"JOURNEY WITH SPIRIT"
- Joyce (JOY) Be Lynda Russaw
Welcome to JWS
May God bless you with a restless discomfort
about easy answers, half-truths and superficial relationships,
so that you may seek truth boldly and love deep within your heart.
May God bless you with holy anger at injustice, oppression,
and exploitation of people, so that you may tirelessly work for
justice, freedom, and peace among all people.
May God bless you with the gift of tears to shed with those who suffer
from pain, rejection, starvation, or the loss of all that they cherish, so that you may
reach out your hand to comfort them and transform their pain into joy.
May God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that
you really CAN make a difference in this world, so that you are able,
with God's grace, to do what others claim cannot be done.
And the blessing of God the Supreme Majesty and our Creator,
Jesus Christ the Incarnate Word who is our brother and Saviour,
and the Holy Spirit, our Advocate and Guide, be with you
and remain with you, this day and forevermore.
AMEN.
- sr. ruth marlene fox, osb - 1985
When Life gets Complicated
As a believer, you accept God’s word as truth. Our relationship with the Father and how he works in our lives prove that his word and promises are accurate. In these uncertain times of unexpected events, we must maintain a fully nourished soul to be spiritually protected.
Instead of creating laws that protect the earth and its occupants, lawmakers create an unsafe, unhealthy environment for all. When you watch legislators in action_ it is impossible to see them as rational or intelligent when they work against their interests. They are smitten with their power, not the people they represent.
As we face the inevitable, it does no good to worry about the state of the union. Changes happen when God allows them, so we must put our faith in our sovereign God, all-knowing and all-wise. We, the believers, must do what God has directed—trust HIM.
To our Gods of old, we bless the ground
that you tread in search of our freedom!
We bless your presence in our lives and in our hearts!
Take of this offering to your delight,
and be filled with our prayers of thanksgiving!
May our lives remain as full as our hearts on this day!
african - yoruba
Blaming satan for our Spiritual Ignorance
It is time for us to accept our responsibility for allowing satan to gain power. Genesis tells the story of Adam and Eve's fall into sin. It was not satan's temptation that caused humankind to fall into sin; it was Adam and Eve's stubbornness, disobedience, and spiritual weakness. As long as we can place blame on someone or something else, we will always have an excuse to sin.
We blame satan for hate, bigotry, greed, homelessness, hunger, and war, but when you know right from wrong and you choose wrong, the blame falls on you. Just as God directed Adam and Eve_ not to eat from the Tree of Life, he gives us direction on recognition, discernment, and how to protect our souls from satan, yet sin continues.
Humans suffer from post-traumatic syndrome caused by Adam and Eve.
Some feel entitled to oppress others by the sins they commit. Some accept hell as a fantasy world conjured up by do-gooders_. Hence, they intentionally sin against humankind and follow the cliché that 'the devil made me do it.'
When you readily accept credit for doing good, but slow to give Christ credit for your success. Yet you blame satan for your wrongdoings and continue to do wrong because you have a scapegoat.
Until each individual accepts their role in remaining spiritually ignorant by using satan to validate their inhumane acts against humanity, we will forever be a world filled with sin, and our once Beautiful Paradise will again_ be lost.
And that is the way it is_