Wow! I can’t believe it’s Wednesday—again! I’m back one day from visiting mom and already I am late getting this to Vic for posting! It is amazing the movement of the Spirit during and after prayer. This blog had slipped off of my radar until I was making my daily “To Do” list after prayers this morning!
The first hour of my day is spent in prayer. I got into this practice about 15+ years ago after a conversation with a long time active member of the Prayer Circle who is now deceased, Frank Small. Frank maintained that God gives us a gift of 24 hours each day; the least, Frank felt, he needed to do was to give back to God one of those hours. It was easier for Frank to start his day with the one hour to God. This made good sense to me so I also began the practice.
Starting my day centered in God makes a huge difference in my quality of life. There has been a rare occasion that I have over-slept and have missed the quiet time with God. That day in my life is always marked with my own irritability and feelings of complete chaos; a feeling like my life is ‘out of control’. Guaranteed if I am feeling over-whelmed—I know I have not spent sufficient time in prayer. It is as though a part of me, after prayer, knows that ‘it’ is ultimately not up to me, I’m not in control. When I relinquish my human need to control, I allow God to work more positively in and through me. This does not mean that I don’t count or I am not responsible—I am. What it does mean is that I am charged to co-create with God the next 23 hours that are abundant in thanks-living.
I think this is what happened during this last visit with mom, which by the way, was the BEST visit in years! Flying down, I relinquished my expectations of what I wanted to get out of my visit with her. What I could or should do for her. I let go of my need to control the events of the precious time I was given to be with mom. My prayer was that God’s love for mom and myself be the focus of the visit. It worked! It worked well!
I’m wondering, am I the only one who has problems with control? |