#Intimacy In Prayer

[betterlifeinoverall-rethabilep]

Holy Attachment To Spirituality

Certain people should understand that you want nothing to do with them. Actually, for the sake of your Peace and happiness, they should keep their distance. You are passionately in love with where you are and with whom you connect with in their absence.Unfortunately, they are in War No. 02 with you due to not wanting them in your life. Due to being happier without them, they keep…

[evilkaeya]

SATOSUGUERS I GET YOU GUYS I GET YOU NOW

[shy-girl04]

Serenity Prayer

Send me a slow news day,

a quiet, subdued day,

in which nothing much happens of note,

save for the passing of time,

the consumption of wine,

and a re-run of Murder, She Wrote.

Grant me a no news day,

a spare-me-your-views day,

in which nothing much happens at all,

except a few hours together

some regional weather,

a day we can barely recall.

Brian Bilston

[magpoenitens]

[revpauljbern]

God’s Solution To Peace https://pureglory.net/2024/08/24/gods-solution-to-peace/ via @pureglory1gmail Devotional for 08/24/24 from Minister Paul J. Bern

[theinwardlight]

Artwork: Appearance of Christ by Ivanka Demchuk

[momentsbeforemass]

Thee and thou

I seem to know the words to a lot of hymns. Especially the ones that come from Protestant churches (I’m a convert, so that’s no surprise).

Actually, I just know a lot of first verses. After that, I need to grab a hymnal.

But the words that I do know? They seem to be the “old” versions. The “thee” and “thou” versions.

When the words have been updated, I find myself scrambling for a hymnal when I hit the first “you.”

I used to think that “thee” and “thou” was formal language. A way of showing respect for God, emphasizing the difference between Creature and creator. But also putting God at arm’s length.

Which makes sense. I learned all the “thee” and “thou” versions in the context of the Protestant tradition I grew up in. Where God was kind of distant.

For the kind and loving (and distant) people of the church that I grew up in, the radical intimacy of the great saints with God made no sense at all.

To them, a prayer like Catherine of Siena’s personal version of the Glory be – which she started with “Glory be to the Father, and to Thee, and to the Holy Ghost” – would have been familiar to the point of being rude.

But for Catherine, who was speaking directly with Jesus (something that my church claimed to prefer but rarely did in practice), referring to someone sitting next to her in the third person would have been rude.

Because to Catherine, Jesus wasn’t off in the distance. Jesus was sitting next to her. And her prayers were conversations between the closest and dearest of friends.  

This becomes clear in Catherine’s writings (which are in Latin), where she uses the intimate forms of second-person pronouns when talking about Jesus. Like Latin, many languages have two versions of their second-person pronouns, a formal one and an informal one.

Until about a hundred and fifty years ago, English did as well. Back in the day, if you were writing a letter to someone important or speaking to someone you barely knew, it was “you.”

For close friends and family, for your beloved, it was “thee” and “thou.”

Which – contrary to what I thought – is the real meaning of “thee” and “thou.”

It’s why (in 1846), Elizabeth Barrett Browning writes “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.” And not “How do I love you?”

It’s not a poetic flourish or a pointless formality. It’s a precision strike.

Because she’s writing to her beloved. And she wants to make sure her beloved knows exactly how she feels. Even before she starts describing her love.

And it’s exactly how God wants us to think about Him.

Because Catherine’s intimacy with God – talking with someone who was sitting next to her, with prayers that were really conversations between the closest and dearest of friends – isn’t something rare. It isn’t something that’s reserved just for the great saints.

It’s something that God is longing to have with you.  

And it’s why, in spite of changing tastes in language and style, in the Our Father, in the Hail Mary, in the prayers that so often lead us into our most intimate, most personal prayers, the Church has kept the language of “thee” and “thou.”

So the next time you catch yourself saying “thee” and “thou,” let those words remind you that your closest and dearest of Friends is waiting for you with open arms.

Today’s Gospel

[dwuerch-blog]

Walking and Talking with Jesus

Can you imagine walking, talking, eating and laughing with Jesus day in and day out? I believe He had to lighten up and laugh with those misfits He called to be with Him 24/7 for three-and-a-half years. I appreciate how THE CHOSEN film series has captured some of those shenanigans and how patient Jesus is with each of the disciples. And the same goes for us and our shenanigans in our own lives…

[wifes-xxx]

Let us seek to cultivate a spirit of humility and obedience, not as a burden, but as a joyful surrender to a love that is greater and more profound than we can imagine. This surrender is not about diminishing our worth but about recognizing the immense value of aligning our will with a more pure purpose. It's in this sacred alignment that we find true freedom, peace, and the strength to be the luminous woman we are meant to be.

