Friday, October 22, 2010

Distractions: A Meditation

I have had significant difficulty in keeping hounding thoughts, plans, dissapointments, ideas, responsibilites at bay.  Some is unrealistic , some totally doable.  Doubts, fears, failings, decisions I wish I could go back on, some I have no clue how it will turn out.  This battle is all in the mind, fought there and pushed to the back burner every morning as I roll out of bed.  This morning, same thing, same song.  Needed to focus, pulled out a little treasured book that has hundreds of Scripture readings and meditative quotes from deep thinking, godly Christ-followers.  Here is what I read (after Psalm 64):

"A great woman of the last century...was accustomed to say...:'think glorious thoughts of God--and serve Him with a quiet mind!'  And it is surely a fact that the more glorious and more spacious our thoughts of Him are the greater the quietude and confidence with which we do our detailed work will be.  Not controversial thoughts, or narrow conventional thoughts, or dry academic thoughts or anxious worried thoughts.  All these bring a contraction instead of expansion to our souls; and we all know that this inner sense of contraction or expansion is an unfailing test of our spiritual state.  But awed and delighted thoughts of a Reality and Holiness that in inconceivable to us and yet that is Love.  A Reality that pours itself out in and through the simplest forms and accidents, and makes itself known under the homelist symbols; that is completely present in and with us, determining us at every moment of our lives.  Such meditations as these keep our windows open towards Eternity; and perserve us from that insidious pious stuffiness which is the moth and rust of the dedicated life."
(Evelyn Underhill)

I know I want my window open towards Eternity today, I want to think glorious thoughts of God and serve him with a quiet mind. Sweet Spirit, grace me, us, today with Your peace, Your hope, Your mercy.

Amen.

No comments:

Post a Comment