My Joy Is to Be in Your Presence

My Joy

by Depeche Mode

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My joy, the air that I breathe

My joy, in God I believe

You move me

My joy, the blood in my veins

My joy, flows in your name

You move me

I'm not a mountain, no

You move me

My joy, heavenly bliss

My joy, the pleasure I miss

You move me

I'm not a mountain, no

You move me

Is it just today that for many of us, our wings have been clipped, our ability to soar fails, and we cannot even begin to negotiate an ascent from the ground upon which we stand? For many, has the sense of transcendence withered?
To transcend is to go beyond, to move past what is in this moment onward to a moment in the next and the next.
It seems correspondingly in this USA, the land of the free and the brave, that heaven is a question mark for many, and hell has simply fallen off the map.

Hell as a place or a state has fallen from the maps of today; nowhere can it easily be found without some digging. This possibly has to do with the incursion of the Civil Religion into our places of worship and most importantly, into our hearts.
Today many doubt the the Creator plays a role, or any role in the life of the world, engaging with people as his active agents; the devil likewise, with some of those persons as his active agents.

The impulse to consider the stories of Creation, whatever their tradition as nice, historical fiction is a product of the Civil Religion. In accomplishing this sense of doubt in the hearts of millions, a sort of sophistication enters, one which actually allows for the facile manipulation of the masses.
This is accomplished by instilling several ideas, one of which is that there are no other agents of creation in the world; that we, like the animals of the planet, exist for our selves alone.

And since the Civil Religion favors no one else at work on the planet besides human-kind, we cannot expect help from any other source but ourselves. This is a steep load to carry on the backs of so relatively puny a beast of burden.

Yet for some contrarians, in this world, my joy, may just rest in your presence; the eternity of the divine, the loving kindnesses of the world, those could not exist without the miracle of a faithful and hope filled spirit, sometimes called the One.

"You will show me the path to life, abounding joy in your presence, the delights at your right hand forever."  Psalm16:11

A Walk In My Shoes

Walking In My Shoes

by Depeche Mode

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I would tell you about the things

They put me through.

The pain I've been subjected to

But the Lord himself would blush.

The countless feasts laid at my feet.

Forbidden fruits for me to eat.

But I think your pulse would start to rush.

Now I'm not looking for absolution

forgiveness for the things I do.

But before you come to any conclusions

Try walking in my shoes.

You'll stumble in my footsteps.

Keep the same appointments I kept

If you try walking in my shoes.

Morality would frown upon.

Decency look down upon.

The scapegoat fate's made of me.

But I promise you, my judge and jurors

My intentions couldn't have been purer.

My case is easy to see.

I'm not looking for a clearer conscience.

Peace of mind after what I've been through

And before we talk of repentance

Try walking in my shoes

Try walking in my shoes.

We all think we have it worse, and sometimes we do. Blind to ourselves, quick to call out others, we volunteer ourselves for both judge and jury. Recently I had a conversation with a person who thinks of herself in a spiritual light. She noted that while many may choose to live together with their extended family, it really 'just depends upon your personality.' A simple mind remarked that custom and culture probably had more to do with it than the idiosyncrasies of personality.

Then it happened... She judged, and in that moment--a split second really, a simple mind could see into everything she most believed about herself and the world she inhabits: It's a world where the wheel is created over and over again; tradition accounts for naught, and not seeing herself clearly, she later remarked, that she was leaving her job to find "meaningful work with an NGO (a non-governmental organization) in Africa." She thought to work somewhere else far, far away. Simple mind comments about the value of observation over judgment were lost upon her, as lost as her thought that her life was really somewhere else, somewhere not in this and every moment.

