Dallin Malmgren's Blog, page 20

HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY MARCH 21–27, 2022

March 21, 2022
#141 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Sunday, February 20, 2022 The intent, the purpose, the meaning of my writing project becomes more clear to me every day. I have a relationship with Jesus Christ, my living savior. We interact day by day. His interactions are subtle, but profound and joyous. He is teaching me how to become what I should be. I want to share what I am learning, because I don’t think there is anything more wonderful than believing in Him. I realize that this opportunity is available to every soul on earth. And so I write.

March 22, 2022
If it’s Tuesday, it must be golf…
#142 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Thursday, February 10, 2022 This I have learned (over and over again): God is only as present as I allow Him to be–especially on a golf course. I am fighting so many spiritual battles: playing well without allowing my ego to blow up, playing competitively without wishing ill for my competition, playing for money without caring about the money, playing badly without blaming something, accepting a bad break without whining. Add to that the wide range of emotions that can be experienced during a round of golf. Of course, His presence is the solution to every one of those battles. Who says that playing golf is not a spiritual exercise?

March 23, 2022
#143 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, February 7, 2022 I have a lot of down time, especially when the weather is bad like the last few days. I do crosswords and jigsaw puzzles, watch sports talk shows, practice putting, etc. God has been impressing upon me, not that those things are bad, but that I can use some of that time to reach out to people. A phone call or an email or just a text–to my children or their spouses, to family members, to friends (current, from the past, even long ago and far away). Isn’t that the “more excellent way” that the Apostle Paul talks about?

March 24, 2022
Appropriate for a Valentine’s Day communique…
#144 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2022 Many Christians feel that if God wants to speak to you, He will do it with the Bible. No doubt He does that all the time. But if I limit Him to that one channel, aren’t I shutting Him out of a whole lot of my life? I believe He speaks to me when a grandchild sits on my lap, when a butterfly lands on a flower before my eyes, when I see a need and meet it–any time love waves its magic wand in my life–and it does that all the time! I suppose I can be accused of “spiritualizing” everyday events. But aren’t we taught that the Spirit of God is constantly moving throughout the world, seeking to do good? I want to learn to recognize the movement.

March 25, 2022
I get these flashes of inspiration…
#145 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Saturday, March 5, 2022 Jesus said, “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life.” Jesus is not at all–zero percent–egotistical about being Jesus. It’s an invitation, not a qualification.

March 26, 2022
#146 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, August 25, 2021 God spoke to me in recounting my LSD experiences to an old friend. He made me aware that He was at work in my life long before I had my conversion experience. Despite its explosiveness and disruption, it helped me to realize that there was a spiritual plane, an unseen reality, that mattered significantly in my everyday life. That is when I became a seeker–Jesus is when I became a finder. I think we Christians have somehow used the Trinity to limit our spiritual experiences when the Trinity should, in fact, broaden them. The Spirit is always moving all over the planet, finding ways to do good.

March 27, 2022
#147 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Saturday, February 19, 2022 Once saved, always saved. My brother-in-law, a Catholic, and I got into an interesting discussion about that doctrine. To me that is the key–it is a doctrine. I am in a relationship. I am perfectly content to let Jesus take care of the eternity part of it. After all, He has experience–He rose from the dead. I want to learn to respond to Him right now. Save me NOW, Lord Jesus.

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HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY MARCH 14–20, 2022

MARCH 14, 2022
#134 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, February 7, 2022 This from my quiet time: “The supreme Christian insight is that God is love. The supreme Christian experience, which cannot be separated from authentic insight, is to know this love in your own heart. All this is mere words–sounding brass and tinkling cymbals–unless we take practical steps to be open to the reality to which the words point.” –from Word Made Flesh by John Main

March 15, 2022
This one is retroactive to yesterday. I was out of town and missed a post, but I sure had fun…
#135 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Tuesday, October 5, 2021 God keeps impressing upon me the fact that He is all that really matters in my life. Every golf swing, every conversation, every task–all of that will pass away in the light of my journey toward Him. And what a pleasant journey it has been! I realize again man’s true purpose: to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

March 16, 2022
And now I am all caught up…
#136 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, February 16, 2022 My spiritual director and I were discussing stillness. Like the verse says (“Be still and know that I am God”), stillness is intended to be a contact point. Meditation seems to be a pathway for achieving stillness.

