Lightworks One/4:3 (John 15) Freewrite

I have fifteen minutes to write.

I meditated on John 15 today. I think that and Ephesians 1, Romans 8, and Psalm 27 are my favorite chapters in the Bible. It is all about remaining vitally united with the Vine, Jesus. It is so simple. I remember a counselor saying after my breakdown in 1983 that I bear fruit not by self-effort but by my abiding. It has always stuck with me. 

I am reading this book called The Way of Discernment by Elizabeth Liebert, and she has all these exercises, and one of them is one for the imagination. Ignatian discernment involved imagination. I got the same picture last night while doing one of her practices as I got when we were meditating in Ps 139 at the Boise Cohort weekend before last: I am lying on a beach towel, soaking in the rays of God's love. Just resting, lying and soaking. That's it. (And I danced around my living room to "It's Time to Find Your Place in the Sun" which was a late 70s hit by Pablo Cruise that was perfect for this imagination exercise.) 

Last night what I saw involved others on their towels, and it brought me back to warm memories of every day in the summers of 71, 72, and 73, lying on our beach towel in Manhattan Beach soaking in the rays (sometimes putting bars of cocoa butter on our bellies and letting it melt or tanning words into our stomachs). We also body surfed which is part of how God has been speaking to me over the last few years. So, there is that rhythm of surfing, riding the waves of the Spirit, he is doing all the propelling forward to shore; and there is the soaking and resting on the towel, tanning God's love into every pore (and his love does not cause skin cancer). I am going to continue to pray into all of this. This one involved a COMMUNITY of "Son Worshippers"!

It has been a fun thing to do Lightworks One. It is only four weeks long and is the 18th Annotation of the Spiritual Exercises. Lightworks Two is a seven week journey, and it is recommended from the Sunday before Ash Wednesday to Easter, but you can do it any time. I will pray whether I will do it this way or wait until Ash Wednesday. Or will I have my own group that I am accompanying through the whole thing? We will wait and see. 

I have four minutes left on my timer. What else should I talk about? Today I have my haircut and color with Rachel. Then I will do Dial a Book deliveries. Then, I will come back and do all the printing for the PUMP Party that starts on Friday night and goes until Saturday night. I have a lot of work on that still to do, but I think I can get it done today. Later on in the week, I have meetings with AKJ and SG. I cannot remember which days are which. I am hoping that is not too exhausting because I think one of them is on the same morning of the PUMP Party. I think I should be OK though. 

I only have three more days of teaching at OSU which equals six more classes. I did a very slow and mellow class yesterday, and I think they were appreciative, and for some reason, I am sore, I think when we slow it down, we use more of our muscles. I felt a deep click in my spine, and I think whatever has been bothering me for a month was fixed at the source rather than the symptoms, which is what I think the two doctors I have seen have done. I will never go back to that one massage therapist. I was FINE for MONTHS before I went to see her, and I really think she did something. Some massage therapist just do not know what they are doing, and I have had two of those in my life. This one was subtle, but the other one was blatant. 

There goes my timer. Off to the rest of my day soaking of God's love rays!