Join me the first Tuesday, monthly through December, for Vet Support and Venting, starting September 2nd, 7-8:30 pm in Mainstreet Coney and Grille, 1985 Jefferson, Det., 48207.
Get support and resources to face trauma caused from battle fatigue and more with a licensed counselor and pastor of 38 years.
Call 313 530 2777, praisethemaker1234@yahoo.com for more.
Monday, August 11, 2014
Saturday, August 9, 2014
Weddings in the Woods, and, at the Water at Stoney Creek, Michigan
O happy bliss!
Alicja is getting married at Stoney Creek in metropolitan Detroit, MI., later today. She's my brother's daughter, the daughter he raised and loves.
Conversation is abuzz about it.
Indeed.
One relative refused to attend since the couple are "naturalists" who revere the water, the elements, the trees, and more.
Let it be.
Love.
The couple love each other.
And, they enjoy nature. And, want a wedding by the water.
So . . .
Let it be.
Let them be.
Relish the relationship of matrimonial bliss. Attend the wedding.
After all, love is love.
"Love your neighbor as yourself," the Good Book says.
And, "Love one another."
"God is love."
Indeed.
Not sure I can improve on that.
May the newlyweds "I do" be forever.
For ever!
That's another blog, however.
Alicja is getting married at Stoney Creek in metropolitan Detroit, MI., later today. She's my brother's daughter, the daughter he raised and loves.
Conversation is abuzz about it.
Indeed.
One relative refused to attend since the couple are "naturalists" who revere the water, the elements, the trees, and more.
Let it be.
Love.
The couple love each other.
And, they enjoy nature. And, want a wedding by the water.
So . . .
Let it be.
Let them be.
Relish the relationship of matrimonial bliss. Attend the wedding.
After all, love is love.
"Love your neighbor as yourself," the Good Book says.
And, "Love one another."
"God is love."
Indeed.
Not sure I can improve on that.
May the newlyweds "I do" be forever.
For ever!
That's another blog, however.
Thursday, August 7, 2014
Spirited Service of Praise
When I showed up to support the pastor at World Deliverance Temple in Dearborn Heights, Michigan, Tuesday, I sensed I was in for a lively service of praise.
A drummer, keyboard players, and more were plenty.
The week-long conference hosted a variety of speakers including Pastor Winans of Perfecting Church in Detroit. And, his voice reminded me of an experience at his church years ago when he sang and I felt like I was in heaven, not that I know what that is like.
A grateful pastor welcomed the inter and intra-faith clergy.
Pastors are like that.
They know that linking our lives in God is crucial to ministry and more.
The Pentecostal service had the Imam wondering as I prepared him for what to expect.
He was grateful.
And, he accepted that people worship differently, saying, "I don't judge; God will sort them all out."
How true.
Indeed.
We clapped. We shouted and prayed in tongues, even danced in praise of the Maker.
One's entire being is engaged here, I thought.
A Catholic physician turned from his front row saying, "We Catholics should try this!"
Why not, I thought.
God awaits our entire being to fully engage. And, although we are more cerebral, I think there's room for diversity of ways of worshiping.
A drummer, keyboard players, and more were plenty.
The week-long conference hosted a variety of speakers including Pastor Winans of Perfecting Church in Detroit. And, his voice reminded me of an experience at his church years ago when he sang and I felt like I was in heaven, not that I know what that is like.
A grateful pastor welcomed the inter and intra-faith clergy.
Pastors are like that.
They know that linking our lives in God is crucial to ministry and more.
The Pentecostal service had the Imam wondering as I prepared him for what to expect.
He was grateful.
And, he accepted that people worship differently, saying, "I don't judge; God will sort them all out."
How true.
Indeed.
We clapped. We shouted and prayed in tongues, even danced in praise of the Maker.
One's entire being is engaged here, I thought.
A Catholic physician turned from his front row saying, "We Catholics should try this!"
Why not, I thought.
God awaits our entire being to fully engage. And, although we are more cerebral, I think there's room for diversity of ways of worshiping.
A Spiral of Failed Functioning
When a customer at a local restaurant ordered poached egg, oatmeal and yogurt, the server reported that they were out of yogurt.
"Would you like something else," I overheard her say to the patron.
"OK," I overheard again, "I'll have turkey patties," he said.
The waitress forgot the eggs and let the cashier know that the lack of yogurt seemed to confuse the waitstaff.
"Oh," she said, as I waited behind the customer to pay for my breakfast. "At times, the trucks say they will bring yogurt when they forget to load it, but never do," the cashier told the waiting customer.
And, so goes the cycle of failed functioning.
How we are connected, I thought, as the cashier rang me out as I paid my bill.
We are.
When one function is upset, others follow.
Like with the yogurt.
We are so tied into each other and the cycle of service, aren't we?
Taking responsibility for the job I have at hand will assist in keeping the spiral functioning well.
Or, else.
"Would you like something else," I overheard her say to the patron.
"OK," I overheard again, "I'll have turkey patties," he said.
The waitress forgot the eggs and let the cashier know that the lack of yogurt seemed to confuse the waitstaff.
"Oh," she said, as I waited behind the customer to pay for my breakfast. "At times, the trucks say they will bring yogurt when they forget to load it, but never do," the cashier told the waiting customer.
And, so goes the cycle of failed functioning.
How we are connected, I thought, as the cashier rang me out as I paid my bill.
We are.
When one function is upset, others follow.
Like with the yogurt.
We are so tied into each other and the cycle of service, aren't we?
Taking responsibility for the job I have at hand will assist in keeping the spiral functioning well.
Or, else.
