Friday, November 9, 2018
ATTENTION
Hi There !
"Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.
It's been a week since my last confession.
These are my sins.
I had impure thoughts many times every day."
That was a typical lead for the "soul script"
of teenage boys when I was a young priest
hearing their confessions.
Their "impure thoughts"
were sexual images and fantasies
sprung from pubescent "hormonal upheaval."
Well, this old confessor needs to confess
that I too am plagued with
"impure thoughts many times every day."
Do I have your attention???
You see, that's my problem:
ATTENTION!!
My attention to God is blurred to blindness
at times by an impure haze over my spirit.
Its pollutants are pride, selfishness, fear,
laziness, and a batch of
not a bit likeable "impurities."
It's a terrible play in too many acts:
* Feigning attention while
not a bit interested in a person
* Smiling as a defense rather than
as a soul stretch
* Saying the right thing
for a totally wrong reason
* At worship wondering
about other things
rather than being in wonder
* Listening to music
while mentally planning
tomorrow's schedule
* Reading the Bible
to anchor my points
rather than be treated
to refreshing revelation
* Pretending to fully listen
to another while busy
lining up my responses.
These "impurities" and
their smudged cousins
cause a
disconnect between my
Soul Self
and the
God of Right Here,
Right Now.
That God of Right Here, Right Now
is so purely present in prayer, people,
sacred writings, service, work, nature,
the arts, science, learning -
in everyone and everywhere I go.
The trouble is I'm not!
My"impurities" haze over
real attention to the
God of Right Here, Right Now.
Paradoxically my "impurities"
became quite clear to me the other day.
I was doing spiritual direction.
There is a lot of God,
God Right Here, Right Now,
in that wonderful man.
I missed most of it it because
I was trying to score some points,
posturing as a wise sage and saintly soul.
Inattentive and impure
in the presence of
such pure Godness
right there, right then!!
Well, that's about it
for this edition of
"True Confessions."
Here's the hope:
* To purely,
to really give attention
to "God Present"
wherever, however
the pure presence.
* To give "soul attention"
(i.e. center self )
to people and place,
to God Right Here, Right Now
so present there
* to give myself
a reality check
every morning,
noon, and night -
an examen -
"How purely am I present?"
* To regularly thank God
for waiting til I get there!!
Here it is
Scripture Straight:
THE POLLUTION:
" There are those who are pure
in their own eyes and yet
are not cleansed of their own filth."
Proverbs 30:12
THE PURITY:
" Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they shall see God."
Matthew 5:8
Hey, let's
cleans the lens!!
Holding you all in
God's Dear Love,
God Right Here, Right Now,
John Frank
*****
Each week we are gifted by new folks
joining us here at
"frankly speaking"
spirituality for the street.
This week that new participation came from
Thailand.
Welcome!
We are blessed by your presence.
To get a sense of what we are all about here,
please give a little prayerful time and attention to
WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?
and
CONSIDER YOUR SOURCE.
They are to the right, online posting
"frankly speaking"
-is posted online each Friday at
johnfrankshares.blogspot.com
and can be bookmarked for ready access
-is available by automatic
email delivery each Saturday
Sign Up, top right, online posting
-past postings are available at Blog Archive,
right column, online posting.
Thank You.
**************************************************************************