For God to be God

“Argue not concerning God,…re-examine all that you have been told at church or school or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your soul…”

― Walt Whitman

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some seem to think that for God to be God

God must coerce and control

that for God to be God

God must demand, and judge

and punish

that God must hold people accountable

and make them pay if they do not “measure up”

(what that means appears to be open to interpretation)

some think that for God to be God

God must be BIG, really big

rigid and stern

distant and aloof

only then they insist can justice and morality be served

and righteousness, dare I say holiness

be nurtured

those who think this way

severely underestimate

the power of

Love

Tripping over joy

“TRIPPING OVER JOY

What is the difference

Between your experience of existence

And that of a saint?

The saint knows

That the spiritual path

Is a sublime chess game with God

And that the Beloved

Has just made such a Fantastic Move

That the saint is now continually

Tripping over Joy

And bursting out in Laughter

And saying, “I Surrender!”

Whereas, my dear,

I am afraid you still think

You have a thousand serious moves.”

― Hāfez

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the spiritual life is a matter

of tripping over joy

stumbling

into the arms of one who loves us deeply

passionately

joyfully

expectantly

we are not asked to trod

to trod

to trod

but simply to

skip

or dance

until there is nothing left to do

but to collapse

laughing

in Sacred

embrace

If I were to die tomorrow

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”

― Mahatma Gandhi

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if I were to die tomorrow

as well I might

(let’s face it, it’s always a possibility)

I would want to tell those I love

I love them

I would want the snarky remarks of the arrogant

to bounce off of my soul like rain off a roof

I would want to drink in everything

everything

everything

I would want to hear it

see it, taste it

I would want to feel it against my skin

the warmth of the sun

the touch of another’s hand

Ah

and if I were to live forever

I would want to live the same way

joyfully

fully

drinking it all in

and then giving it

all

away

always

always

generous