  Spiritual
This week: A Grateful Heart Edited by: Shannon  
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Welcome to the Spiritual Newsletter. My name is Shannon and I'm your editor this week. |
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One week ago a friend of mine was home with his wife. It was the weekend, neither had to work, and they were spending time together at the house. She asked him to step outside so she could clean without having to work around him. The next thing he heard was the dog barking. He went back inside to find his wife lying on the floor. She'd had an aneurysm and died two days later. She was fifty-three years old.
Life is so short. One minute you're tootling along and everything is sunshine and roses, the next minute something happens that changes your life forever.
I've always been a grateful person, but this incident rattled me. I hug my husband a little tighter, I'm more present in every moment, I'm painfully aware that any given instant might well be my last and appreciate it accordingly.
Even before the unexpected death of my friend's wife I sought unique ways to honor and express my gratitude. I'm an avid reader and writer, so I wanted to add something to my current daily gratitude practice that incorporates these two things--something that would keep thankfulness at the forefront of my mind.
I found a little book titled A Grateful Heart: 365 Ways to Give Thanks at Mealtime. I flipped through and read.
Empower me
to be a bold participant,
rather than a timid saint in waiting,
in the difficult ordinariness of now;
to exercise the authority of honesty,
rather than to defer to power,
or deceive to get it;
to influence someone for justice,
rather than impress anyone for gain;
and, by grace, to find treasures
of joy, or friendship, of peace
hidden in the fields of the daily
you give me to plow.
~ Ted Loder (p. 129)
I tucked it under my arm and moved on to the journals. I wanted something small--something that would fit in my pocket or purse, and I stopped when I saw The Happiness Project One-Sentence Journal: A Five-Year Record It's got a little blue ribbon to mark your place, and you can start any week, any month, any year, and just write one sentence about your day or something you're grateful for.
I grabbed it, too.
Now each mealtime I read one poem/quote/blessing/prayer from A Grateful Heart. I shut off the TV, silence my phone, sit at the table. You can light a candle if you like that sort of thing, and just be present. It's called Mindful Eating--being thankful for each and every bite you put in your mouth; whispering a prayer of gratitude for the animal(s) and/or plant(s) that died so you can continue to live.
And at the end of the day, right before I go to bed, I pick up The Happiness Project journal on my bedside table and write something I was grateful for that day, and I have a five-year record--visual proof of how blessed I am.
Today is a blessing, and tomorrow is not guaranteed. You never know if this moment might be your last. Open your eyes each morning with a thankful heart. Hug your loved ones. Don't let your gratitude go unexpressed; you might not get another opportunity.
Peace and blessings.
 In loving memory of Lupe Frisbie
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Sometimes you need to fall down to look at life from a different perspective...
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The following is in response to "What Would Jesus Do?"
Cackling QPdoll  writes: I never thought about reading just the red letters. What a splendid idea! I think I'll do just that. Thank you for a great newsletter. You are very welcome. Thank YOU for taking the time to read and comment. 
Maria Mize  writes: Awesome newsletter. Thank you, Shannon! Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. 
Being Diane writes: Whew, what a hit to the heart and what a great idea, reading the red lines in the Bible. That’s a great idea. I had a friend who grew up in Alaska and she told me how isolated it was and she had such a tough childhood. She had Bipolar disease and I sent her gifts and she did the same to me. We talked about God and how He got through our childhood because I was reared in the Ghetto of Detroit. I went to the same kind of church you went to and so did my friend. I still believe Satan invented Koolocks (can’t spell it they call them sknorts now but the same purpose).
It’s so had for me to meditate but my daughter got me a Fitbit so that it keeps up with my steps. I moved to Alabama after I left Detroit so I have plenty of beautiful woods to enjoy while walking. I talk to God as me and the dogs enjoy nature.
I’m going to try and submit my poem I wrote about a question my husband ask. "Invalid Item"  Yeah, culottes were the only "pants" we were allowed to wear during PE at school. I agree: they definitely originated in the hubs of hell.
bob county writes: Jesus was a 1st century Jew and expected women to be subservient to men. I don't presume to know what Jesus thought, but reading His words paints a pretty clear picture of what He expected. Jesus stood up for women, spoke on their behalf, challenged how others perceived them, absolved them, and treated them with respect and dignity--as individual children of God who were not less than. 
Quick-Quill  writes: I grew up in a very strict fundamental church organization. Once I got married and in my thirties I voiced my questions about things. A change came about in the church. The young people separated Tradition from Doctrine. Traditions change. Styles of clothes and hair but doctrine doesn', its rooted in the Bible. The Red and the black letters. Some traditions are so rooted in the organization across the world they can't be changed, it doesn't mean you're going to Hell if you do them. This gave our generation and those who follow a freedom to Serve God not be Ruled by the RULES. Agreed. 
Jeff  writes: As I've read more and more of the Bible over the years, I've been surprised at how simple Jesus' message is. I grew up around a lot of believers who interpret his message with a ton of specificity, with a litany of rules and seemingly inflexible judgments about all kinds of issues; when I started reading the Bible for myself, I was amazed to find that these rules and moral stances aren't anywhere to be found. Love, kindness, compassion, forgiveness, generosity... just make good choices and be the best person you can be, to yourself and others.  YES! Exactly. I think if people read the Bible in general and Jesus's words specifically they might be a bit surprised by what they do and do not say.  |
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Spiritual: June 07, 2017 Issue [#8318]
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