Stay Connected . . . And Do It! August 10, 2009
Posted by theguyoutsidethewalls in Uncategorized.Tags: Action, Bible, Catholicsm, Christianity, Fear, Gay, Gay Catholic, Gay Christian, LGBT, Religion, Spirituality, Work
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When I am connected to my Source, taking the time to pray, meditate and read all of a sudden it seems that life begins to flow, take shape and my work is given wings. Life takes off. Conversely, when I am not connected, I am like a hampster in a cage that runs and runs and gets nowhere – fast.
“God is able to make every grace abundant for you.” (See 2Corinthians 9: 6-10).
I have of late been taking some risks. At times I have been frightened, but I have to believe that, if what I am doing is in the flow of Divine grace – God will provide – and provide ABUNDANTLY. The important thing is that I stay connected and then, just do it.
Now Is The Time May 5, 2009
Posted by theguyoutsidethewalls in Procrastination, Take Action!.Tags: Gay, Gay Catholic, Gay Christian, Gay Life, gay spirituality, LGBT, Now, Procrastination, Religion, Spirituality
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This past weekend I was talking to a friend who is very much into fitness. She is hot to say the least! Her upper arms are like a fine sculpture. OK, lest you think I’ve gone the other way, I’d really like her upper arms, but on a guy! On to my point. I told her that I really need to get back into my exercise routine. I said I would do it as soon as this transition in my life is over and in place. She looked at me and said: “Why wait? Do it now!”
Why do I think that I don’t have the time to take care of myself in the midst of busy transition? The reality is that if I don’t take care of myself, consequences loom. Already I feel the pain of acid in my stomach as worry consumes me, a pain that would work itself out with some stress reducing exercise!
Is there something in your life that you’re putting off until the “right time comes?” In reality, there is no right time. Now is the right time. Go for it! . . . And pray that I can too!
Turn It Off! December 7, 2008
Posted by theguyoutsidethewalls in Advent/Christmas.Tags: Advent, Christmas, Gay, Gay Catholic, Gay Christian, LGBT, Meditation, Queer, Religion, Silence, Spirituality, The Holidays
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When I write, I usually go to Pandora.com and turn on some light music. I find it soothing and inspiring to write with some soft music in the background.. This morning for some reason, Pandora wouldn’t load. I tried several times and then gave up. Just as I gave up, I began to “hear” the silence. I looked out my window and saw the overcast sky and the snow gently falling. I was reminded of the silence of winter. If you’ve ever walked in the woods after a snowfall, you know what I mean. There is a silence that is palatable.
Instead of fighting the silence I welcomed it and find it soothing to my soul as I write this meditation. I am again reminded of the importance of listening to the silence. Far from being a void, there is a fullness in silence. It blesses the spirit in ways that a plethora of sound and sight simply cannot. It is the silence, after all, that makes sound itself possible! And it is in the silence that Divine presence is most fully found. “Be still and know that I am God.”
It is also in the silent spaces between our thoughts that God is to be found. When we are able to silence the chatter of the ego mind within, we open ourselves to a space that is eternal and abundant. This is the place of creative energy. It’s no wonder that when our lives are simply a barrage of activity, of running from this thing to the next, it’s no wonder that we begin to feel a lack of energy and our zest for life diminishes.
This season brings with it much activity. Social gatherings, increased traffic, running around to buy gifts, plays, school activities, final exams, decorating, baking, cooking, etc. All of this sometimes leaves us exhausted by the time the Holidays actually arrive. In the midst of such madness, it’s all the more important to take time in silence. It is in this silence that the sights and sounds of this season will then come alive.
Presence: Getting Connected December 6, 2008
Posted by theguyoutsidethewalls in Advent/Christmas, Presence.Tags: Advent, Christmas, Gay, Gay Catholic, Gay Christian, gay spirituality, LGBT, Love, Queer, Relationships, Religion, Spirituality
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Presence: Getting Connected
Ever wonder if you were on the right path? Ever feel like you’re off the path? I know when I feel off the path. It’s in those times that I need to pause and take time to be still, to get connected again. If I am not taking that time, the teacher seems to disappear. When I do take the time, the teacher appears. Almost by instinct I begin to know what to do, which way to go and life begins to take on meaning again.
It’s like life with a Partner. Life goes on, we get distracted by daily, mundane tasks and one day goes on the next. If we don’t intentionally take time to communicate or simply be present to our Partner, the relationship gets disconnected, not only for our Partner, but something within ourselves just isn’t quite right. When we take the time to communicate and be present, the path reveals itself and life deepens.
“With your own eyes you shall see your Teacher, while from behind, a voice shall sound in your ears: ‘This is the way. Walk in it.’” (See Isaiah 30: 19-21, 23-26)
Feeling disconnected? Sometimes just taking some time to simply be present to God and/or others makes a big difference. And remember, even when we take time to be present, it doesn’t mean that we’re necessarily going to “feel” connected right away. The important thing is that we take the time to be present. Period.
Perhaps the best present we could give ourselves and others is presence.
Connections December 1, 2008
Posted by theguyoutsidethewalls in Advent/Christmas, Change.Tags: Advent, Christmas, December, Gay, Gay Catholic, Gay Christian, LGBT, Personal Growth, Queer, Relationships, Religion, Spirituality
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To those who regularly read and reflect with this blog, my apologies for not writing for a few days. I was a bit under the weather and am now on the mend.
