dual personalities

Category: Spirituality

November 4, 2014

An attitude of gratitude

by chuckofish

givethanks

It being November again (!) it seems liked a good time to talk about thankfulness. “Nothing,” says Billy Graham “turns us into bitter, selfish, dissatisfied people more quickly than an ungrateful heart. And nothing will do more to restore contentment and the joy of our salvation than a true spirit of thankfulness.”

I have been re-reading Jan Karon’s seventh Mitford book In This Mountain and this is one of her main themes. Toward the end of the book, Father Tim preaches on this very subject (and I Thessalonians 5:18).

I admit to you that although I often thank God for my blessings, even the smallest, I haven’t thanked Him for my afflictions.

I know the fifth chapter of First Thessalonians pretty well, yet it just hadn’t occurred to me to actually take Him up on this notion. I’ve been too busy begging Him to lead me out of the valley and onto the mountaintop. After all, I have work to do, I have things to accomplish…alas, I am the White Rabbit everlastingly running down the hole like the rest of the common horde.

I want to tell you that I started thanking Him last night–this morning at two o’clock, to be precise–for something that grieves me deeply. And I’m committed to continue thanking Him in this hard thing, no matter how desperate it might become, and I’m going to begin looking for good in it. Whether God caused it or permitted it, we can rest assured–there is great good in it.

So no matter what happens to us, no matter how difficult our situation or how much our friends disappoint us, no matter how alone we feel–we must never forget that God is with us. No matter what happens, God has promised that He will be with us in whatever tribulation or trial that comes. God will not waste this experience. He doesn’t waste anything. And so we are thankful for everything. We try to be anyway.

Nobody said it would be easy, right?

 

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October 30, 2014

“Everything passes, only the truth remains.”*

by chuckofish

According to some sources, Fyodor Dostoyevsky was born on this day in 1821.

Dostoevsky

Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist, journalist, and philosopher, Dostoyevsky was also, Malcolm Muggeridge wrote, “a God-possessed man if ever there was one, as is clear in everything he wrote and in every character he created.”

“What’s mystery? Everything’s mystery, my friend, everything is God’s mystery. There’s mystery in every tree, in every blade of grass. When a little bird sings or all those many, many stars shine in the sky at night–it’s all mystery, the same one. But the greatest mystery is what awaits man’s soul in the world beyond, and that’s the truth, my boy….

…No, my friend, you’ve got me wrong; I’ve always respected science since I was a boy and, although I can’t understand it myself, that’s all right: science may be beyond my ken, but it is within the ken of other men. And it’s best that way because then everyone has what comes to him, and not everyone is made to understand science…”

–Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Adolescent

Fyodor and I are on the same page.

I have read Crime and Punishment and a wonderful book of excerpts edited by the Bruderhof, The Gospel in Dostoyevsky. I think it is time for me to tackle The Brothers Karamazov this winter. I have read parts, but never the whole thing.

So a toast to the great Dostoyevsky! Поехали! (Let’s get started!)

* Father Zossima in The Brothers Karamazov 

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October 27, 2014

“Take my moments and my days, let them flow in ceaseless praise”*

by chuckofish

We experienced a lovely Indian summer weekend here in flyover country. It reached 82 degrees on Saturday!

I went straight home on Friday and parked on the patio.

patio

It was lovely.

trio

Unfortunately I had made plans to attend a women’s retreat (“Soul Sisters–Saints Alive!”) on Saturday at church–whatever possessed me?–and this caused me to spend several hours inside with a bunch of old church ladies. It wasn’t so bad, but I did rush outside at the end of it…to enjoy the sunshine.

I cleaned up the Florida Room at home and moved all the plants inside. The patio furniture will go inside soon and we will be closed up for the winter. Sigh.

But for a few more days, we’ll enjoy the summer-like weather. Sounds like a good excuse to go to Ted Drewe’s for a concrete-for-lunch!

teddrewes

Which is what the OM and I did on Sunday.

Have a great week!

*Hymn #707, Frances Ridley Havergal

4 Comments
October 13, 2014

“I can’t look at everything hard enough.”*

by chuckofish

Field of Lilies, Louis Comfort Tiffany

“Field of Lilies”, Louis Comfort Tiffany

Last week I watched The Ghost and Mrs. Muir  (1947) and cried through much of it. Then this weekend I watched Our Town (1940) and wept through the entire third act.  I must say that much of this was due to the great musical scores of both films, by Bernard Hermann and Aaron Copland, respectively, but still. They even changed the end of Our Town! (Spoiler alert) Emily doesn’t die! They softened up the hard ending of the play, but it was still effective.

Then I finished Jan Karon’s Somewhere Safe With Somebody Good and got a little weepy. It is not a sad book at all, but it reminds us all to rejoice and be glad and you know that that can make me tear up.

