Morning Pages

I’ve been gone a few days … I went to find my mind and have returned with some of it.


Since January I have been doing something I’d like to recommend. The idea comes from a book called, “The Artist’s Way”, by Julia Cameron. She describes a daily discipline [don’t drop this and run; it’s just a word] she likes to call, “Morning Pages”.

Every day, no matter what comes her way or how she feels, she sits down and writes for a certain amount of time. She writes about anything that pops into her head. This is where I got interested. I could do that, for a limited amount of time.

There are no rules to this sort of writing, which is one reason I’ve been able to keep it up myself.

No rules. That appeals to me. Partly because I hate rules unless I’ve made them. Mostly because much of what I need to write/say/express should not be seen by human eyes, according to me.

Sometimes I feel angry. I’m so angry that the things I write would make some of your eyes bleed.

Sometimes I write some things that could make you want to get high to forget you read about them.

Sometimes I feel cursed. Sometimes I think the curse of death is like my daily bread. The things I write about that subject might make you want to run the other way for fear of catching death, if that was possible.

To inspire you to consider “Morning Pages” I’ve included my first entry:

January 31, 2010
Write something. What?
Sophie just watched her first McGee and me – Take Me out Of the Ballgame. Now she’s brought her pillow over to the table, laid her head down on it and is sucking her thumb.
Nope, she’s gone in to lay down on her bed.
Nope, she’s up again.
Ah, the energy of an 8 year old.
We just finished her mom’s key chain (the one with the soccer ball and white plastic beads)
Now I should go take a shower and get her ready to take home.
I need caffiene, I think.

Sorry, that's the only entry you get to see. Some of the others might make you want to call the Catholic Church and have me excommunicated. I’m not even Catholic.

I chose to encrypt mine. If you want to write your notes on a computer and encrypt them, consider this tip: decide on a password then write it down somewhere so you can refer to it until you know it well. Encryption is like a modern day diary key that actually works! But, unless you are a computer hacker, you will not be able to get into your own file without that password.

So, there you have it. Another blah blah log … I hope you’re inspired!

Wake Up!

Steven Curtis Chapman says things so well ...


I never did like the word mediocre

I never wanted it to be said of me

Just point me to the top and I'd go over

Looking for the very best that could be

So.. what is this thing I see
Going on inside of me?

When it comes to the grace of God

Sometimes it's like

I'm playing Gameboy standing in the middle of the Grand Canyon

I'm eating candy sittin' at a gourmet feast

I'm wading in a puddle when I could be swimming in the ocean

Tell me what's the deal with me

Wake up and see the glory

Every star in the sky tells his story

And every breeze is singing his song

All of creation is imploring

Hey, come see this grand phenomenon

The wonder of His grace

Should take my breath away

I should be speechless and amazed

Wake up and see the glory

Open your eyes and take it in

Wake up and be amazed

Over and over again

God's love is coming to you and to me

Wake up, wake up

                       
                        
              Languishing …  the condition of someone
                       who may be able to function
               but has lost a sense of hope and meaning.
           Languishing is not the presence of mental illness;
          it is the absence of mental and emotional vitality …
                        it is the opposite of flourishing …

                   {The Me I Want To Be, John Ortberg}
                                
Languishing. I have come to know this word from the inside out.

Ouch. I just looked up languishing in my thesaurus and found words like fade away, get weaker, rot, and decay. Sounds like I’m dying. And so I have been.

Don’t panic! I don’t have some dreaded disease – or do I?

I think I do.

I’m dying of it. God knows I am.

What’s more, I think he’s okay with it.

I’m sick of languishing. He’s okay with that, too.

And so I stand, once again, before the throne of the King of the Universe and ask, once again, for an infusion of the life he promises and I know, once again, he’ll give it to me hand over fist …

                     I came so they can have real and eternal life,
                   more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
                                        John 10:10, Jesus

Let there be life.

Scarlet Hope

A couple of days ago I met a woman who works with a group called Scarlet Hope. I couldn't tell by it's name what kind of organization it was so, of course I asked ... was I surprised!

After hearing about it, I now love what this group is doing and appreciate the unique way they have chosen to be the hands and feet of Christ.

After getting the picture I am so impressed with what they do. At the same time I am disturbed at some of the opposition they get from, of all people, other Christians.

Don't we want to know the kind of God who will come into the darkness of our everyday lives and be with us, love and care for us, where we are? Then, why isn't it alright for Christians to go into the darkness of the world to be with, love and care for people there, too?

Like most people, I have been in some really dark places - literally and figuratively. If God hadn't seen me there and come in after me, I'd still be cowering in some dark corner. I'm so glad he knew some people he could to send who were brave enough to be with me in those places - and eventually walk me out.

That's what Scarlet Hope does.

The following blurbs are about them, taken from their website:

Our vision is to see women in the sex industry know they are loved by a creator that knows them.

Women of all professions are longing for a sense of Love. Filling their hearts with temporary possessions, temporary men, temporary jobs. Unconditional Love that comes from Jesus is available to every one of us. Our vision is to see these women stand up on their own two feet in a relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ.

Scarlet Hope has a team of Jesus Lovers that bring a home cooked meal into strip clubs. We feed between 40-80 on any given week of dancers, bouncers and managers. Our team is made up of a dozen women who meet together and bring this food. We serve each of the dancers and then eat with them building trust and a friendship with these women.

What better way to go and clothe these naked women with what Jesus was clothed with when he paid the ultimate price for our sins. Although the Romans were mocking Jesus [Matthew 27:27-31] with a faux royalty robe, we are loving these women as if they are true royalty in God’s kingdom. Giving them Hope in Christ because we are all in need of a Savior.

We have a group of men who provide assitance while the ladies deliver food to the club. The men do not go into the clubs, but are in the area so if we were to need someone quickly they would be there.

Teams of 50 plus men and women who provide our meal for each week. They purchase and prepare the meal for when we are ready to go out and deliver the food. God has blessed Scarlet Hope by providing the funds and people to make this possible on a weekly basis.

Donations are obviously key to this ministry. We have a storage unit that was donated to keep a constant flow of furniture and household items to provide for women who don’t have anything. This part of the ministry has been unbelievable. To get more involved please contact us.

Most importantly we are a group of women who are trying to seek God’s will for our lives and live out a radical calling God has placed upon our hearts. We as believers in Christ are called to lift one another up to our Father. Prayer is the single most important need in our ministry. Without prayer we wouldn’t be where God has put us today.

scarlethope.org 

So, I'd like to know ... what do you think about Scarlet Hope?

Deb On It

At least 2 and a half people have asked me to Blog.

As I understand it, blogging is 'blah-logging'. I think I can do that!

If you know me at all you realize I have a ping-pong ball sort of mind.

Imagine yourself in the family basement after Thanksgiving dinner watching a game of ping pong played by a young child and a grandparent. On occasion that little white ball will make it over the net and into the opposing court - right on target. More often, it bounces off the walls and rolls under things that haven't been moved in years.

That's a snapshot of my brain.

Some of my thoughts may seem right on target and others are better left to roll off the table.

I hope you find lots to laugh about. And I hope that when I talk about getting bonked with the paddle, you can cry with me.

You've come to the basement of my mind. Feel free to grab a paddle and take a whack or sit back and wonder where these crazy thoughts will land!