“What at first was devastating news has become a priceless asset.”

“In Zen Buddhism, a koan is a paradoxical anecdote or a riddle that has no solution. The term is used to show the inadequacy of logical reasoning. The teacher offers the student a perplexing phrase to be used as a meditation tool. One example is ‘What is the sound of one hand clapping?’ To consider one's worth and purpose, to sit and ponder the limits of the illusion of the power of knowledge, is to release our minds to the possibilities of the unknown. Each day, meditation offers a new frontier of letting go.”

Adapted from vocabulary.com

“Centering Prayer is a receptive method of silent prayer which deepens our relationship with God, the Indwelling Presence. It’s a prayer in which we can experience God’s presence within us, closer than breathing, closer than thinking, closer than consciousness itself. There are 4 Guidelines: 1, Choose a sacred word as the symbol of your intention to consent to God’s presence and action within. 2. Sitting comfortably and with eyes closed, settle briefly and silently introduce the sacred word as the symbol of your consent to God’s presence and action within. 3. When engaged with your thoughts, return ever-so-gently to the sacred word. 4, At the end of the prayer period, remain in silence with eyes closed for a couple of minutes.”

Adapted from Contemplative Outreach

“An important element in Kabbalah, or medieval Jewish mysticism, is the mystical understanding of ru’aḥ ha-qodesh, רוח הקודש, commonly translated as ‘the holy spirit.’ This term is associated with another key rabbinic term, Shekhinah, שכינה, meaning ‘to dwell within.’ It is generally translated as ‘the divine presence,’ or ‘indwelling of the divine.’ To sit in quiet study of these terms opens one's thought to the possibility of the return of the human soul or mind to its origin - to the metaphysical realms and reintegration of Divine Spirit.”

Adapted from The Rise of the Holy Spirit in Kabbalah

Thought for the Day “What I do now, in this present moment, is what makes up my life. My whole life is only a succession of nows. I will take this moment, which has been given to me by the grace of God, and I will do something with it. What I do with each now will make me or break me. *Am I living in the now? Meditation for the Day We should work at overcoming ourselves, our selfish desires and our self-centeredness. This can never be fully accomplished. We can never become entirely unselfish. But we can come to realize that we are not at the center of the universe and that everything does not revolve around us at the center. Prayer for the Day I pray that I may strive to overcome my selfishness. I pray that I may achieve the right perspective of my position in the world.”

Adapted from Twenty-Four Hours a Day©1954, 1975, 1992 by Hazelden Foundation