Friday, August 1, 2014
A Pot Luck Picnic Sunday at Belle Isle Park
Crowds will be busy Sunday, August 3rd from 12 noon until 5 pm at Detroit's jewel of a park, Belle Isle.
We will gather on Central near the Playcape area.
The sun is scheduled to shine widely upon us.
Bit, even if it rained we would enjoy the shower some, wait, and, get back to the busy schedule the planners set.
Not a dull moment Sunday.
Too much for me.
I like more calm and quiet to talk and sit and sip a beverage with the homeless who attend also.
It's nestled downtown at East Grand Boulevard and Jefferson blocks from where I overlook it at home.
Diverse people will bring various kinds of food to feast upon with all faiths and generations who will play soccer, get their faces painted, dance, drum, and more.
It's the third annual picnic for all.
Cost-free and family friendly we'll pray and give praise to the Creator of trees, rivers, and living temples, at 12 noon.
Kosher hot dogs and an array of dishes will satisfy then.
Kids will run and sing, while adults will engage eyes and voices of diversity with one another.
I relish this annual event.
Join me.
We will gather on Central near the Playcape area.
The sun is scheduled to shine widely upon us.
Bit, even if it rained we would enjoy the shower some, wait, and, get back to the busy schedule the planners set.
Not a dull moment Sunday.
Too much for me.
I like more calm and quiet to talk and sit and sip a beverage with the homeless who attend also.
It's nestled downtown at East Grand Boulevard and Jefferson blocks from where I overlook it at home.
Diverse people will bring various kinds of food to feast upon with all faiths and generations who will play soccer, get their faces painted, dance, drum, and more.
It's the third annual picnic for all.
Cost-free and family friendly we'll pray and give praise to the Creator of trees, rivers, and living temples, at 12 noon.
Kosher hot dogs and an array of dishes will satisfy then.
Kids will run and sing, while adults will engage eyes and voices of diversity with one another.
I relish this annual event.
Join me.
Summer Solitude, Silence
Some solitude and silence twice daily with twenty minutes each times seems to row my boat, so to speak.
When neglected, my day seems less joyous.
"After doing so, Jesus went up on the mountain by himself to pray."
- Mt. 14:23
When I have my fill of people where I minister on the street, I pause.
It's as though I dismiss the crowd as Jesus did.
I rest.
A park nearby helps.
And, the Detroit River at Belle Isle draws me deep within.
Finding a place, a spot to hear God whisper in the wind, or my ear and heart, helps me to be ready and welcoming for the crowd. . .again...later, or, tomorrow.
Sunday's Sermon: A Homily on Satisfaction
I can't get no satisfaction.
Someone sang those lyrics out of the depths of his heart, no?
When one's basic needs are met, am I more satisfied with giving to the poor, than buying another TV with a wider, bigger, larger screen? Or, a huge mansion that may need a scooter for me to get around from one end to the other?
Perhaps not!
So . . .
"Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what fails to satisfy?"
- Isaiah 55:2
The prophet would concur, it seems to me.
Meaningful living with a semblance of satisfaction comes from stooping low to serve the most vulnerable, or, those near me in need at any given moment.
In our economy that depends on consumerism, the question is a challenge, no?
Subliminal messages in the media, and more, press us to spend and shop 'til I drop!
Now, a fresh loaf of bread made from scratch and free from preservatives and processed ingredients clearly satisfies me. The "On the Rise" Bakery on Gratiot, near McClellan in Detroit motivates me to eat Farmer's Rye, for example.
The Bread of Heaven, this Eucharistic feast -- simple as it is -- made from human hands off God, satisfies hungry hearts.
My mother, and Mary, perhaps would agree.
After all, they were simple peasants seeking to serve and stoop low to meet the basic needs of my four sister and two brothers.
Furthermore, in their own womb of an oven, they carried meaning and more.
Mom always seemed satisfied despite meager money, and, living from paycheck to paycheck.
May appeared that way also, no?
God, assist me to balance desires, wants and needs by finding meaning in serving right where I am at home, work, school or on the streets of Chene/Jefferson at the Detroit Branch of the Elmwood Park Library where I craft this talk today.
Someone sang those lyrics out of the depths of his heart, no?
When one's basic needs are met, am I more satisfied with giving to the poor, than buying another TV with a wider, bigger, larger screen? Or, a huge mansion that may need a scooter for me to get around from one end to the other?
Perhaps not!
So . . .
"Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what fails to satisfy?"
- Isaiah 55:2
The prophet would concur, it seems to me.
Meaningful living with a semblance of satisfaction comes from stooping low to serve the most vulnerable, or, those near me in need at any given moment.
In our economy that depends on consumerism, the question is a challenge, no?
Subliminal messages in the media, and more, press us to spend and shop 'til I drop!
Now, a fresh loaf of bread made from scratch and free from preservatives and processed ingredients clearly satisfies me. The "On the Rise" Bakery on Gratiot, near McClellan in Detroit motivates me to eat Farmer's Rye, for example.
The Bread of Heaven, this Eucharistic feast -- simple as it is -- made from human hands off God, satisfies hungry hearts.
My mother, and Mary, perhaps would agree.
After all, they were simple peasants seeking to serve and stoop low to meet the basic needs of my four sister and two brothers.
Furthermore, in their own womb of an oven, they carried meaning and more.
Mom always seemed satisfied despite meager money, and, living from paycheck to paycheck.
May appeared that way also, no?
God, assist me to balance desires, wants and needs by finding meaning in serving right where I am at home, work, school or on the streets of Chene/Jefferson at the Detroit Branch of the Elmwood Park Library where I craft this talk today.
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