In the tender embrace of love's light, as a wife to be seen as the joyously chosen is to bask in the warmth of a gaze that speaks volumes of adoration. It is to stand hand in hand with one's celebrated partner, hearts beating in a harmonious rhythm of mutual choice and profound affection. This connection, woven from the threads of shared laughter, of openness and flesh and f#cking, of whispered promises, transcends the ordinary, lifting both souls into a realm where every glance, every touch, every memory shared over the years to come is a testament to a deeper bond. In this dance of love, being joyously chosen each day is to be enveloped in an embrace that cherishes, a look that loves, and a commitment that celebrates the beauty of being together, not just in moments of grandeur, but in the quiet, breathtaking simplicity of everyday love and playfulness.

In every step, may we remember that our actions, thoughts, and prayers are a testament to our commitment to our promises and vows reflected in commitment to change ourselves to be the best wife we can become. To be that light in our husbands heart. Let us be models of grace, embodying the depths of passion, kindness, and intimate desire, as we navigate the complexities of life with a heart anchored in passion and perseverance. Together, as women willingly becoming vulnerable, we can inspire and uplift each other, striving towards a community of love, respect, and spiritual integrity."

That is always the purpose of this blog to share the gift of a wife’s love for her husband. It will always be both intimate and informative. Real and personal.

The wife's submission in the sanctity of marriage is not a matter of superior versus inferior; rather, it is self- imposed as a matter of caring obedience to the truth of love for her husband.

[craigtowens]

Just Knowing Or Really Knowing?

I wonder how well you know the word “know”? Let’s find out on this episode of The Podcast.

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.  https://craigtowens.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/just-knowing-or-really-knowing.mp3 I wonder how well you know the word “know”? Let’s find out. Check out this episode of The Podcast. Here are some helpful resources from this episode: The Scriptures I referenced are 1…

[morbid-mary]

I need a hug that turns into holding that turns into a nap

[awritersbro]

I don't really... get asking saints to intercede on your behalf.

Like I get the "it's not idol worship" aspect of it, you're just asking someone to pray for you and that someone just so happens to be dead. I get that part.

What I don't get is: Why ask a saint to ask God something when you can just as easily ask God yourself? He's a busy dude, sure, but He's not that busy. He doesn't need a Holy Reception Desk where you fill out a form and turn it in to the appropriate Holy Secretary and they'll send it on up and you can expect a response in the next one-to-ten business days. You can just... Show up. It's fine, people do it all the time.

[magpoenitens]

“O sweet Jesus, I beg for a little of Your overflowing charity, which is so universal, so kind. You well know the difficulties I sometimes encounter when practicing this virtue, especially toward those whose ways of acting and thinking are so different from mine. O Lord, fill my heart with warm, sincere kindness toward them.”

[peaofme]

Embracing My Inner Spark: Self-Love

Self-love is a journey that many of us embark on, often without realizing it. For me, it’s been about embracing every part of who I am and finding peace in that acceptance. It’s about having the courage to face my flaws, not as shortcomings, but as pieces of a beautiful, complex puzzle that make me whole. The path to self-love isn’t always straightforward, but it’s a journey worth taking—a…

[healing-with-ai]

Garbage on Creativity

It is refreshing to find solace in art, Like prayer, it bestows gifts that touch the heart. A friend to the soul, it brings a prayerful quality, Transforming us from a contracted self to a beautiful case. In the luminal space, identity unfolds, A kind of intimacy that never grows old. Delicate yet sharp, creativity examines, Solidifying thoughts, like a photograph chosen to frame. Madeline, a woman of wisdom, once wrote, On November 29, 2007, a calendar note. Daily thoughts poured into beloved books, A reflection of the universe's strange, yet wonderful hooks. In the act of creativity, we wholly throw, Ourselves away, like an artist at work, we know. Escape time, and find freedom in joy, Cautioned by pride, yet kindred to employ. Adds sense to the strange, and makes it whole, Creativity is the universe's gentle soul.

//it is a cutup poem from a blogpost

[fertiileground]

Morning & Evening

Intimacy with God Intimacy with the Father/Benjamin Arde’/Arc Ministries/Arc.tv 2024 June 23 Intimacy with the Father Pastor Benjamin Arde’https://www.fertiileground .wordpress.com/Pastor Benjamin Arde’/Arc Ministries/Arc.tv Morning & Evening Charles H Spurgeon 2024 June 23 The Fire of Your Love The Fire of Your Love Morning Scripture “Ephraim is a cake not turned.” — Hos_7:8 Be…