes from afar.
At least,
Like the wise men, we must look up to know;
until the glow finds us finally laughing back at it, we hook up to know here, tonight,
the falling snow and, us waiting (one or the other, and sometimes both) breaks the fire from our bones, and breaks us, into fire; and all our fears, year after year
Melt into a face, like fireworks, which we already know.
Our names were already whispered here
Written now in snow…
and we are just sky writing here
or watchers, gazing upwards through snow at stars
we already are…
we are tethered on a higher star than today’s
friend. We must lasso that Star to aid these falling ones…
at least we can do that while staring at the skies tonight.
My forever Love. For, our names have already been
Whispered tonight, and clearly written in Snow.
So we know.

Our names, were already whispered by the Sky!

What do you think dear
should we fear the falling stars of now, the political crises crescendoing hourly, instantly rising and falling… or reach towards another type of Star, latch onto to one particular One and live there forever or,
until morning comes from afar. At least,
Like the wise men, we must look up to know;
until the glow finds us finally laughing back at it, we hook up to know
the falling snow and, us waiting (one of the other, and sometimes both) breaks the fire from our bones, and breaks us, into fire; and all our fears, year after year.
Melt into a face which we already know.
Our names were already whispered.
Written now in snow,
and we are just sky writing here
or watchers, gazing upwards through snow at stars
we already are…
we are tethered on a higher star than today’s
friend. We must lasso that Star to aid these falling ones…
at least we can do that while staring at the skies tonight.
My forever Love.

With so much family already singing, we endure in joyful thanks for the song, already begun. Our suffering is drenched in song. The two get along in us as we join along in singing as we go. Praise is our response to suffering! Not our escape route.

Praise is not escapism or false optimism, it is our response in trust to suffering. “For the living Hope set before Him, He endured…” and even risked praising His Father…our response to suffering, is praise. Rejoice as you suffer, then you will be His signs. To sing as we suffer is the greatest art of living! Both to hear and to join in, That song, is an act of faith and trust! It becomes a fragrant offering!

“We can always hear the choir, if we listen well.” My mentor used to say. The cloud of witnesses are always leaning in, and over half of them are singing.

Loneliness is impossible when engulfed in this endless melody, and within this enormous room we actually already live in. It’s impossible to be alone here, with so much family, already singing.

We live daily, with so much family already singing….

What Awe is: (nice sitting with this book today by the poetic mystic hassidic thinker, social worker, dreamer, reformer) Mid-rashing today with this book: “The Essential writings of Abraham Heschel” Great read, especially if you live in the 20th C.

“Awe is an intuition for the creaturely dignity of all things and their preciousness to God!” Abraham Heschel.

And also, how, if beheld in love, each person, plant, animal leads us deeper into a gratitude and appreciation of their Creator. You start to feel His infinite care for each creature! An attitude of awe leads you into true sight! “Everything starts referring to Him.”

“Knowledge is fostered by curiosity; Wisdom is fostered by awe!”
This great teacher is replete with quotable wisdom! Fun gleaning from his journey today! Enjoying this book edited by his daughter.

Also…the author’s mother, was complimented like this repeatedly: “People liked to stand near her when she was praying!”

Now that’s a compliment! I’ve met people like that in my life. True prayer is contagious, as is wonder and awe, gratitude and thankfulness for being here in this enormous room, which was here before us.

I pray that people feel more alive and themselves when they are standing near me when i am praying! And that I live a life in awe! Or, if I ever write a book, that it continues to infect people with care and compassion for others above themselves.

And, if you have a praying mother, you’ll probably end up a Rabbi, or at least, a better human being! So much to learn from our parents!