March 17, 2022
A continuation from yesterday…
#137 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Thursday, February 17, 2022 So how do I meditate? My spiritual director and I discussed four different methods, kind of like doorways you can choose at the end of that quiz show. There is memorization (verses from the Bible, or what hits you), contemplation (directing my thoughts to the character of God), mantra (repetition of one phrase or even one word to quiet the mind), and breathing (just in and out, allowing any intrusive thought to float away). Lately I have been focusing on the last two methods, especially when I am in bed.
Postscript: Karen also suggested singing.

March 18, 2022
#138 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Friday, February 4, 2022 Love and stillness. These are the two messages God seems to be sending my way lately. The stillness is readily available–we are in a patch of bad weather (ice and snow), so I haven’t left the house in three days. Stillness enables me to receive His love, which (ideally) passes through me to my wife, my dog, and the people I talk with on the phone (family and friends). I know that God wants to expand my parameters, internally and externally.

March 19, 2022
He got here yesterday…
#139 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Tuesday, March 1, 2022 My oldest friend (from Upper Darby High School in Philadelphia) is coming to visit me! I think it has been about 50 years since I last saw him. I love how God keeps bubbling up people from my past and putting them in front of me. I used to think it was my duty to evangelize them. Now I realize it is my privilege to love them and let God take care of the evangelization. “But in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you the reason for the hope that is in you. But do this with gentleness and respect…” (I Peter 3:15)

March 20, 2022
#140 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, February 23, 2022 God never hurries. (I saw that on a bumper sticker once–so true!) When I look back on the entirety of my life, it is easy to perceive His activity–in doorways opened, opportunities presented, disasters averted, and yes, prayers answered. Recognizing His handiwork on a daily basis is far more difficult. If an artist added one stroke to a painting per day, would you be able to tell the difference? That is the beauty of my writing project: I am paying closer attention. I would recommend it to anyone.

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HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY March 7–13, 2022

March 7, 2022
#127 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Thursday, February 3, 2022 Look at my beloved live oak tree! There were three distinct gaps in the branches that light would shine through, and I would think of them as Father, Son and Spirit as I prayed on my back porch in good weather. Goes to show that God transcends any of the boxes that we try to fit Him in.

March 8, 2022
Tuesday = golf
#128 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, August 16, 2021 If golf is a spiritual exercise (it is), then fellowship should be a component. Today I partnered with a guy I barely knew. We shared a similar comportment as we played, and we were both having a decent round. In the cart we started talking about our lives. At the 16th hole I knew I had to tell him about how Jesus had changed the direction of my life. He said the same for him. So after the round we had a beer and discovered how central Jesus was to our lives. (He is reading the same daily devotional–My Utmost for His Highest–that I read last year.) We looked at each other and I said, “We are brothers in Christ” and we smiled and toasted.

March 9, 2022
#129 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Sunday, January 30, 2022 “My heart is restless until it rests in Thee.” –St. Augustine Something I have a hard time figuring out is how people get by without the Lord. There are millions of them out there, motoring around with this basic attitude: I can do this on my own. A) You can’t. B) Why would you want to? Not that I’m trying to stuff God down anybody’s throat. But it must get lonely in there. His presence is a gift, not a burden.

March 10, 2022
#130 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Tuesday, February 8, 2022 God has radically changed my demographic. Being a high school teacher, I’ve spent most of my life around young people. Now most of the people–my golf buddies, people at church, friends from my past–are old. There’s a lot of truth to John Prine’s “Old people just grow lonesome / Waiting for someone to say ‘Hello in there, hello.’ ” It’s a joy to see people come alive when you show an interest in them.