Then we sang hymn #624 in church–“Jerusalem the Golden”–and I was done (or undone as the case may be).

Well, you know what Frederick Buechner says about tears:

You never know what may cause them. The sight of the Atlantic Ocean can do it, or a piece of music, or a face you’ve never seen before. A pair of somebody’s old shoes can do it. Almost any movie made before the great sadness that came over the world after the Second World War, a horse cantering across a meadow, the high school basketball team running out onto the gym floor at the start of a game. You can never be sure. But of this you can be sure. Whenever you find tears in your eyes, especially unexpected tears, it is well to pay close attention.

They are not only telling you something about the secret of who you are, but more often than not God is speaking to you through them of the mystery of where you have come from and summoning you to where, if your soul is to be saved, you should go next.

(Whistling in the Dark)

So keep your eyes and your heart open as you go forth into the world this week. Thanks be to God.

*Emily in “Our Town” by Thornton Wilder

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October 6, 2014

“You may have found your sweet spot. But there’s what Bonhoeffer said: ‘We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God.'”*

by chuckofish

pumpkinAh, it’s pumpkin weather. Seriously my favorite time of the year. The OM of course is complaining that it is cold, while I am throwing open the windows to let in the fresh air. C’est la vie.

Several people have sheepishly asked me about my own little pumpkin patch, which they notice I haven’t mentioned in quite awhile. Well, my pumpkin patch, which at first seemed to thrive, shriveled up in August and is no more. Heavy sigh. The OM said it didn’t get enough sun. Daughter #1 surmised that it was because I planted the pumpkins in the Indian Burial Ground corner of our yard where nothing has ever grown. Whatever. I refuse to get all upset and weepy about it. The pumpkin patch at the Methodist Church has a ton of pumpkins and so I bought one there on Saturday.

2014-10-04 16.51.23

It’s a beauty!

Meanwhile I finished The Big Sleep and have moved on to Jan Karon’s newest Mitford book—Somewhere Safe With Somebody Good–which I am enjoying immensely. Reading it is like taking a vacation. I know some people find Father Tim and his wife a little cloying, but to them I say, “Bah humbug!” This is science fiction, after all. Furthermore, Karon and I are on the same page. And she includes enough Thomas a Kempis and Wordsworth and references to the BCP to deepen the storytelling. Her focus is always on God.

In any decision making, he’d learned to wait for peace; it was heedless to make a move without it. There was no time for waiting, and yet waiting was imperative.

He remained on his knees, prayed aloud. ‘Heavenly Father, in whom we live and move and have our being: We humbly pray thee so to guide and govern us by the Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life we may not forget thee, but may remember that we are ever walking in thy sight…’

He moved directly then to the abridged version. ‘Help me, Jesus.’

And she’s funny! So if you are in need of a little literary vacation from the vicissitudes of modern life, I highly recommend Jan Karon.

‘Tis also the season when Evensong starts back up at church. I dragged the boy along with me yesterday and it’s a good thing we went, because we made up 2/3 of the congregation. Afterwards I cooked dinner for him. His wife was at a meeting at the flyover college where she is the recruitment advisor of her sorority chapter, so I think he appreciated the meal.

Hope you are enjoying some glorious fall weather. Try to get out and breathe some fresh air. Have a good week!

*Jan Karon, Somewhere Safe With Somebody Good 

4 Comments
October 2, 2014

Words of wisdom

by chuckofish

groucho-marx_1947633c

“I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn’t arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I’m going to be happy in it.”

–Groucho Marx, The Essential Groucho: Writings For By and About Groucho Marx

Today is the birthday of Julius Henry Marx (October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977)–American comedian and film and television star.

An early photo of the Marx brothers with their parents in New York City, 1915. From left to right: Groucho, Gummo, Minnie (mother), Zeppo, Frenchie (father), Chico, and Harpo.

An early photo of the Marx brothers with their parents in New York City, 1915. From left to right: Groucho, Gummo, Minnie (mother), Zeppo, Frenchie (father), Chico, and Harpo.

So stop taking yourself so seriously, at least for today! A toast to Groucho and his brothers–L’chaim!

Please note that it is also the birthday of Graham Greene–but it was much too depressing looking for a quote from him! I am not a great fan of his novels, but some of the movies based on his novels or for which he wrote the screenplays–such as The Third Man (1949) and This Gun For Hire (1942)–are pretty darn good. So another toast, barkeep–for Graham Greene!

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September 30, 2014

Vain self-concern

by chuckofish

1907 window by Tiffany Studios

1907 window by Tiffany Studios

Almighty God, our heavenly Father, who dost feed the birds and clothe the flowers, and who carest for us as a father for his children: We beseech thee of thy tender goodness to save us from distrust and vain self-concern; that with unwavering faith we may cast our every care on thee, and live in daily obedience to thy will; through thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

–Austrian Church Order, 1571

(prayer posted by Kendall Harmon on TitusOneNine)

Oh man. Distrust and vain self-concern–two things I have such a difficult time letting go of.

