Psalm 148 The Rejuvenating Activity of Praise

Prayer and praise change people, not God.  To praise God essentially requires us to willingly put God at the center of our lives. We must surrender all of ourselves to the Spirit.

Psalm 30 The Great Physician

Is it God’s will for us to experience health? Doctors who understand will tell you that they do not and cannot heal. The medical profession has been trained in some protocols that may (or may not) hasten the process of healing. But healing is a process that the created Universe seems to be bathed in. There is a healing Presence that we have the opportunity to experience in all facets of our lives.

Psalm 150 Joyous Celebration

Praise does not change God but it most definitely changes us!  The energy fields around us are a true reflection of our state of mind. When we are living in accord with the principles of Being; we exude grace, beauty of thought and character, and comeliness and the body is healthy and strong. It is heard in our voice and with every gesture. Cultivating the ability to express our luminous soul is the most powerful music we can play.  There is a natural rhythm, harmony and joy (music) established throughout the consciousness, when the soul radiates the power and presence of God.

Psalm 32 Acknowledging Our Sins

Do your sins define who you are? Are they opportunities for you to learn and grow? Or do you hide your sins from yourself and others to maintain a facade? To sin is merely “to miss the mark” and we are all constantly doing that. How we process our missteps is just as important as the actual sin.

It is important to remember that we must acknowledge our sins before we can be healed of them. What does that mean? It does not mean that we wallow in them, feel guilty about them, give them power over us, or punish ourselves over them. It merely means that we must delve deep enough within our consciousness to know they are there. We cannot heal a trait that we do not recognize. As the psalmist says, we try to hide our iniquities from God. In reality, God is omniscient and so we have really only tried to hide our sins from ourselves.

Psalm 127 Our Foundation

Frequently, we encounter people who believe that they are the masters of their own successes. They will not acknowledge a higher presence at work in their lives. They toil away at their lives attempting to reach greater heights. These are inevitably the same people who find themselves in a great mess in their lives at some point, because instead of identifying with their spiritual nature, they have identified themselves with some worldly thing (money, job title, familial role, etc.). Once the world as they know it has been taken away from them, they struggle to find meaning in their lives.

Psalm 34 Lessons for Life

One of the most challenging aspects of the spiritual life is that the Spirit of the Divine requires a blank canvas (poor soul), on which to paint its perfect portrait. We must approach God with pure humility, laying aside our personal will, in the search for true spiritual understanding. Any troubles we experience are only a reflection of our erroneous beliefs of our separation from God and each other. We experience separation primarily when we become deeply self-centered. When we choose to make ourselves our center, our connection to God fades.

Psalm 22 Dawn

All of us suffer through experiences where the appearance of things can make us question our relationship with God: whether God is still near us and whether we are worthy of God’s attention. We know better, but at times we are overwhelmed by the enormity of our circumstance.

Psalm 26 Integrity

What does the word integrity mean? Most of us think of this word in terms of either being in accordance with worldly standards or some standard we have set for ourselves. This psalm explores an alternate meaning for the word. It is not of our own strength that we claim integrity. It is when we know that God is before us and behind us every step that we can rest in our faith. To stand in integrity is to conform unwaveringly to God’s standard or God’s will through attention to the Christ presence within us.

Psalm 1 The Path to Happiness

So often we find ourselves very unhappy although we are following the culturally prescribed path to happiness. The media tells us if we buy more things, we will be happy. Our friends and family tell us that if we become powerful lawyers, doctors or CEOs we will be happy. These worldly things may bring a semblance of happiness, but it is always transient. Any time that we look outside of ourselves for happiness, we will inevitably be disappointed.

Psalm 84 Worshipping in the Temple

Once we have turned our attention Godward, we are transformed. When we have had a taste of the Truth it becomes irresistible to us. Even though there are many challenges to be met along the way, when we have experienced the joy of letting go and letting God, it is impossible to forget. There is such happiness and harmony when we go with the flow of Spirit rather than resisting. What a gift it is to learn that God truly has only our best interests at heart! When we put ourselves completely into God’s hands, we can have all of these things with no effort of our own.