March 11, 2022
#131 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Tuesday, February 15, 2022 I have come up with a new word in my lexicon: Full-hearted. This feeling has been coming over me more frequently. It seems to be triggered by the realization of how wonderfully blessed I am coupled with the clear conviction of where this blessing comes from. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want…

March 12, 2022
#132 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Friday, February 11, 2022 In my youth I used to disdain sleep, feeling like it was just causing me to miss out on life. Nowadays, I have difficulty discerning when God is more communicative with me, in the day or the night.

March 13, 2022
#133 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, February 21, 2022 Complacency is my enemy, and yet I’m very susceptible to it. It’s easy for me to kick back and relax and appreciate how good life is. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that–I just can’t get stuck there. He is present and I need to be present to be receptive to Him. And in order to be present, I have to be ready to move.

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HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY FEBRUARY 28-MARCH 6, 2022

February 28, 2022
#120 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Saturday, January 28, 2022 Tonight I watched a movie and felt good about it. I used to watch tons and tons of movies (I even wrote screenplays), but in my later years I only like to watch ones that make me feel good about humanity. Of course, that rules out all horror, gangster, superhero, and most other blockbuster stuff. Give me an affirmation of the human condition, for we are created in God’s image. Oh yeah, the name of the movie was Wild Mountain Thyme.

March 1, 2022
A reminder…Tuesdays are golf days
#121 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Sunday, December 12, 2021 Shooting pain in my left hip throughout the night…I wonder what God is trying to tell me? To curtail golf? That doesn’t seem right to me. Lead on, Lord, I’m listening.
Postscript: The pain went away.

March 2, 2022
#122 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Tuesday, February 1, 2022 People. I wonder what I am supposed to be doing with these fading years of my life, and God says: People. Be involved with people. What people? I ask. You provide the involvement, I’ll provide the people, He tells me.

March 3, 2022
The cartoon seems appropriate for the post…
#123 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, January 31, 2022 And so Dry January is about to end. I have to ask God: Is this the year I continue into Dry February? Do you disapprove of my drinking? Is alcohol a stumbling block for me? I get no clearcut answer from God except moderation. In my life God is more vocal about what I should do than what I should not do.

March 4, 2022
This from way back in August; I’m using it because it reminds me that springtime is on the way…
#124 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Friday, August 20, 2021 A huge swallowtail butterfly came by, demonstrating God’s wonderful creative diversity (the first one I’ve ever seen from my back porch). She hung around for about a half an hour, dancing from flower to flower (Karen’s flowers being another demonstration). He threw in a perfect ruby-throated hummingbird for good measure.

March 5, 2022
#125 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, January 24, 2022 “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10) There is a spiritual universe contained in that one simple sentence. Let stillness be my aim today, Lord.

March 6, 2022
#126 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Sunday, February 6, 2022 I get so much enjoyment out of doing this daily reflection that sometimes I am afraid it will dry up. God smiles and says, Do you think you are doing this on your own? Are you afraid that I will run out of gas?

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HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY FEBRUARY 21–27, 2022

February 21, 2022
#113 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Tuesday, January 25, 2022 He is here. Right now. My oh so slow growing awareness of that simple truth has made all the difference in my life. It is true for me as I write this–it is true for you as you read this–it is true for my granddaughters when they, God willing, stumble across this truth in their lives. But there is a first step that each of us must take–you have to believe it is true. Then it becomes a relationship, not a religion.

February 22, 2022
As I have said, Tuesdays are golf days…
#114 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, October 25, 2022 This from my morning quiet time: “Life is meant to be lived from a Center, a divine Center. Each one of us can live such a life of amazing power and peace and serenity, of integration and confidence and simplicity, on one condition–that is, if we really want to.” (Thomas Kelly’s A Testament of Devotion)
So I carried that thought with me to the golf course. Was cruising along nicely until I hit a bad shot on #17–and, worse yet, got a terrible bounce. I made double bogey, which cost my team about $20, and inside I was cursing my fate. How quickly and easily I can slide from serenity to self-interest!

