Pictorials

My Earthly Heart

shall beautifully bleed

all the while

my soul
rooted in you...

___________________________________________________________________________________

Mysterious

Wisteria

rope-like braids

encase the common

cascading

as love and prayers

upon us fall...

246

I always arrive early for anything and everything, just to set and "get my bearings" so to speak.  Church is a place of respite; home away from home.  One of my favorite (meditative, soothing) practices I have whenever I am at Church is to randomly open the hymnal.  In this practice my most "go to" style of reading is Lectio Divina.

This particular hymn pops for me often, perhaps it is because we sing the last stanza almost weekly in church.  Regardless, I randomly opened to 246 the Brian Wren "Christ Is Alive!" yesterday morning.  As I sat solo in the Sanctuary with this for a good while and as the hand bell choir began to practice, the one line that I felt over and over--felt is:  "...Love, drowned in death, shall never die."

Psalm 136 New Living Translation (NLT)

Psalm 136

¹ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.
² Give thanks to the God of gods.
His faithful love endures forever.
³ Give thanks to the Lord of lords.
His faithful love endures forever.

⁴ Give thanks to him who alone does mighty miracles.
His faithful love endures forever.
⁵ Give thanks to him who made the heavens so skillfully.
His faithful love endures forever.
⁶ Give thanks to him who placed the earth among the waters.
His faithful love endures forever.
⁷ Give thanks to him who made the heavenly lights—
His faithful love endures forever.
⁸ the sun to rule the day,
His faithful love endures forever.
⁹ and the moon and stars to rule the night.
His faithful love endures forever.

¹⁰ Give thanks to him who killed the firstborn of Egypt.
His faithful love endures forever.
¹¹ He brought Israel out of Egypt.
His faithful love endures forever.
¹² He acted with a strong hand and powerful arm.
His faithful love endures forever.
¹³ Give thanks to him who parted the Red Sea.^[a]
His faithful love endures forever.
¹⁴ He led Israel safely through,
His faithful love endures forever.
¹⁵ but he hurled Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea.
His faithful love endures forever.
¹⁶ Give thanks to him who led his people through the wilderness.
His faithful love endures forever.

¹⁷ Give thanks to him who struck down mighty kings.
His faithful love endures forever.
¹⁸ He killed powerful kings—
His faithful love endures forever.
¹⁹ Sihon king of the Amorites,
His faithful love endures forever.
²⁰ and Og king of Bashan.
His faithful love endures forever.
²¹ God gave the land of these kings as an inheritance—
His faithful love endures forever.
²² a special possession to his servant Israel.
His faithful love endures forever.

²³ He remembered us in our weakness.
His faithful love endures forever.
²⁴ He saved us from our enemies.
His faithful love endures forever.
²⁵ He gives food to every living thing.
His faithful love endures forever.
²⁶ Give thanks to the God of heaven.

"Love...shall never die"

Glory To God Hymnal

"No, not just for some, oh, but just for ever, every, everyone"

Prince of Peace, your Spirit dwells within and among us all, 
please Lord, 
ignite that consuming blaze of Love in all those who are so violently angry...

https://youtu.be/y3X4SmuSN8s

Lyrics

What the world needs now is love, sweet love
It's the only thing that there's just too little of
What the world needs now is love, sweet love
No, not just for some but for everyone

Lord, we don't need another mountain
There are mountains and hillsides enough to climb
There are oceans and rivers enough to cross
Enough to last 'till the end of time

What the world needs now is love, sweet love
It's the only thing that there's just too little of
What the world needs now is love, sweet love
No, not just for some but for everyone

Lord, we don't need another meadow
There are cornfields and wheat fields enough to grow
There are sunbeams and moonbeams enough to shine
Oh, listen, lord, if you want to know

What the world needs now is love, sweet love
It's the only thing that there's just too little of
What the world needs now is love, sweet love
No, not just for some, oh, but just for ever, every, everyone

What the world needs now is love, sweet love (oh, is love)
What the world needs now is love, sweet love (oh, is love)
What the world needs now is love, sweet love (oh, is love)

Waste Management

Hypocritical nonsense, we're all exposed to it
predominantly seen around election times
let us not down play the day-to-day
shake your head
can't even believe people missed that!

One thing I will pimp with five stars
with regard to those I grew up with
my life subjected to:

Narcissistic reality.
Blatant lies.
Twist it this way and that.
Two-step around every question.
Smoke and mirror
illusive distractions.

The break the glass
in case of a
close to being exposed
emergency pull--

bore two little scapegoats...

you know the saying; "You can't bullshit a bullshitter"


A better saying would be;

"You can't bullshit those who've waded in and trained in waste management!"

                                          *This is not my image, it is a downloaded image*

Lacking Fancy

For all I craved, even unbeknownst

you, Lord, have fulfilled and continue to pour over me more than I deserve

gratefully and thankfully and humbly I receive joyfully

You, indeed, hear all spoken and unspoken;


Read my heart always and keep me from selfish ways...

I want nothing more than to live in You

and You in me, always!


Welcoming Your will on earth as it is in heaven

always and everlasting...


Keep watch as I sleep tight

over not only myself but those I love

and those whom are lost...

In Christ's name I pray, always!

Amen.

Lenten Thoughts and Ponderings

The bit I am chomping on at this point is;

"Zeal for your house will consume me"  John 2:17

Last Lenten journey I went "Inwardly Turning" which is, of course, a post here in my blogspot.

Part of my Spiritual and Church life is a Thursday noon discussion group.  The texts and readings vary monthly.  I really enjoy that as well as, for the most part, it is a large part of any Spiritual and intellectual dialog for me.  This weeks reading is John 2: 13-22, where my self question is:
What does this one passage speak to you personally, today, about your Lenten journey?

My head works like a really messed up flow chart of images created by words, actions, relating cartoons, movies and music--creating articulation issues for me, jus' so ya know!

This year, I have gone by another way of trying to incorporate others.  Or Outwardly Turning, perhaps!  For some reason this is the continual popper for me; "Zeal for your house will consume me."  It just keeps resonating to good, bad and indifferent situations and incorporative ventures and efforts.  To the point that I can almost empathize via Jesus' emotions, discontent and passion on an actual real level.  It really doesn't seem to be working for me!

To some degree this almost feels as though the most valuable and hardest to swallow tid-bit here on earth is "it really doesn't matter" like the destruction of the temple--so what it has been under construction forty-six years, and in three days I will raise it, however, loopholed or mattering--not what was thought mattered and or expected...

As well as, like the disciples, after they remembered and believed.

My "answer" to my self question/reflections is another question:  Or is it working for/on me?

Why isn't my "Outwardly Turning" working or indeed is it??!!