September 2013 (Vol. XXVI, No. 8)

 

Warm Greetings, Dear Friends! The long, lazy, days of summer will soon be a bit shorter as the season turns and cooler weather arrives. As we return from vacation trips and arrive at these waning days of summer, our thoughts naturally turn again to our work in the world. "Work is love made visible," according to Kahlil Gibran. Thinking of it in such a way changes everything! No matter what work we may do, whether it be lowly and menial or vitally important in the eyes of the world, how blessed and fulfilling it becomes when we are ever conscious that in the doing of it we are shining our love-light into the world. As we sit in the Silence, remembering that whatever we do is of God and God is always present in it, may we be blessed and in turn, bless the world with our contributions to the well-being of all.

 

To seek out beauty in our work is to make a pilgrimage of our labors, to understand that the consummation of work lies not only in what we have done, but who we have become while accomplishing the task.

 

~ from CROSSING THE UNKNOWN SEA by David Whyte

 

Spirit and work are linked among indigenous people because human work is viewed as an intensification of the work that Spirit does in nature... Individuals, as extensions of Spirit, come into the world with a purpose. At its core, the purpose of an individual is to bring beauty, harmony, and communion to earth.

 

~ from THE HEALING WISDOM OF AFRICA by Malidoma Some

 

Work offered with love
by a soul at peace
breaks through the darkness
so the light shines through:
One heart blessing all hearts.

 

~ from THE PEACE PLANET by Nan Merrill and Barbara Taylor

 

I finally came to know that my work is God's work, unfinished by God because God meant it to be finished by me.

 

~ from THERE IS A SEASON by Joan Chittister

 

The environment which I feel to be the natural one, the situation which has been assigned to me as my fate, the things that happen to me day after day, the things that claim me day after day-these contain my essential task and such fulfillment of existence as is open to me... The Baal Shem teaches that no encounter with a being or meet with, the animals that help us with our farm work, the soil we till, the materials we shape, the tools we use, they all contain a mysterious spiritual substance which depends on us for helping it towards its pure form, its perfection. If we neglect this spiritual substance sent across our path, if we think only in terms of momentary purposes, without developing a genuine relationship to the beings and things in whose life we ought to take part, as they in ours, then we shall ourselves be debarred from true fulfilled existence.

 

~ from THE WAY OF MAN by Martin Buber, as reprinted in AN ALMANAC FOR THE SOUL by Marv and Nancy Hiles

 

Leonardo da Vinci knew that God helps those who help themselves and that this could be hard work. The labor that brings us all good things is more than just our effort in the outer world-it is a reflection of our inner work and ethical awareness. Leonardo's prayer illustrated this: "Thou, O God, dost sell unto us all good things at the price of labor."

 

~ from DA VINCI DECODED by Michael J. Gelb

 

The great work of life is not to save the world but to attain God Realization which, by being in the process of doing so, you have a tremendously powerful and positive effect on the world condition and consciousness.

 

~ from BODY OF TIME, SOUL OF ETERNITY by Jerry Thomas

 

Selflessness gives one center.
Center creates order.
When there is order, there is little to do.

 

~ "37. Doing Little" in THE TAO OF LEADERSHIP by John Heider

 

Work of sight is done.
Now do heart work
on the pictures within you.

 

~ from DUINO ELEGIES by Rainer Maria Rilke

 

At the heart of silence is prayer.
At the heart of prayer is faith.
At the heart of faith is life.
At the heart of life is service.

 

~ by Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light: The Private Writings of the Saint of Calcutta

 

The goal of singing a song is not to reach the end as quickly as possible. It is a state of creating harmony, beauty, growth and understanding. The goal of work, as a sacred art, is to use the need for a product or service to develop the greatest possible power on the object, and the users. Sacred work puts the mind on service to the heart as well.

 

~ from SILENCE, SONG AND SHADOWS by Tom Bender

 

When we are willing to commit to 51% service to self and 48% to others, we have achieved a balance that allows us to be effective in life. Whether we have service-related jobs or volunteer makes no difference. The commitment to making our world a better place for everyone is the key to any job. On one level, we agree to be role models, and because of that devotion to being our personal best, we are forced to examine our personal integrity, our willingness to change and grow, and our commitment to doing what is needed when it is needed, serving with a peace-filled heart.

 

~ from DANCING THE DREAM by Jamie Sams

 

Dr. Torres had never seen teeth as bad as those he saw at La Mesa. "This stuff wasn't in any of my books." He noticed that the worst problems often belonged to the toughest men and women in the prison, and even the hardest cases cried when he showed them their new teeth in the mirror. Some of the inmates he worked on still stay in touch with him. "They call me all the time and tell me, 'Hey, I'm working over here, I'm working over there,'" he says. "The jobs are no big deal, but they're working, which they couldn't do before, because people didn't accept them. Nobody except Mother Antonia cared for them."

 

~ from PRISON ANGEL by Mary Jordan and Kevin Sullivan

 

Our main task in life is to give birth to ourselves, to become what we potentially are.

 

~ by Erich Fromm

 

  

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FindtheDivine's spiritual mission is to help the seeker and the provider of the retreat experience find one another using internet technology. FindtheDivine web sites are online directories of retreat centers, retreat events, retreat leaders, spiritual directors and retreat centers for sale. 

 

Find a place or event to visit: www.findthedevine.com

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Time spent in holy solitude can silence the noisy world ever at work in our minds.

~ from LUMEN CHRISTI...HOLY WISDOM by Nan Merrill

 
The Friends of Silence Retreat Ministry is in full swing!

  

We invite you to a retreat in the beautiful wilderness setting of Still Point Mountain Retreat and Rolling Ridge Study Retreat this year. For a complete listing and more information, please see www.friendsofsilence.net, email lindsay@rollingridge.net, call 304-724-1069, or write Friends of Silence Retreat Ministry, c/o Lindsay McLaughlin, 120 Jubilee Lane, Harpers Ferry, WV 25425.

  

See the website events for other opportunities for shared fellowship and work, and a warm welcome to schedule private individual/group retreats.

 

Sign up now for Befriending Silence, a retreat day, 4-week online class, and half-day reflection with Gigi Ross and Phil Cover.

  

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