February 23, 2022
#115 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Thursday, January 20, 2022 Every time I worry abou the state of this world (which is whenever I watch the news), God says, “It is not on you, it’s on Me. I’ll handle the Big Picture–you concentrate on the Here and Now. And please let me help.”

February 24, 2022
#116 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, January 26, 2022 “Lord, I do believe; help Thou my unbelief.” (Mark 9:24) I’ve had the realization that so much of the doubt I struggle with is not about God or Jesus or the Spirit–it’s about me! Can I keep from straying? If I believe this, why do I do that? Am I a hypocrite? God keeps coming back with the same answer: Your eyes are in the wrong place. I’ve never expected you to change; I said I would change you. You see the stumble; I see the journey. Do not worry about your unbelief. Come unto Me.”

February 25, 2022
#117 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Thursday, February 24, 2022 I suppose you can read the Old Testament and find a way to convince yourself that there is such a thing as a just war, or that God favors one side over the other. But any sane reading of the New Testament makes it obvious that war is unacceptable human behavior. Please pray for the Ukraine.

February 26, 2022
#118 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Sunday, January 2, 2022 I write my daily post because I believe this: John of the Cross once said that the language of God is the experience God writes into our lives.…God does not speak to us through seances, and the most important things that God wants to say to us are not given in extraordinary mystical visions. The God of the incarnation has real flesh on earth and speaks to us in the bread and butter of our lives, through the things that have skin–historical circumstances, our families, our neighbors, our churches, and that borderline-psychotic friend who painfully reminds us that we are not God. When we look for God’s guidance, these voices must complement the voice from heaven. —from The Holy Longing by Ronald Rolheiser

February 27, 2022
#119 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Saturday, January 29, 2022 Yes, undoubtedly, God speaks to us through His word, the Bible. But He also keeps showing me there is so much I can learn, or assimilate, from Christians who have gone before me. This is from John Main in Word Made Flesh: “The mystery that renews our hold on life once we enter it is that we, very ordinary people, are to be transformed in Christ. We have only to be mindful and so to realize from our own experience everything that has been achieved for us by Jesus.”

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HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY FEBRUARY 14–20, 2022

February 14, 2022
#106 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Saturday, January 15, 2022 St. Augustine’s infamous prayer, from early in his spiritual journey: “Lord, make me a good and chaste christian, but not yet.”
This from my reading: “We see from that example that it is not enough just to know the truth, to have clarity of conviction, and to know where ideally our lives should be heading, though that can be a valuable start. There is also the question of heart, of energy, of willpower, of sustaining ourselves on the road. The spiritual life is not a quick sprint to a well-marked finish line, but a marathon, an arduous life-long journey into an ever-widening horizon.” –Ronald Rolheiser
My personal response: I gotta keep movin’.

February 15, 2022
Tuesdays are golf days, and this was an important message (to me)…
#107 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, January 17, 2022 Golf is a spiritual exercise only if you make it one. It is lonesome and dry playing alone, no matter who is in the foursome.

February 16, 2022
#108 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, January 5, 2022 “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10) I am 72 years old and I feel like I am just discovering stillness. There is very little in our modern world that encourages it. Retirement does, though. This morning I lay in bed an extra half hour, all toasty under the covers, and yes, there was a pleasant awareness of God’s presence. Ah, stillness.

February 17, 2022
#109 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Sunday, January 16, 2022 A point God keeps bringing home to me, over and over again, is how weak I am. Of course, I don’t really want to hear that. I have these two self-images marching along next to each other–one of the saintly, maturing, wise Christian and the other of an always straying, back-sliding, self-absorbed ordinary man–and the Holy Spirit marches with the second guy. Thankfully, God says to me the same thing He said to Paul: “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” (II Corinthians 12:9)

February 18, 2022
#110 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Saturday, January 22, 2022 I got my rental car stolen while in Mexico. It was through my own stupidity–I gave the guy the keys and didn’t even know his name. So I’m searching for a yellow Mustang in a parking lot near the bus station. Realizing this is a hopeless task, I say: “Lord, get me out of this.” Then I woke up. Morning by morning new mercies I see.

