Books and Blogs by David W. Jones
As the New Year begins, if you’re already dreading breaking your resolutions, perhaps you need a different approach, an easier path toward becoming the person you want to be – act like you’ve already achieved it. Continue reading “Fake it Until You Become It”
Looking at the Baptism of Christ presents some deep theological questions.
Consider this painting by Pheoris West, what images do you notice?
Can you see:
a rigid image of John the Baptist to the right?
the dove?
the face and arms of God?
why does Jesus face turn? What is he looking toward following his baptism?
Continue reading “Baptism – Just How Long Would John the Baptist Dunk You?”
The Psychology of Jesus summed up in a sermon.
https://www.facebook.com/NLAHopkins/videos/1170698599752319/
The Psychology of Jesus in a book. (Click cover…)
Hint: It’s all about distance…
Here is some inspiration from my good friend, Carol Reed, for the New Year’s opportunities.
I Am The New Year
Author Unknown
Life, I am the new year.
I am an unspoiled page in your book of time.
I am your next chance at the art of living.
I am your opportunity to practice
what you have learned about life
during the last twelve months.
All that you sought
and didn’t find is hidden in me,
waiting for you to search it out
with more determination.
All the good that you tried for
and didn’t achieve
is mine to grant
when you have fewer conflicting desires.
All that you dreamed but didn’t dare to do,
all that you hoped but did not will,
all the faith that you claimed but did not have –
these slumber lightly,
waiting to be awakened
by the touch of a strong purpose.
I am your opportunity
to renew your allegiance to Him who said,
‘behold, I make all things new.’
I am the new year.
When Herod met the Magi at the palace in Jerusalem, neither had met the infant Messiah. Both were experiencing their perceptions of who and what he might be. Herod is a vivid illustration of what the philosopher Epictetus observed, People are disturbed not by things, but by the views which they take of them. The Primary Concept for us is: People and events don’t bother us, but our perceptions of them do.
Continue reading “Epiphany – Are You Like Herod or the Magi?”Martin Guitars has an ad campaign called, “Crossroads.” In the ad, they retell the legend of Robert Johnson’s encounter with the devil. It’s a gloomy night at a crossroads on a rural Mississippi plantation in the early 1930’s. A struggling blues musician named Robert Johnson has a burning desire to play his guitar better than anyone else. At this lonely intersection, the Devil waits for Johnson. With the moon shining down, the Devil plays a few songs on Johnson’s guitar. When Robert Johnson gets his guitar back, he has complete mastery over the instrument. His soul now belongs to the supernatural being, and for the next 5 years or so, he creates music that will live past his tragic, suspicious death in 1938 at the age of 27.
A closer look at the lyrics of “Crossroads” shows not a man struggling with the devil and fame but with loneliness and pain. The crossroad is whether or not his pain will overwhelm him or whether or not he can come through it with a song. Here are Robert Johnson’s lyrics and a video to listen to the original version
Continue reading “Blessings at The Crossroads”Click cover for free PDF
Can you take your struggles and turn them into a song?
A friend and I were discussing our favorite writers, those who offered an amazing phrase, art in a sentence. After discussing our mutual admiration for Norman McClean’s masterful, A River Runs Through It, he suggested I read Wallace Stegner starting with Angle of Repose. When I got the novel, I didn’t have time to start the book, but I did want to know what words he chose for his beginning. I opened the cover and read the dedication, For my son, Page. My response was, “Really, you’re an author, and you name your son, Page?” I was stuck. I did move on, and so far, Stegner has delivered as my friend promised. My fixation on first words did lead me to pick my top five first lines of novels, though my list is subject to change without notice.
Continue reading “Great First Lines or “This is just the beginning…””
The Way is like the sower scattering seed everywhere.
Some falls upon the road eaten by the birds.
Some falls upon rocks and never takes root.
Some falls upon thorns and are choked out.
Some falls upon the good soil and brings forth a healthy crop.
The sower is not concerned for seed that is lost.
He does not worry about seed that is eaten by birds,
that takes no root upon rocks, or is choked out by thorns.
The sower understands life.
Life grows exponentially.
Life always wins over roads, rocks, and thorns.
So it is with The Way.
The Way is like a mustard seed tiny but large in life.
The Way is like kudzu, once it starts growing in your field,
you’ll never get it out.
The Way is like yeast, a small amount does much
transforming a lump of dough into a loaf,
and all who eat of it are filled.
Matthew 19:14 Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.”
Dick Renard wrote, “God, Help Me Be Like My Boys”
When I look at my boys, I see the life of simple concentration.
They play hard, they work hard, they learn with intensity
They fight going to bed because they haven’t had enough of today.
They look forward to tomorrow only at bedtime prayers.
God, help me be like my boys.
They love unconditionally.
They don’t worry about food or clothes or where they will sleep.
They know they will be taken care of.
They move into the world as friendly agents, without pretense or false motive.
God, help me be like my boys.
They know who you are and have no doubt they will be with you forever.
They see your awesome creative powers.
They don’t compromise their faith with their friends.
They communicate their feelings without the mask of an adult.
God help me be like my boys.
But, O God, look at me. See my insides. I’m just the opposite of my boys.
I hold onto anger instead of putting it behind me.
I don’t genuinely laugh anymore. I want to go to be because I’m tired.
God, help me be like my boys.
My relationships are conditional. I like those who like me.
There is usually a motive to all I do. I’m cautious moving into the world.
I worry about my family, my job, money, and things.
I often wonder if you will take care of me.
God, help me be like my boys.
I’m afraid my faith is not socially acceptable. Some friends feel I’ve committed intellectual suicide. I’ve become a chameleon to hide my embarrassment of you. I wonder why you came to me because I am so selfish.
God, help me be like my boys.
