Check out my new 'World Reflections" Section
Interesting stories and anecdotes that reach into insights I have gained abroad.
Healing Grief, On-line Course, by Terry Douglas.
You are invited to participate in an 8-
week, on-line course, entitled
Healing Grief Page that captures a journey of healing following deep loss.
Book Release & New Blog Address
Posted on Monday, January 14th, 2008
Buy Book Now!- Rules of Engaging Grief- A Path to Healing
by Terrence Douglas
Paperback- Our price: $22.95
Format: Paperback
Size: 6 x 9
Pages: 315
ISBN: 978-0-595-47414-1
Published: January 2008
Other Formats: Adobe eBook
International orders: Call 00-1-402-323-7800
Purchase The Rules of Engaging Grief -
A Path To Healing Paperback
Price: $22.95 + shipping ($6.00 Flat rate)
Or Buy Rules of Engaging Grief – A Path to Healing Now from iUniverse
(Now Available!)
Buy Rules of Engaging Grief- A Path to Healing Now from Amazon.com
(Now Available)
The Rules for Engaging Grief Blog has been updated!
We now have a new web link, please refresh your bookmarks to point here http://www.rulesofengaging.com/leading_from_the_heart_blog
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Meditations- January 14, 2008
Posted on Monday, January 14th, 2008
January 14, 2008
Scripture: Then I thought to understand this: but it was too hard for me; until I went in the sanctuary of God. Psalm 73:16-17
Prayer: This verse I found in Dag Hammarskjold’s Markings. Shed light for me on your sanctuary.
Response: I am pleased that you are asking about the sanctuary. Clearly, you understand that I am not talking about a structure though you can bring my sanctuary to the structure. Clearly, you understand that sanctuary is not a thing, a political, religious, or temporal facility.
My sanctuary is within each of you. It is there that I meet you. And do you know what? You don’t have to be alone. Yes, you can be and I encourage you to be with others in communion. However, just as you might have been reluctant to exercise outside in inclement weather, don’t blame the weather – lack of companions – for not coming to my sanctuary.
It is in my sanctuary within that you will hear me, that is, if you can be still in spirit, not rushing to provide words to fill a holy space of silence. It is here that you discover your heart and discover that your mind represents interests that sometimes fill the airwaves with monkey chatter.
Be still in my sanctuary. I required the prophets to take off their sandals because they were on holy ground. The sandals were not important but your attention and reverence are. Be still and listen and you will be rewarded beyond what you could have in your wildest dreams have anticipated.
In listening you will discover my path for you. No, don’t get excited. Nothing is predetermined. Your path is a direction for which you can serve in the years remaining to you. Service is entwined with love and, if you have missed this, love is my message.
So enter the sanctuary – cautiously at first, if you must – but enter it and discover for yourself the nourishment of spirit that you receive, that you experience.
All for now.
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Meditations- January 12, 2008
Posted on Saturday, January 12th, 2008
Scripture: We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. Romans 8:26
Prayer: Please help me to understand these words.
Response: Let me begin. Indeed, there are times, perhaps at different stages in your life when you find it difficult to pray, or events that surround you are simply too difficult to understand. You wonder about what is this life experience all about. For you it is truly not about things and stuff, but the real meaning seems to escape you.
Not only do you realize that there is not much you can control though you might have some small influence. It is at times like this, however, frequent or infrequent, that I am there to influence you, prod you, counsel you, console you, support you.And how do I do it, if it is the right word? I read the deepest recesses of your heart and give voice to that unspoken yearning in a holy groan.
What an expression, but digest its meaning. I give voice to your deepest sentiments of love that are blocked from expression as your mind seeks a rational explanation to the events in your life.I am the groan that you utter when no one else is around and you sit in loneliness, or walk along a deserted beach at sunrise, or seek to capture on a page a mystery of life that eludes you.Understand most clearly that not only are your prayers answered but that I even stir those prayers within you.
All for this morning.
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Meditations – January 10, 2008
Posted on Thursday, January 10th, 2008
Scripture: For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and self-discipline. 1 Timothy 7
Prayer: Lord, help me to grasp exactly what this spirit is that resides within me.
Response: That’s the question. It is not for you to look over the field and begin to judge those who have gathered there as if for a race. No it is for you to explore your depth and to identify what I have touched to make you special. Take your time. In your distraction you might not have looked sufficiently deep. Once you begin to acknowledge those special gifts it is in the acknowledging you throw off your timidity. Timidity exists only in comparison, as you once looked about judging you against another. At this point, you will find that it is like shedding a heavy woolen overcoat in summertime.And without that overcoat, you will find that you can actually feel coursing throughout your body a spirit of power that reflects my love to others; a new confidence envelops you, not for your purpose but for mine.
Regarding self-discipline, I am not talking of a rigidity of thought or even practice, but rather I am encouraging in you self-respect for others. Though you might think you have the “word,” as you might be encouraged to believe, it is through self-discipline that my spirit of power serves to touch those about you — yes, those in distress and uncertainty, those who ask questions that seemingly go unanswered.The spirit of power is found in the bounty of my love.
All for this morning.
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Meditations – January 9, 2008
Posted on Wednesday, January 9th, 2008
Scripture: Even though I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil; for you are with me, and your rod and your staff they comfort me. Psalm 23:4
Prayer: In reading the Pope’s encyclical
Spe Salvi, this line caught my attention as did the reference to the scripture above: one who walks with me on the path of final solitude. Lord, help me to become increasingly aware of your presence in my life, walking with me on this path of final solitude. And help me to draw increasing comfort from this realization.
Response: Let me speak about final solitude. This is an increasingly comforting time when you realize that your walk is with me. The footsteps you hear are mine and the closeness of those footsteps is to comfort you further. This path to final solitude is a time present for all of you to be totally conscious of the meaning, your meaning. It is not a time of panic, regret, or sorrow; rather it is time for you to accept yourself as you are and are becoming and to offer this soul to me in all humility. As I have said, this path is one of increasing consciousness; it is a time of letting go of all pretenses – all pretenses. It is a time to risk honesty with yourself, if not with others if you can be so without causing harm to others.
The valley of death represents all that you fear, and should fear, but fully accepting and believing that I am with you. It is like traversing a desert path toward an oasis that you have been told is before you. Trusting my word you continue carefully, rationing your water and your energy, but you continue forward, not allowing the temptation to cut to the left or right, or even return; you move forward keeping your eyes on the horizon. And yes, I do suggest that you travel at night when the sun is not so intense, so consider the meaning [...]