February 19, 2022
#111 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Friday, January 21, 2022 “Faith and promise keep me honest/ When starvation comes upon us…” That’s my boys the Avett Brothers reminding me that when I go spiritually dry, I need to cling to what I know is true and just keep pressing on.

February 20,2022
#112 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, January 19, 2022 I am struck once again with how important it is that we love one another. If I wake up in the morning and say, “Okay, God, what do you want me to do today?”, His first answer is: “Love Me and love whoever I put in front of you. Start immediately.” And I don’t even have to worry about results or consequences. Love begets love. Everyone I love loves me back, although it might not always seem that way. I just have to keep expanding my circle.

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HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY February 7–13, 2022

February 7, 2022
#99 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, January 10, 2022 A former student shared a Facebook post with me from a Fed Ex deliverywoman who delivered a package to a distraught woman whose husband was sick with cancer. The deliverywoman said a few niceties and then went on with her route. After about 20 stops she went back to the grieving woman and offered to pray with her. They shared one of those “God is right here” moments. The Fed Ex lady said she had been “nudged” by the Holy Spirit to return to the woman. I love that. God is not looking for willpower; He is looking for willingness.

February 8, 2022
This is kind of a special day, because this is my 100th time sharing this writing project…who would have thought God would be so communicative? (Remember, Tuesdays are golf days…sort of)
#100 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Friday, January 14, 2022 From my quiet time: “Perhaps there is nothing in this world as powerful to break selfishness as is the simple act of looking at our own children. In our love for them we are given a privileged avenue to feel as God feels–to burst in unselfishness, in joy, in delight, and in the desire to let another’s life be more real and important than our own.” –Ronald Rolheiser
I played golf with my son today…(to quote the poet)…and oh, ’tis true, ’tis true.

February 9, 2022
#101 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Tuesday, January 11, 2022 You will either think this is silly or very cool. My granddaughters gave me a jigsaw puzzle for Christmas. When I finally completed it, one piece was missing! I searched high and low, around under and on the table. I even said a little prayer about it, acknowledging the triviality and the obsession. Then Karen searched–she even checked her vacuum cleaner bag. So tonight we are playing a game at the same table. Karen looks down at her elbow resting on the table–and there is the missing piece! I could almost hear God in heaven laughing.

February 10, 2022
#102 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Thursday, January 13,2022 “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful to me, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his own, but each one the other’s well-being.” (I Corinthians 10: 23–24) This is the gold standard. Being a Christian is never about rules. We have perfect liberty. But being a true believer means putting the other’s (whoever is in front of you) well-being ahead of your own. I fall short every single day. But like the song says: “I get knocked down, I get up again, you’re never gonna keep me down.”

February 11, 2022
#103 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, November 8, 2021 I am reading Where Is God When It Hurts? with the Stephen Ministry group at my church. When we encounter suffering, our own or someone else’s, a frequent response is “Why, God?” Philip Yancey addresses the issue by referencing Jesus’s response to the disciple’s question about a man born blind. Yancey writes, “The disciples wanted to look backward, to find out “Why?” Jesus redirected their attention. Consistently, He points forward, answering a different question: “To what end?” And that, I believe, offers a neat summary of the Bible’s approach to the problem of pain. To backward-looking questions of cause, to the “why?” questions, it gives no definitive answers. But it does hold out hope for the future, that even suffering can be transformed or “redeemed.” A human tragedy, like blindness, can be used to display God’s mercy.

February 12, 2022
#104 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, November 17, 2021 How do I know that God has spoken to me? I invite him to, and then I pay attention. At the end of the day I reflect. Today God reaffirmed that He wants me to continue my writing project, that it pleases Him. It pleases me too.

February 13, 2022
This one is appropriate for Super Bowl day…
#105 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Sunday, January 23, 2022 Seeing human beings perform at the very highest level (rare) convinces me that we really are created in God’s image. Watching Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes play football tonight was one of those times. Spectator sports can become so idolatrous, but they can also be elevating. Tonight I was elevated.

