Terry Paul Choyce
Jan.22, 2006 BSUC
(Paul is in the balcony with his cell phone and chimes.)
My cell phone rings. "Hello....I'm in church right now, can I call you back?.....You are in church too?....You are God?....I guess in a way we are all God.....You are THE God?....... That's nice (roll eyes) Have a great day.....What? You want to prove you are God by having chimes ring right now?......OH, hello God, it is really nice of you to talk to me!...You want me to do what?.....I don't think I'm the right person to do that. My life is really full right now and I can't fit in anything else. But I am flattered you asked. My friend Angie might have time, you could ask her......You want me. Well, I guess I can't say NO to God. I'll do my best.....You've given me a great life so far, I guess I will trust you on this one....
By the way, since I have you on the phone, do you think you could help us elect politicians who will clean up the environment, provide nice housing for everyone, improve the health system, make our higher education system more affordable, prevent crime, and promote world peace?.... I know, it is up to us to improve the world. You gave us the gift of free will. But if you can talk to me, why can't you talk to the prime minister?.....You can be heard only by those who are open to your call....Well, thanks for calling me, I think. I will do my best. Goodbye God."
God does not normally use the telephone to talk to us, but God does talk to us. It is just often hard to know what God is saying. Last week I said we cannot know God by any of our regular senses. The main way to connect with God is through prayer, meditation, and silence. When we are feeling calm and centered, when our minds stop the never-ending loop of thoughts, God can communicate with us. Millions of people throughout history have "spoken" to God this way. You can speak to God too.
There are so many books out about meditation, and so many forms of meditation. Paul has learned at least 6 different methods to still his mind and be at peace, and I'm sure he'd love to talk to you about them, or even lead a workshop about them. Some involve paying close attention to the breath, just focussing on breathing in and out. Some use mantras, like the Christian form which has us repeat the word "maranatha" over and over. Some have us visually focus on a candle or an image. Some have us concentrate on certain sounds. Some involve very slow walking, where your mind is directed to your feet on the earth. All of these techniques lead to one goal, which is becoming still inside and opening to the fullness of the Divine that is in and around us. And it is when we are in this state of peace that we most frequently "hear" a message from God. This is the art of true listening.
God does try to talk to us in other ways. I think God uses synchronicity to get our attention. Whenever something happens to me over and over, or when two things happen to me at the same time, I pay attention. For instance, last week I was listening to my Indigo Girls cd. Not many people listen to the Indigo Girls anymore. I rarely do. I was reading one of my books for my AST course and the Indigo Girls are mentioned! I took that as a sign that I was supposed to be in this course, reading this book. It was confirmation for me that I was on the right path of God's hope for me. All of us have these little synchronicities happen in our lives. I call them "God clicks." The trick is to pay attention to them and to figure out what they mean.
A few months ago I told you about my friend Shelley who was dead for 15 minutes and while she was dead she was spoken to by beings of light who told her how to save her son. The saving of Shelley was a miracle. The saving of her son, who was dead for a half an hour, was even more so. And since then she has been guided to save this planet through a mass meditation on July 17, 2007. She now has a website to promote this plan, which she truly believes is a message from God. And since her website has been created, she has reached literally millions of people all over the world. Right now she is in dialogue with two movie producers and with Doreen Virtue, who wants to help her write a book and who is promoting Shelley with her extensive media network. I have no doubt that God is working through Shelley. Her website is on the bottom of your bulletin.
www.firethegrid.com
The Bible is full of accounts of God calling people to do difficult, even seemingly impossible things. Today's Old Testament reading was about Samuel, who was just a boy when God spoke to him. God spoke to many prophets who did not want to be prophets. Moses, Jonah, and even Saul who became Paul. This is what the Bible says about Jeremiah (1:4-10):
4 The word of the LORD came to me, saying,
5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew [a] you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."
6 "Ah, Sovereign LORD," I said, "I do not know how to speak; I am only a child."
7 But the LORD said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a child.' You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you," declares the LORD.
9 Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, "Now, I have put my words in your mouth. 10 See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant."
And we all know that God spoke to Mary, Joseph, and especially, to Jesus. Throughout history people have reported speaking to God. God has never stopped reaching out to us. We are loved by God. We are a part of God.
Gregg Levoy has written a powerful book called Callings. I'd like to read you a part of this book (p.324) "We begin to realize that our deepest nature, the centre of ourselves, or God within, is the source of our callings. We experience less of a rift between that inner world and the outer one, between the instinctual and the rational within us. As a consequence of becoming practised at following calls in all their myriad forms, even our most spontaneous reactions take on the quality of well-considered decisions, from momentary flashes of intuition to the most visionary callings in which we hear our names, like the prophets heard theirs."
Mr. Levoy fills most of his book with the difficulties that come with, first yearning for a call, or a purpose for our lives, and then following a call when it comes. Because what we are directed by God to do is seldom easy - it is full of problems and complications, and sometimes it changes our lives in ways we do not want. My friend Shelley can testify to that. The lives of every saint, of every enlightened human I have ever heard of has not been smooth and easy. But, knowing that you are living a life that is God directed, and that has real meaning, is so incredible. When we receive a message from God, we generally feel humble, inadequate, confused and afraid. Most people who had been called find many excuses not to do what has been asked of them. But others sacrifice their own dreams and plans to do what God has asked them. And sometimes, what God has asked is exactly what they want to do anyway. I feel I was called to be with you in this church, and for that I am very grateful.
Have you ever received a Divine message? Have you ever made changes in your life because you felt guided to make them by God? Have you ever felt the peace of deep communion with God? If God calls you today, will you listen? Will you be willing to do what God wants of you? I believe God has a purpose for each of our lives. It is our responsibility to seek out that purpose and to live it. With the help of God and Jesus, and with the help of others, each of us can answer God's call with "YES! and THANKYOU"
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Terry Paul Choyce preaches at 10 AM most Sundays at Brunswick St. United Church. You can hear her on the " new" CKDU at 88.1 on Sundays from 2 to 3:30. (www.ckdu.ca) For more info contact her at terrypaulchoyce@yahoo.ca.
©Terry Paul Choyce. Used with permission from the author.
