Monday, November 17, 2008

Living in the Present

This was one of my devotions this morning... I love Brennan Manning... Jesus help me grasp this... I so want to live in the present moment... I know this is only possible by the power of your Holy Spirit... so come Lord Jesus... help us all be like little children!

The Geography of Nowhere

To live "nowhere"- composed of two words now and here- is to live in the temple of the present moment. Paying attention to the gift that arrives right now, right here, is one of the premier skills of spiritual life.

To live in the present means to trust deeply that what is most important in life is the here and now! We are constantly distracted by things that might have happened in the past or that might happen in the future. It is not easy to dwell in the temple of nowhere, to remain focused on the present. Our mind is hard to master and keeps pulling us away from engagement with the present.

When Jesus tells us to become like little children, he is inviting us to forget what lies behind and to forgo concern about the future. It is only now that we are in the presence of God!

I just love that... "It is only Now that we are in the presence of God!" : )



post signature

13 comments:

Mom of Eleven said...

I am sooo living in my present circumstances!! you know girl. . and praising God. . he is so good,
thank you for that reminder,
wendy

Gran Jan said...

Emmy! I remember you from our plane ride to the Siesta Fiesta - hope you remember me too!

I have thought of you and Wendy often since our return to Georgia - wasn't that the most awesome weekend???

Thank you for this post! Yesterday was my birthday and I had a great day. Awesome worship at church - lunch with my sweet husband, our two sons and their precious wives, and our little 3 year old grandson who I believe is starting to "know me." :)

I love the scripture from Philippians 4:11 about being content in all circumstances - this confirms your thoughts of trusting deeply in the wherever (or nowhere) that God has placed you.

I am a blessed woman indeed and I count each day a gift from our Father - to live in the present of ALL that He offers!

Much Love,
Georgia Jan
Romans 15:13

twinkle said...

Hi Emmy!
I posted about trusting God like a child tonight, too. Then I came and read your post. Holy Spirit...He's a movin'!
Guess you noticed Travis' post about his coming to First Baptist in Woodstock in January. That will be awesome!
I would love to go...

twinkle said...

I checked out the website for the church and no info about Travis' event in January. And Travis says details are not available.
You might contact the church and get some info.
Since it is at a church, they may not have tickets. You may have to just come and find a seat.

Three Fold Cord said...

Just read that you were going to Travis' concert here in ATL. Do you live here too?? I will be attending because I live about 30min North of ATL. Have you heard of a Siesta gathering??

Gran Jan said...

Hey Emmy - what about a mini-Georgia Siesta Fiesta combined with the Travis Cottrell Concert at First Baptist Woodstock in January? I think it is January 24 or 25. I'm going to get in touch with Tammy "Grateful in GA" and see what we can do!!! That is her church and she is in the choir!!!

By the way, my grandson is 3 MONTHS old, not 3 years old...I know he will know me then, he is just now starting to "coo and goo" at me...that's what I meant...

Love ya,
GA Jan

Kerin said...

Amen - something I really need to do. Miss you!

lori said...

Great post!!
I love ya and miss you!!

Sarah said...

Boy did I need to read this today! Thanks

Anonymous said...

Emmy! How are doing?? It's Brittney from our Siesta Conference. I just loved you post. I just wrote something on my blog too about living in the present....great minds think alike. Things have been crazy as ever around here...but now I've got a few mintues to write and check in with everyone. Hope all is well and I can't wait to hear from you! Check out my blog too for a great story on the lessons learned from a four year old!!!

Lisa said...

Hi there, I am a "fellow siesta" and just had to comment on your blog. After I had entered my Scripture for memory on the Living Proof blog, my screen refreshed and there was your comment...with the exact same Scripture! Let's pray for each other's ability to memorize that one and the rest of the year's Scriptures, too.

Emmy said...

Hi Lisa that is so cool I'll be praying for you! I just discovered that scripture a few weeks ago and it is one of my all time favorites!

Jen said...

Wow - so profound - thank you for sharing this. I just found you by blog-hopping, and I REALLY needed to hear this message - thanks!

:) Jen

http://jennysuegotmarried.blogspot.com

http://ecumenicalchick.blogspot.com