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HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY JANUARY 31-FEBRUARY 6, 2022

January 31, 2022
#92 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Tuesday, December 21, 2021 I’ve discovered another benefit of my writing project. God will not only speak; He will sometimes remind. After feeling out of it for four days (head cold), I meditated in my study this evening. I was moved again to one of those “state of the union” moments–that I knew He was present, who He is, that our connection is vital, and how I trust He will continue the work He has begun in me. A glorious peacefulness settles in.

February 1, 2022
#93 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Saturday, January 1, 2022 “All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” (I Corinthians 6:12) Thus begins Dry January. I have to admit, cocktail hour is a magical time for me, and I do enjoy dry red wine. The first day of Dry January is always a little skittery for me. But I know it is good for my soul. I keep thinking one of these years God is going to tell me to quit entirely. He hasn’t yet. Perhaps this is the year.

February 2, 2022
#94 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Thursday, December 9, 2021 To understand the Bible, you have to know that God is love. That is why I recommend you read I Corinthians 13 first and the Gospel of John next.

February 3, 2022
#95 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Saturday, January 8, 2022 God comes to us in our weakness, not in our strength. Leonard Cohen said it wonderfully: “Ring the bells that still can ring / Forget your perfect offering / There is a crack, a crack in everything / That’s how the light gets in.”

February 4, 2022
#96HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Sunday, January 9, 2022 In the winter, in the morning, lying in bed all toasty, with just your head sticking out feeling the slight chill, knowing you don’t have to get up if you don’t want to–isn’t that a bit like feeling the loving arms of God wrapped around you?

February 5, 2022
#97 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, January 12, 2022 Karen bought a game called Exploding Kittens which she wants to play with our granddaughters. She asked me to play it with her so she could learn how. We dove in and, I swear, in fifteen minutes you would have thought we were fifteen years younger, laughing and teasing and trying to beat each other down (she won both games). Thus was born our own Game Night. What does this have to do with God? Can’t explain why, but everything.

February 6, 2022
#98 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, January 3, 2022 I found my definition of “church.” “The spirit of Jesus, the Holy Spirit, is defined in scripture as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Living in these virtues is what binds us into community in such a way that we are immune from separation by distance, temperament, race, color, gender, ideology, social status, history, creed, or even death. All who live in these virtues are one body with each other and constitute the church.” –from The Holy Longing by Ronald Rolheiser

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HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY JANUARY 24–30

January 24, 2021
#85 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, December 29, 2021 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.” (I John 4:7) I asked God how I can become a more loving person, and He said: Practice. Practice on your wife–practice on your dog–practice on your granddaughters and your family–practice on the church folk–practice on your golf buddies–practice on whoever I bring into your life. Amen.

January 25, 2021
Tuesdays are golf days…
#86 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Friday, September, 10, 2021 After hitting a shot very close to the pin on a par 3, I told my friend, “I thought that might be the one. I’ve always felt that God has promised me a hole in one.”
Friend: I don’t think God has anything to do with it.
Me: Oh, absolutely He does.
Friend: You think God is going to hit that ball for you?
Me: Of course not. I never said He was going to do it by Himself.

January 26, 2021
#87 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Saturday, September 11, 2021 Today I meditated on silence. God did too, I guess.

January 27, 2021
#88 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Friday, December 31, 2021 “Preach the word of God wherever you go, even use words if necessary.” –St. Francis of Assisi
I love that quote. I pray for 2022 that I might be more effective in sharing Jesus with others. It’s hard for me to talk about Jesus or tell someone what Jesus can do for him/her–even though I know it is true. God, show me the way.

January 28, 2021
#89 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, August 23, 2021 Just a murmur, a whisper really. I was immersed in the tasks of the day: taking out the trash, zooming my Stephen Ministry meeting, putting away the dishes, cleaning the kitchen (ah, Brother Lawrence!), walking the dog. There is righteousness in doing what God has put before you. It has spiritual value.

