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I’m in an interesting place today.  Since December 1, (so basically for three full months) I’ve been so involved in an interim ministry assignment that I’ve allowed my other ministerial activities to take a back seat.  I’ve not worked on my books.  I’ve not made any progress setting up my podcast.  I’ve come to a decision about the name and focus of my ministry, but haven’t taken any action on that decision.  I’ve come to a decision about how I wish to get involved and be active in my organization, Centers for Spiritual Living, and I haven’t acted on that one either.  Instead, I’ve been creating and doing talks, creating and doing workshops, creating and doing a full day retreat.  And I’ve been doing some fairly intense one on one work with quite a few folks.  This is all work I love, and it is all work that I set an intention to do when I was visioning for my ministry.  But also included in that vision was the podcasts, the books, and more blogging.  And UGG, I may have to do whatever necessary to get over my objections to video format, because I’m learning that is the in thing nowadays.  And just by my language, you can tell a lot about me.


OK boomer.

 
Go ahead, you can say it to me, I’m good with it, Ok boomer.
In short, I’ve been a bit out of balance.  And now I am in a blissful almost three week break from intense interim ministry work.  They actually told me they wanted a bit of a break!  Apparently I’ve been working them too hard.  Well, yes, I can see that.  I sort of thought that was what I was there for, but they’ve been working hard right along side me and I’ve learned that most people are not as driven as I am.  Hence, the out of balance.  

Anyway, my intention during this time was to get some things done in the areas I’ve been neglecting.  Plus I have a celebration of life ceremony to create, and several wedding ceremonies to create, and one batch of wedding photos to edit.  Instead I’m contemplating which hot springs to go to and what seeds to plant for my summer garden.  I’m recuperating from a cold.  We’ve had unseasonably warm weather, so I’ve been sitting in the sun a lot.  Just sitting.  
I guess I’m just getting back into balance rather than swinging past it, so I’ll just lean on into this for a bit.  Go with the flow is the phrase of the day today.  There is a spiritual principle inherent in going with the flow.  My friend Jeff Anderson, in his book “The Nature of Things,” says it like this:  “in mind, body, heart and soul we are designed to be supple, to move and to bend in constant movement as the environment and conditions of life change, both around us and within us.”
In the Sermon on the Mount, this concept of going with the flow is described as meekness.  “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.“ I say this because the metaphysical meaning of the word meek is yielding, pliable or flexible.  And blessed means delighted.  And the earth signifies our outer experience.  Inheriting the earth thus means we have control of our outer experiences.
So today, I go with the flow.  I remain supple.  I remain flexible.  And soon, I know that from within this suppleness and flexibility will come that state of being delighted.  Until then, flow.  

Ok.  I'm excited now.  I've got a lineup of workshops, classes and a retreat that is designed to ROCK YOUR WORLD!

Between now and June:  four workshops, one class and one retreat.  All are designed to do one thing and one thing only:  move you from a life in which you experience fear or limitation or frustration to a life in which you experience love and joy, no limits and easy flow.

Here they all are, on one graphic, for easy reference:

Topics on tap:  Balance and self care, creativity, meditation, success, forward movement and playtime!

Invest in one or invest in them all.  I will give you a hint:  there is a two-for-one special on the workshops at the end of the list.

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imageThere is a balance between doing and being in our lives.  Another way to put that is that in order to be most effective with the stuff we do in our lives, we need to take time out for stillness.

Stillness doesn't have to mean doing nothing.  Many of the clients I work with cry out in dismay at the very thought of simply being still.   But I believe stillness is a very necessary component to a happy life.  When I begin counseling work with a client, one of the first things I do is find out what practices they use to be still.  Very often, implementing a practice such as journaling or meditation is all that is needed to restore a life filled with chaos to one filled with peace.

If we look to Mother Nature as an example, we will see that there are periods of calm, and periods of...well, not so calm.  We will see trees lying dormant in winter, looking almost dead, yet when spring comes all of a sudden there is a rush of activity on those same trees.  If we look to religion as an example, we are told that there is a time to tear down and a time to build.   Physically, we must rest every day, for about 8 hours, or risk reduced effectiveness in our doings.  Continue with a lack of sleep and eventually psychosis sets in.  Psychologically, we need a good, balanced combination of laughter and solemnity, play time and work time, or we risk a feeling of perhaps not fitting in, or feeling like something is missing from our lives.

Most of us, in our active lives, might tend to ignore the need for stillness and quiet.  Doing so prevents us from enjoying all the beauty and wonders that life has to offer.

We are approaching a new year.  It is a time of resolutions and a determined effort to begin anew for most of us.  And yet studies show that resolutions made at this time of year are rarely kept for very long.  Instead of making a resolution, make a committment.  Commit to spending a period of time, every day, in stillness.  Even if you are a mother with children who follow you to the bathroom, you can still find at least a couple of minutes during which you can breathe.....simply breathe.

How do you practice stillness in your life?