January 31 - Daily Feast
Volume II
Something to look forward to gives us reason to get up in the morning. It may be no more than watching the sun lay long shadows across the land, or enjoying the aroma of coffee and the sound of bacon sizzling in the skillet. Life's little pleasures give us greater compassion and the ability to comfort and to be comforted. It is a lonely road that does not have time for the daily joys that are so common but so enlivening.
~ Certain small things and observances sometimes have connection with large and more profound ideas. ~
PLENTY COUPS - CROW NATION
"A Cherokee Feast of Days, Volume II" by Joyce Sequichie Hifler
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Elder's Meditation of the Day - January 31
"In sharing, in loving all and everything, one people naturally found a due portion of the thing they sought, while in fearing, the other found need of conquest."
--Chief Luther Standing Bear, SIOUX
There are two systems of thought that are available for us to choose from. One is the love-thought system and the other is the fear-thought system. If we choose love, we will see the laws, principles and values of the Creator. If we choose fear, the results will be so paralyzing that it will cause us to take over and not rely on the Great Spirit. The fear-thought system will automatically cause attack, conflict, need to control over others. The love-thought system seeks peace of mind, unity and causes us to be love seekers.
Great Spirit, today let me see only love.
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THINK ON THESE THINGS
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler
We smile in remembrance when the light touch of something unseen touches our spirits. Forgotten for a brief time are the familiar fragrances, the special scent of a gardenia a warm sunbeam or strain of music.
How rich we are in memories. What a wealth of excellence we can take from the less important -- that may one day be just as important. We can allow those old dead unhappy thoughts to dissolve, leaving only the cream, only the secret hidden things in our hearts to smile about. Certainly, there were some unhappy and hard times, but how do they compare with the good..>>>*
Guiding Principles
To regularly engage the Gospel.
To take seriously our own spiritual formation.
To nurture and foster the spiritual formation of others.
To live the Baptismal Covenant.
To live as a community of disciples.
To foster reconciliation, healing, and vision.
To pray and worship regularly.
To respect the spiritual traditions, values and customs of our many peoples.
To take full responsibility for our local ministries.
I Said A Prayer For You Today
I said a prayer for you today,
And know God must have heard.
I felt the answer in my heart
Although He spoke no word.
I didn't ask for wealth or fame,
I knew you wouldn't mind.
I asked Him to send treasures
Of a far more lasting kind.
I asked that He'd be near you
At the start of each new day,
To grant you health and blessings
And friends to share your way.
I asked for happiness for you
In all things great and small,
But it was for His loving care
I prayed the most of all.
Aho , Amen , e-men .
Family Prayer
God made us a family
We need one another
We love one another
We forgive one another
We work together
We play together
We worship together
Together we use God's word
Together we grow in Christ
Together we love all men
Together we serve our God
Together we hope for Heaven
These are our hopes and ideals
Help us to attain them, O God,
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Aho , Amen , e-men .
Give Us Hearts to Understand
Give us hearts to understand;
Never to take from creation's beauty more than we give;
never to destroy wantonly for the furtherance of greed;
Never to deny to give our hands for the building of earth's beauty;
never to take from her what we cannot use.
Give us hearts to understand
That to destroy earth's music is to create confusion;
that to wreck her appearance is to blind us to beauty;
That to callously pollute her fragrance is to make a house of stench;
that as we care for her she will care for us.
We have forgotten who we are.
We have sought only our own security.
We have exploited simply for our own ends.
We have distorted our knowledge.
We have abused our power.
Great Spirit, whose dry lands thirst,
Help us to find the way to refresh your lands.
Great Spirit, whose waters are choked with debris and pollution,
help us to find the way to cleanse your waters.
Great Spirit, whose beautiful earth grows ugly with misuse,
help us to find the way to restore beauty to your handiwork.
Great Spirit, whose creatures are being destroyed,
help us to find a way to replenish them.
Great Spirit, whose gifts to us are being lost in selfishness and corruption,
help us to find the way to restore our humanity.
Oh, Great Spirit, whose voice I hear in the wind,
whose breath gives life to the world, hear me;
I need your strength and wisdom.
May I walk in Beauty.
Aho , Amen , e-men .
God's Minute
THIS IS WHAT THE LORD SAYS-YOUR REDEEMER, THE
HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL: "I AM THE LORD YOUR GOD, WHO
TEACHES YOU WHAT IS BEST FOR YOU, WHO DIRECTS
YOU IN THE WAY YOU SHOULD GO.
( ISAIAH 48:17 *NIV )
Dear Member's,
When we turn our life and will over to the care of GOD, He
will guide us on the journey to become the person that we
were meant to be. For He has promised; I WILL INSTRUCT
YOU AND TEACH YOU IN THE WAY YOU SHOULD GO; I
WILL COUNSEL YOU AND WATCH OVER YOU.
( PSALM 32:8 )
Now in the process of becoming that person, our life will be
filled with love, hope, faith and fulfillment, as we have never
known before! The emptiness we felt before will be filled to
overflowing! We will then start looking at life differently, and
loving every moment of it. This is because; IF ANYONE IS
IN CHRIST, HE IS A NEW CREATION; THE OLD HAS GONE,
THE NEW HAS COME! ( 2 CORINTHIANS 5:17 )
Therefore Member's, I pray that you are on that journey right
now, and feel these changes within yourself! If not, today is a
great day to start that journey! Just tell God that you are ready,
and; THE LORD WILL GUIDE YOU ALWAYS; HE WILL
SATISFY YOUR NEEDS IN A SUN-SCORCHED LAND AND
WILL STRENGTHEN YOUR FRAME. YOU WILL BE LIKE A
WELL WATERED GARDEN, LIKE A SPRING WHOSE
WATERS NEVER FAIL. Amen ( ISAIAH 58:11 )
With My Love & Prayers,
your servant , Pastor COUGARMOON