January 29,2021
#90 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, August 25, 2021 The word for tonight is simplicity. We have Netfiix, Amazon Prime, Apple + and Hulu–tonight I was far more entertained by sitting in my study with a candle burning and my 4 year old granddaughter sleeping in the chair next to me after I rocked her because she was having difficulty sleeping. “The world is too much with us…” the poet said. I’m pretty sure he meant the world of Netflix, etc.

January 30, 2021
#91 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, December 27, 2021 “And you will seek Me and you will find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13) I can’t dabble in spirituality. I have to make certain choices about how I am going to approach life–maintain awareness of His presence, put others before self, always take the high road–and I have to stick with them. This is not to say I don’t stumble over and over. I can’t go by what I feel at the moment–it has to run deeper than that.

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HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY January 17–23, 2022

January 17, 2022
#78 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Wednesday, December 22, 2021 I cried when I prayed with Karen tonight. It was kind of embarrassing. Earlier as I was cleaning the kitchen, she was watching the news. It was such a wave of darkness–the pandemic spreading out of control; “natural” events like tornados and earthquakes and floods shattering people’s lives; the fractiousness of the politicians we elect to govern us. But before we prayed, we talked–of the progress we can see in the lives of our children and their families; of our plans for Christmas day; of the memories triggered by certain ornaments hanging from our tree. In contrast to the fear “out there”, there was such an air of beneficence surrounding us in our home. Then we prayed to our incomprehensibly wonderful Father, Son and Spirit, and my heart overflowed.

JANUARY 18, 2022
#79 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, September 27, 2021 As I’ve said before, golf is a spiritual exercise. I feel like He is teaching me to detach my ego from my performance. It is gloriously liberating. Of course, next time I will probably shoot a 90 and come home in a funk. With golf, it always seems to be one step forward, .9 of a step back. I suspect spiritual progress is like that too.

JANUARY 19, 2022
This one came from Christmas Eve. It is extra special because God was speaking to a whole bunch of people at once…
#80 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Friday, December 24, 2021 Even though I’ve done it probably 40+ times, I still get a chill at the Christmas Eve service when everybody is lighting candles, and we’re singing Silent Night and holding up our candles, and the church is crowded, and even the children know to be reverent.
**And I ran into a great kid (man now) that I taught in 1994.

JANUARY 20, 2022
#81 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, November 15, 2021 God said, “There are no moods in Christ.” It started with being annoyed at our dog’s excitement as I prepared to take her for a walk.…carried over into critical thoughts about one of the guys I was golfing with (through no fault of his own)…and led to a cold response to Karen’s inquiry into how my round went. I realize that moods are a normal part of the human condition. But Christ came so that we might transcend the human condition. Be patient with me, Lord.

JANUARY 21, 2022
Sometimes God must think He has to use a sledgehammer with me…
#82 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Tuesday, December 28, 2021 I woke up mildly resentful because I had to take my three granddaughters to Pinstack’s (bowling/arcade) when I could be playing golf. Of course, it was a lovely day, and the realization struck me that time spent with them is more precious and valuable than anything that could happen on the golf course. I’m glad that God knows my priorities better than I do.

JANUARY 22, 2022
#83 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Tuesday, December 14, 2021 Life is a journey is a tired metaphor, but as you get older it gets livelier. Days become more precious when you realize you have fewer of them ahead of you. There is a switch from survival mode to opportunity mode. What do You have for me today, Lord? Please enable me to be open to Your Spirit’s leading. “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)

JANUARY 23, 2022
#84 HOW GOD SPOKE TO ME TODAY
Monday, December 6, 2021 I got this from my quiet time: “Spirituality is more about whether or not we can sleep at night than about whether or not we go to church. It is about being integrated or falling apart, about being within community or being lonely, about being in harmony with Mother Earth or being alienated from her. Irrespective of whether or not we let ourselves be consciously shaped by any explicit religious idea, we act in ways that leave us either healthy or unhealthy, loving or bitter. What shapes our actions is our spirituality.” –from The Holy Longing by Ronald Rolheiser

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