Wow. Can you believe it’s Advent? Christmas is just around the corner. There’s something about this change of season that gives us an opportunity to pause, to change. Something different is happening. Life doesn’t feel as ordinary. Music changes, decorating is done, the house is re-arranged and gifts are thought about and made or purchased. Relationships which have gone unattended suddenly find a place of connection. For some reason, during this season, someone we haven’t been in touch with for a very long time comes to mind and we call and connect.
Advent is about making connections. It’s about connecting to those deeper, silent places within ourselves that perhaps have been unattended. It’s about not only putting our houses in order, but about putting our inner houses in order. It’s about making connections with people through gatherings, dinners, lunches and phone calls.
In the midst of the frenzy that can also attend this season, it’s important to attend most fully to the connections within ourselves, with the Divine and with others. If it’s just about a frenzy of running here and there, without a sense of inner and interpersonal grounding, we will find ourselves disconnected.
What are the connections that you want to make this Advent? How do you want to grow and change?
What’s Really My “God?” November 26, 2008
Posted by theguyoutsidethewalls in 12 Step Spirituality, Happiness.Tags: Alcohol, Consummerism, False God's, Gay, Gay Catholic, Gay Christian, Good Living, Greed, Happiness, LGBT, Over Eating, Queer, Religion, Satisfaction, Sex, Spirituality
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At times I think we all worship at the altars of false gods that fail to satisfy. These can be money, things, possessions, sex, the pursuit of a lover, power, prestige, etc. We all at times worship false gods. All of the above are not bad in and of themselves if they are in perspective and held for good use. But sometimes what happens is that these things, among others, become the focus of our lives. At these times we begin to worship false gods.
Today we might take some time to put things in perspective and think about what REALLY gives us a sense of satisfaction? When I am choosing to be there for others, when I am choosing to live in good ways, when I am thinking in positive ways instead of negative, when I choose compassion and kindness even when my mood is bad, when I respond instead of react . . . then I have an inner sense of peace and well being. Again, like yesterday, I think we are reminded to ask ourselves the question, what is the “kingdom,” what is the legacy that we are building in our lives? When all is said and done, how do I want to be remembered?
What Gives You Peace? Do It! November 20, 2008
Posted by theguyoutsidethewalls in 12 Step Spirituality, Inner Peace.Tags: 12 Step Program, Centering, Gay, Gay Catholic, Gay Christian, LGBT, Peace, Queer, Religion, Spirituality
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“If only you had known the path to peace this day; but you have completely lost it from your view.” (See Luke 19: 41-44)
What gives you peace? What are the practices that keep you in a peaceful place? What are those things that you do, even when you don’t want to, but you know that if you do them, you will be in a better space?
How easy it is to loose the path to peace, to drop those actions and activities that keep us focused and centered. It could be skimping on our time for meditation, or exercise, suddenly getting into a pattern of not eating right, watching too much TV and doing too little reading, spending more time on the internet than interacting with people.
I cannot tell you how often I have heard someone in a 12 Step Meeting say that they did not want to come today, that they had to drag themselves there – but they felt so good that they had!
Sometimes we don’t FEEL like doing the things that keep us in a good, peaceful place and we have to force ourselves to do them. Making this effort is well worth it, for in the long run, getting off our butts and doing something that we know will make us feel better is a good investment of our time.
Initiative November 7, 2008
Posted by theguyoutsidethewalls in Personal Growth.Tags: Gay, Gay Catholic, Gay Christian, gay spirituality, LGBT, Personal Growth, Queer, Relationships, Religion, Spirituality
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Luke 16: 1-8
“The owner gave his devious employee credit for being enterprising! Why? Because the worldy take more initiative than the other worldly when it comes to dealing with their own.”
How much intitative do I have when it comes to loving well, living well, growing in spirit? Do I take as much intiative in these tasks as I do in financial matters and the amassing of material goods?
Think back on this past week. . . . What have you given your time and energy to? Think about it for a moment.
What we have given our time and energy to will tell us what is important to us.
Am I taking intiative with the right things?
Direct My Thinking November 4, 2008
Posted by theguyoutsidethewalls in 12 Step Spirituality, Lining Up With the Source, Positive Thinking.Tags: Directing Thoughts, Gay, Gay Catholic, Gay Christian, gay spirituality, LGBT, Queer, Religion, Spirituality, Thoughts, Twelve Step Spirituality, Watching Thoughts
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To live well I must live in such a way that I remain within a flow of good thinking. Various tasks, pressures and bad habits can confuse thinking, and, as a result take me off center.
It’s no accident that 12 Step programs and various spiritual teachers through the centuries recommend daily prayer that our thoughts be guided. The importance of this practice has come back to me of late – asking, . . . just asking that my thoughts be directed by a Power greater than myself. Left to my own devices, I quickly get off course. But left open to a Power greater than myself who can restore me to right thinking (aka “sanity), I feel more grounded and more useful to others. This openess comes from clearing out as much as possible that which gets in the way of clear thinking and bouncing things off of other people. Again, left to my own devices, my own thoughts, in isolation from a Divine Power or other people, I quickly get off course.
God, direct my thinking today!