 Discerning rather than judging is hard; often it's really hard. We are reminded in most all the spiritual traditions east or west, about the practice of openness, of emptiness and the great gifts it brings when we are empty to receive in the here and now. Our life is filled moment to moment with the world and ourselves, filled to the top. Jesus, the Christ, reminds us of this when we read the gospels which tell of his decided indifference to the character and style of an individual life. Tax collectors, despots, harlots and others, he was willing to treat them, to attend to the great commandment of love for one's neighbor.
Who is your neighbor? The gospel of Luke 10:30-37 gives some clues:
A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among robbers, who also stripped him and having wounded him went away, leaving him half dead.  And it chanced, that a certain priest went down the same way: and seeing him, passed by.In like manner also a Levite, when he was near the place and saw him, passed by.  But a certain Samaritan, being on his journey, came near him: and seeing him, was moved with compassion: And going up to him, bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine: and setting him upon his own beast, brought him to an inn and took care of him.  And the next day he took out two pence and gave to the host and said: Take care of him; and whatsoever you shall spend over and above, I, at my return, will repay you.  Which of these three, in your opinion, was neighbor to him that fell among the robbers?  But he said: He that showed mercy to him. And Jesus said to him: Go, and do in like manner.

 It is not necessary to go afar to meet one which you and your gifts may help. Neighbors are everywhere. If we are living in the "now moment," the present moment with its most pressing meaning, presently, we will come to understand our self first and our neighbor more clearly, who is human like our self. Compassion-- putting yourself in another's shoes-- is the way to understanding, and to love.

Judges and Jurors

Walking In My Shoes

by Depeche Mode

Listen Here

I would tell you about the things

They put me through.

The pain I've been subjected to

But the Lord himself would blush.

The countless feasts laid at my feet.

Forbidden fruits for me to eat.

But I think your pulse would start to rush.

Now I'm not looking for absolution

forgiveness for the things I do.

But before you come to any conclusions

Try walking in my shoes.

You'll stumble in my footsteps.

Keep the same appointments I kept

If you try walking in my shoes.

Morality would frown upon.

Decency look down upon.

The scapegoat fate's made of me.

But I promise you, my judge and jurors

My intentions couldn't have been purer.

My case is easy to see.

I'm not looking for a clearer conscience.

Peace of mind after what I've been through

And before we talk of repentance

Try walking in my shoes

Try walking in my shoes.

We all think we have it worse, and sometimes we do. Blind to ourselves, quick to call out others, we volunteer ourselves for both judge and jury. Recently I had a conversation with a person who thinks of herself in a spiritual light. She noted that while many may choose to live together with their extended family, it really 'just depends upon your personality.' A simple mind remarked that custom and culture probably had more to do with it than the idiosyncrasies of personality.

Then it happened... She judged, and in that moment--a split second really, a simple mind could see into everything she most believed about herself and the world she inhabits: It's a world where the wheel is created over and over again; tradition accounts for naught, and not seeing herself clearly, she later remarked, that she was leaving her job to find "meaningful work with an NGO (a non-governmental organization) in Africa." She thought to work somewhere else far, far away.
Simple mind comments about the value of observation over judgment were lost upon her, as lost as her thought that her life was really somewhere else, somewhere not in this and every moment.

 Discerning rather than judging is hard; often it's really hard. We are reminded in most all the spiritual traditions east or west, about the practice of openness, of emptiness and the great gifts it brings when we are empty to receive in the here and now. Our life is filled moment to moment with the world and ourselves, filled to the top.
Jesus, the Christ, reminds us of this when we read the gospels which tell of his decided indifference to the character and style of an individual life. Tax collectors, despots, harlots and others, he was willing to treat them, to attend to the great commandment of love for one's neighbor.

Who is your neighbor? The gospel of Luke 10:25-37 gives some clues:

“A man fell victim to robbers
as he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho.
They stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead.
A priest happened to be going down that road,
but when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
Likewise a Levite came to the place,
and when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him
was moved with compassion at the sight.
He approached the victim,
poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them.
Then he lifted him up on his own animal,
took him to an inn, and cared for him.
The next day he took out two silver coins
and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction,
‘Take care of him.
If you spend more than what I have given you,
I shall repay you on my way back.’

Which of these three, in your opinion,
was neighbor to the robbers’ victim?”

He answered, “The one who treated him with mercy.”
Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

It is not necessary to go afar to meet one which you and your gifts may help. Neighbors are everywhere. If we are living in the "now moment," the present moment with its most pressing meaning, presently, we will come to understand our self first and our neighbor more clearly, who is human like our self. Compassion is the way to understand, and to love.