God, I look at my two boys and I see a refreshing view of you.
I see life and gaiety. I see acceptance and conviction.
I see strength and commitment. I see a pair who know what it means to die for you.
God, help me be like my boys.
Please, God, don’t allow their hearts to ever change. Let me be like my boys because I want to be like you.
The last post looks at Carl Jung’s four stages of development (as we journey from humans having spiritual experiences to spirits having human experiences. Leon Oudejans offers a great picture of the four stages with the epiphanies that accompany each transition.
Here are the top quotes by Carl Jung to help you on your journey from humans stuck in life hoping for a spiritual experience to spirits on an awakened human journey:
Continue reading “Spirits on Human Journey Part 2”Here are some of my favorite poems and prayers for a daily reading to help guide you on your journey toward Easter.
dj
According to Carl Jung, we grow up as humans and on the journey, we have spiritual experience. The goal for life is to mature, to become spirits having a human experience.
Here are Jung’s 4 Archetypes or Stages of Development:
Continue reading “Spirits on a Human Journey”Looking at the Baptism of Christ presents some deep theological questions.
Consider this painting by Pheoris West, what images do you notice?
Can you see:
a rigid image of John the Baptist to the right?
the dove?
the face and arms of God?
why does Jesus face turn? What is he looking toward following his baptism?
Click cover for free PDF
Curly the cowboy addresses the secret to life…
Jesus faced a similar question, and gave a similar answer (though I imagine without the cigarette or the hat) in Matthew 22:
36 “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” 37 He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the greatest and first commandment.39 And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”
Just one simple thing you’ve got to do…
| There is not one space and time only, but as many spaces and times as there are subjects. Ludwig Binswanger In high school, perhaps my greatest deception was when attendance was called. The teacher would say my name, “David Jones,” and I would reply, “Here,” or “Present,” and I would be marked as attending. The lie was that though my body was in my desk, my heart, mind, and soul were often elsewhere. Showing up and being marked as present is far different from being present and attending each moment. One of the greatest temptations in missing a moment is to try to capture it. One of the great ongoing battles at weddings is between pastors and photographers. People want to capture the moment in pictures and miss it. I recently did an outdoor wedding. The photographer was someone I had not worked with before. I made the mistake of assuming I didn’t need to tell her not to be a be a distraction during the wedding service. For her, the present was insignificant compared to capturing the moment for prosperity. She danced around, up the aisle, back down, in front of both families, even behind me. It took all my energy to focus on my purpose of guiding the couple through their vows while the photographer was behind me, low to the ground, clicking away. I almost hit her with my Bible. Had I not needed it later, I would have. Our challenge in special moments like a wedding ceremony, a graduation, or a child’s birth is to try and capture the moment for prosperity instead of living each moment as Epictetus encouraged, Caretake this moment. Immerse yourself in its particulars. Respond to this person, this challenge, this deed. Quit evasions. Stop giving yourself needless trouble. It is time to really live; to fully inhabit the situation you happen to be in now.  The Moment and other books by David W. Jones are available for free at Macland Presbyterian or for a small fee on Amazon. amazon.com/author/dwjones Previous Moment Practices can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/welcometothemoment |
Challenged to be mindful of my moments, I found several role models who had been down this path before me. Throughout the scriptures, God speaks to people and the common response is, “Here I am.” God calls Abraham who responds, “Here I am.” To Moses at the burning bush, God calls him by name and Moses responds, “Here I am.” To the little boy Samuel in a dream, God calls, and Samuel responds, “Here I am. Speak, Lord, your servant is listening,” Seeking another servant years later, God cries out, “Whom shall I send,” and Isaiah says, “Here am I, send me.” The most celebrated response is teenage Mary, responds, “Here am I,” and then ends with, “May it be to me as you have said.”
“Here” for all those saints and so many others came not on some consecrated mountain or sacred space, but in holy moments, places in time where God and persons met.
When Moses said, “Tell me your name.” and God replied, “I AM,” God was inviting Moses to encounter God there, in the present moment. What does “I AM” mean if not the presence of God? Certainly for Moses descending the mountain, the holy name, “I AM” was the promise “I AM (Here).” Moses faced Pharaoh ten times aware in each confrontation, “Perhaps this time, Pharaoh will have me killed.” How could he have such courage? Each time he went, risking all, but expecting “I AM HERE” to be present.
The contrast between the symbolic pyramids of Pharaoh and God’s burning bush is neon. One is a wonder of the world and the other is the work of God. One has outlasted time while the other transcends time. One is built on the backs of slaves while the other is a call to liberate slaves. One puts a governor’s power over God the other points to God over governors. One is an attempt to defeat time while the other is a call into moment after moment with God. Finally, one is a an empty tomb and one is a call into life greater than death.
When we end our prayers with “Amen” which means “So be it,” they seem final, over, complete. “Amen” feels like we have prayed our prayer and can move on. Whether alone or in a congregation, ending a prayer with, “Here I am,” implies readiness and an openness to God in each moment.
A king gave one of his servants a challenge, he said, “Go and find a ring that will make a happy person sad and a sad person happy.” The servant searched the jewelers and merchants in every surrounding village and kingdom, and then he returned years later.
The king asked, “You’ve found a ring that can make a sad person happy and a happy person sad?”
The servant nodded and gave the ring to the king who looked at it closely then said to his servant, “Well done. Surely, this is a ring that can make a sad person happy and a happy person sad.”
The inscription inside the ring was, “For the moment…”
To the person with a painful illness or some other terrible burden to bear, “For the moment…” reminds him or her it won’t last forever. To the rich, successful, or the young, “For the moment…” can result in grief knowing it won’t last forever.
Reminding myself of my moments helps me appreciate them. The poet Shiki pointed out how we can miss our moments with others if we are not attentive,