Psalm 24 Sincerity of Purpose

Contemplative moments (ascend the hill of the Lord ) are ones in which we are acutely aware of the Presence of God within us and in our midst and our connection to that Presence. It is interesting that while we are in the world, we are never separate from God (the earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it). And yet even the most devout people proclaim the experience of separation from God. Despite the presence of God everywhere, in the world there are many distractions, internal and external, that seduce our attention and energies away from this truth. During these times it is critical that we stay connected to our deep down, burning desire to know God (clean hands, pure heart).

Psalm 48 The Fortress of Love

Love is the most powerful force in the world. This statement sounds idealistic, at best, and insane, at worst, in world of materialism and greed. But those who have attained some level of spiritual understanding know that the power of love can conquer all evil (ungodliness). If we take the time to observe, we can easily see that love has the ability to transform any circumstance. If we can remember to apply the force of love in all of our challenging situations, we will be astounded at the level of security it provides.

Psalm 130 Morning Comes

If God were tallying errors how could any us stand tall? But in God’s eyes we are all worthy of love. God’s nature is merciful, so there is hope for us all. The forgiveness of God merely requires that we be receptive to changing our attitudes and thoughts, and be willing to set off on the spiritual path of seeking Truth.

Psalm 9 God Our Foundation

When we recognize God as the only Power and Presence in our world we embody the holy life This power can be perceived as having the full authority of the Presence of God at our back. This power is ours if we choose to remove our limited thoughts that prevent us from acknowledging and participating in our heritage of abundance as beloved children of God.

Psalm 20 The Victory

Many people spend their whole lives looking for a victory. Success in a career, marrying the right man/woman, owning a nice home, and financial riches are all external conquests. Although these are nice things to have, they mean nothing without the Great Victory. The victory of Spirit (salvation) within the individual is the only victory that really matters. We need not worry about the petty concerns of the world. For if we successfully attain spiritual enlightenment all of the above and more will be given to us.

But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Psalm 130 Morning Comes

If God were tallying errors how could any us stand tall? But in God’s eyes we are all worthy of love. God’s nature is merciful, so there is hope for us all. The forgiveness of God merely requires that we be receptive to changing our attitudes and thoughts, and be willing to set off on the spiritual path of seeking Truth.

Psalm 1 The Path to Happiness

So often we find ourselves very unhappy although we are following the culturally prescribed path to happiness. The media tells us if we buy more things, we will be happy. Our friends and family tell us that if we become powerful lawyers, doctors or CEOs we will be happy. These worldly things may bring a semblance of happiness, but it is always transient. Any time that we look outside of ourselves for happiness, we will inevitably be disappointed.

Psalm 22 The Dawn

All of us suffer through experiences where the appearance of things can make us question our relationship with God: whether God is still near us and whether we are worthy of God’s attention. We know better, but at times we are overwhelmed by the enormity of our circumstance. When we are awash in negative thoughts, it feels as if that they have gained control of us. We become overwhelmed because negativity literally dominates our energy (the bulls of Bashan) and can easily run rampant over us until it consumes us. Our vital energy becomes spent (I am poured out like water), our heart is melted, and our mouth is dry. We are as good as dead, for we have lost touch with the current of Life and Spirit. It is always darkest before the dawn.

Psalm 17 Effective Prayer

Image via WikipediaWhen we approach God in prayer, we must do so with an understanding of the Truth. God is divine law and just like the laws of nature there are certain rules (principles) that must be adhered to in order to effectively communicate with God. The golden key is the phrase hears my prayer from lips free of deceit. We must approach God with a pure heart, and God will see the intention behind our supplication.

Psalm 93 God in the Center

The one fact is God. All other things are circumstance. -Unknown

If we think about it for a minute, it is a strange thing that so often we feel distant and removed from God. How is it that we experience isolation from a God who always is, has been, and will be in our presence and in our midst?