Category: Gentleness

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Peace and Protection

Lord, You have said before I can’t weave protection around those I love. But You can. So I am asking, again, in ways I didn’t necessarily feel before, for Your physical protection for them, for all of them. When I come to the end of me, I need to find You.

You always look for good. You always seek Me out. In another world, a fantasy-world, you would be the one spotting the Runes in the rocks, in the forest, off the trail. You would be the one hearing BirdSpeech, hearing RiverTalk. Those around you would see only pebbles, just leaves on the ground, and hear only chattering, only gurgles.

Your insistence on walking this way might annoy them. Likely they would call you crazy, or strange, or off. You might even be accused of being on the Wrong Side.

You have blazed a trail–your life–to My heart.

You have read the rocks and leaves, as your lyric says, of Me.

Because you have chosen this way of Peace, of Gentleness, you feel deeply the actions and choices of those around you who are not on this path.

Lord, it’s like that movie Avatar, when they bulldozed the Forest. That destruction. Where is the peace in that?

The Peace is in your own heart, beating in rhythm to My heart. Little One, others are choosing violence every day, violent games, violent movies, comedy based on put-downs and insults, sarcastic judging of others. Violent or angry people draw into their world what they focus on most.

Since you focus most on Peace, that is what you draw, from My Storehouse of Blessing, into your world. When Jesus warned about pearls before swine He was merely expressing, with a great sadness, a reality about swine life. As long as they remain in that mindset, they don’t see the blessings provided every day, and they will turn on those who see like you see.

Lord, when I hear about violence, on the news, say, I think about the victims, pray for them or their families, but dare I whisper this, I also ask that there is some kind of investigation that helps, really helps the attackers, because this kind of violence has to have been spawned somehow.

You are asking for Mercy with Justice. This is Who I Am. You are less interested in punishment for punishment’s sake and more interested that everyone involved be healed and made whole. Others may seek only retribution, out of a mindset that answers violence with a violent response. Remember My cry from the Cross when you need to remember My Heart: Father, forgive them…

Lord, I just realized something! I hope I can express it in words. If there is Peace, that in itself IS protection. I mean, in true peace, total peace, there is nothing to protect from, to shield against. It is like flipping a switch. Peace is its own world–the New World You speak of. Wow. Peace IS protection. Never thought about that. So when I pray for protection, I am really praying for peace. I love that. I love that. 

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Trust

Lord, it occurred to me, driving home, I often ask You about things. I need wisdom or guidance or understanding. But sometimes, I need to ask You, or I want to ask You, for things–blessings of various kinds. And I have had friends who fall on either side of a great divide in understanding. On the one side I have friends who say, oh no, you can’t; God doesn’t grant those sorts of prayers! And on the other side are friends who say, oh my, you must — God delights to grant those sorts of prayers! So they can’t both be right…right?

Let’s set “right” aside, for right implies wrong. I suspect your friends who counsel you not to ask Me for specific blessings or outcomes are also of the mindset that the days of miracles are either past, or never did exist in actuality. Theirs is a limited understanding of My Presence, My Being with all of My creation. It reflects a duality of thinking which says I am either a magic genie granting wishes willy-nilly, or a grand puppeteer and I do whatever I want to with what I own, aka all of creation. Neither is an accurate reflection of Who I Am.

When you approach Me from a rich, deep, broad understanding of I Am Love, and I Am Love Incarnate, Love Become Human, Love Enfolded In Flesh, then you can better understand the kind of relationship each person can have with that kind of Love. What would you ask a stranger for? What would you ask a best friend for? What would you ask a spouse for? What would you ask a parent for? Your answers vary, first, depending on the kind of relationship, and second, depending on the personality of the other. There are generous parents and stingy parents, parents who seek their children’s best and parents who are so wounded emotionally or so ill mentally that they cannot focus beyond their own selves. A child who grows up with that kind of parent will have a different relationship to the word “parent” than someone who grows up in a loving, safe, responsible home. A partner who lives with a loving, respectful, tender spouse will have a very different view of marriage than one who lives with an abusive, unfaithful or violent spouse. So much depends on the experience each human has with his or her most significant relationships. My Big Challenge — yes, I, God, have challenges too — is to approach each one of you on your own terms, at a pace that matches your own ability to receive. Think about your little feral kitty. She has come so far with you — yet she still startles and hisses at certain noises or sudden motions. You have learned what voice she responds to most, how to move slowly and easily so you don’t frighten her. And her capacity to love and trust increases as you approach her on her terms. But the other kitty, the one who has known nothing but love and safety, you can be much bolder with him, scooping him up in your arms while he purrs in delight!