How about you? Discuss among yourselves.

 

3 Comments
September 29, 2014

“Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling”*

by chuckofish

How was your weekend? Mine was pretty uneventful. I watched a good movie (Laura–1943) and a bad movie (Noah–2014).

I did a lot of therapeutic throwing away of things–like old VHS tapes. I tried out the electric trimmer, which I have never used before.  Seriously I don’t know why the OM hasn’t been spending all his free time using it. It is so fun. What a feeling of power. I think I could get into this.

esc_017Castle

Edward Scissorhand’s house and garden

I sat on the patio and looked at the trees.

trees

There was a hawk up there on that low branch, but I wasn’t fast enough with the iphone.

and I drank the last beer of summer.

lastbeer

And I found this on Etsy:

Screen shot 2014-09-28 at 4.50.01 PM

It almost makes me want a cat so I can buy one!

And, by the way, the Cardinals ended the season in first place in the National League Central Division! Onward to L.A. on Friday and post-season stress syndrome.

the-st-louis-cardinals-own-the-n-l-central-in-2013-and-overall

Have a good week!

*Philippians 2:12 (from Sunday’s 2nd reading)

7 Comments
September 24, 2014

No God?

by chuckofish

Bierstadt 2

Albert Bierstadt (1830-1902) “Among the Sierra Nevada Mountains, California” (1868), Smithsonian American Art Museum

 

“Beloved brethren and sisters in Christ, I think that you and I can say, that to us the surest fact in all the world is that there is a God. No God? I live in him. Tell a fish in the sea there is no water. No God? Tell a man who is breathing that there is no air. No God? I dare not come downstairs without speaking to him. No God? I would not think of closing my eyes in sleep unless I had some sense of his love shed abroad in my heart by the Holy Ghost. ‘Oh!’ says one, ‘I have lived fifty years, and I have never felt anything of God.’ Say that you had been dead fifty years; that is nearer to the mark. But if you had been quickened by the Holy Spirit fifty minutes, this would have been the first fact in the front rank of all fact, God is, and he is my Father, and I am his child. Now you become sentient to his frown, his smile, his threat, or his promise. You feel him; his presence is photographed upon your spirit; your very heart trembles with awe of him, and you say with Jacob, ‘Surely God is in this place.’ That is one result of spiritual life”

(C. H. Spurgeon, Sermon No. 2267, “Life from the Dead,” delivered March 13, 1890 at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington)

Here is some mid-week food for thought this Wednesday. Discuss among yourselves.

spurgeon

Note: Charles Haddon Spurgeon was one of the foremost 19th century English preachers. You may recall that the 15-year old Spurgeon was on his way to a scheduled appointment when a snow storm forced him to cut short his intended journey and to turn into a Methodist chapel in Colchester where God opened his heart to the salvation message. The text that moved him was Isaiah 45:22 – “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth, for I am God, and there is none else.”

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September 22, 2014

“Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm.”*

by chuckofish

I spent a good deal of my weekend thinking about what I had been doing last weekend, but you know how that goes. Luckily we had a semi-surprise visit from our niece Ellen who was driving down to Houston from Detroit. She stopped in our flyover city to spend the night and it was, indeed, a treat to see her. The boy came over and had dinner with us.

ellenphoto

Not fair to take a picture after a 10 hour drive, but oh well.

Ellen is a Ph.D student in geology at Penn State. She’s interning at some big oil company for the semester. She thinks nothing of camping on site in Utah all summer and then driving across country in her pickup truck. She is awesome.

We watched Ninotchka (1939).

After Ellen left bright and early on Saturday morning, I finished the Irish mystery I was reading–In the Woods by Tana French–and I went to some estate sales. I also worked in the yard. It was a glorious fall weekend and a treat to be outside. On Sunday I went to church where the OT reading was from Jonah–which is kind of a hilarious book if you haven’t read it lately–followed by some Philippians and a gospel message on self-righteousness. It all fit together really well. We were reminded that God is not fair, he is generous. The last will be first, and the first will be last. It was good to hear.

Also it was St. Matthew’s Day, so we had a big party–a picnic complete with bagpiper inside

10646812_728629530524999_4373782550915244505_n

and outside,

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a bouncy house,

10620660_728629770524975_1818043706242259730_n

good food,

10635935_728630390524913_6426554090399601644_n (1)

and a snow cone machine!

10712969_728630493858236_2029233112252877246_nGood times! I’m not sure why we had a bagpiper, except that they always add a festive note–but it was cool.

Hope your weekend was good too. Have a great week!

(The photos of the picnic are from the Grace Church Facebook page.)

*Jonah 1:15

 

6 Comments