Now imagine each kitty were magically given the gift of human speech. What do you think each one would ask you for? Would they ask the same things? Would they expect the same things? Or would their requests be colored by their prior experiences of life? You see? Neither would be “right” because this is not a question of right or wrong. This is a question of experience.

All that really matters is that you continue to model your best life in Me. That will tend to teach the skittish by your example that perhaps there is more depth to a relationship with Me than they have previously imagined.

Trust, Lord, it seems to be about trust.

Yes, and some will trust Me more simply because they trust you.

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Precision

I dreamed I was looking at an album of my photos and they were dull, greyed. No pop. Not bold. Hazy. Lots of photos, and all the photos were that way. Dim, faded, like a protective film that renders out of focus was over each one. Lord, I want to walk with You a little. I know every time I reach out my hand, stretch my thoughts in Your direction, You are there. Always, always, right there.

Have I not promised to be your light? I Am still the Light of the world and the Light still shines in–into–the darkness. bring Me your dark places, your dim places, your dullness. Don’t confuse beveled with dull. Beveled softens edges for beauty and for use. Some things are meant to beveled; others are meant to be sharp. A butter knife doesn’t need the edge a carving knife needs. You need a sharp edge to prune, to edit. Ice skaters need a sharp edge to inscribe their line. Precise–this is what sharpness should mean for you. Not wounding, precision.

You can be precise, definite, bold, passionate in your gentleness. You can be fiercely firm, unwavering, in your commitment to peace. Not wishy-washy. Not dull. Not a dim resolve. Like Annie Dillard’s title, Holy the Firm. Let firm be holy for you. Let Me show you how to take a stand, how to make a mark–your mark. You are inscribing touchstones now, a mark here, a mark there, hoping someone will find one. The larger work, your larger life, is like inscribing on tablets, putting yourself out there. That is the source of your block, that fear. So you dim it, dull it, hide it. Don’t dim your light. Don’t dim My light in you. You think this means prophecy. It does. Let that sink in. It does. You think that means railing at the world, pointing out its wrongs, focusing on evil, routing out sin. You can stand against–many do. I Am asking you to stand FOR. Be passionate about what you intend. Focus always on that. Remember My old word, be ruthless for righteousness? You do that by intention, by intending good and blessing–not by fighting against evil, and putting your focus there. Put your focus on what you intend, for yourself, for others, for the planet. Visualize peace. That is your vision quest. Let Me show you a new path and a new way and a new day.

 

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Gentleness

The past few days, I either haven’t had my usual morning time, or the entries have been specific and personal and not something intended for sharing with a wider audience. Often after my usual here’s-what-is-going-on-with-me, and here-is-what-the-weather-is, and here-is-what-I-plan-to-do-today I will write, Oh, Lord, what would You say? So Lord, what would You say? What would You tell those reading this?

Tell them I love them. Tell them to trust their senses–in their own way, each is very sensitive. Tell them, this isn’t meant to be so hard. There are lots of reasons why it’s become so–individual reasons and cultural reasons–but My intention all along was to be and stay connected, like holding hands. Sometimes you need a little squeeze, for reassurance. Sometimes you need a strong, steady grip for support. Sometimes you need a massage, stretching out each finger, for release, or for healing. Sometimes you need those hands to gently take over a load, a burden, you weren’t meant to carry at all, just take that load, put it down somewhere, and knead the knotted, gnarled knuckles back into suppleness.

If I could breathe one word into the human heart, that one word would be “gentleness.” People have twisted “God is love” into horrible, punishing circumstances and called it Me, called it My intent, My will. How about, God is Gentleness? Or, God is Tenderness? Maybe that provides a better picture. Maybe folks would trust themselves, trust joining their lives, to One Whose Name is Gentleness.

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Calm

Lord, the theme or challenge lately seems (again) to be health. I need to remember to be gentle with myself in my thinking. I need energy. We both do—some va-voom.

Your secret today really isn’t Power. You think it is—you think you have to rev your engine, “power through.” That will actually make you feel worse physically, and that will make you feel worse emotionally. Your secret today is to coast. Drift. Soak. This is a gentle day; start by being gentle with yourself. Eat gentle-to-digest foods. Treat yourself gently and easily. Sit a lot. Catch your breath. Your calm is what attracts most people to you. You have an opportunity to model that calm today.

Okay, thank You, Lord. I do feel better when calm.