dailydatewithgod

Sharing my experiences and understandings of the Great I AM.

Apr 20

Be Creative Bereavement!

by Colleen

With all the world has experienced in the pandemic that began more than a year ago, coming face to face with bereavement is something I do not think anyone has escaped. We have not all lost a person to the pandemic but bereavement is about sorrow, tribulation, misfortune. It is about learning to let go of expectations and things imagined. I am not convinced that anyone set out at the beginning of 2020 thinking it would turn out the way it did. No one counted on having to let go of either people, customs, ideas, events, ways of being, relationships, physical connections, and many more nuanced things. It is not about a comparison that someone’s loss is bigger or less. With loss comes a felt sense of sorrow. Sorrow and grief that call upon us to pay attention. In the midst of a pandemic there was barely any time to adapt to one loss before another came. In some cases, there was a loss that was grieved and then whatever it was returned and then it was lost again. Given that the western culture as a whole does not deal well with deep emotions, is it really a surprise that most people are still feeling like they are trying to get their heads on straight? And we are not yet out of the pandemic. There were perhaps brief moments of hope at the start of 2021 that things would shift but no surprise, nature has no care or concern about human time clocks and dates. It moves in and out of cycles regardless of what numbers we place on it. With every misfortune there is an opportunity to show up for the deeper calling. It is the same calling that God extends to us each and every day when our breath comes in and when it goes out. We do not give much thought to each breath as being gained or lost. Yet I imagine there are many who have been grieved in this pandemic that would give anything to have one of the breaths that we don’t even notice. I don’t have any answers about how to handle these things and when I spend time with God on my daily date or anytime through the day the one message that continually comes through is to pay attention to what is right in front of me. God invites me to pay attention to the the things that are escaping the site of my eyes that my heart holds and releases with a knowing of what is most cherishing right now.

Are we open to paying attention to our heart’s calling to cycle through our breath and creatively ride the experience of bereavement today?

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Apr 13

Be Creative Connection!

by Colleen

Living in a world of duality there are certain contradictions to which we have become accustomed. Sometimes I think contradictions are not so much opposite ends but things that exist on a spectrum of understanding. Often behind seeming contradictory ideas lies a common intention. What looks like contradictory action is driven by a similar desire. When the idea of what creates and constitutes connection we can see over the span of time how much that has changed. Within the contradictions of connection are the nuances of circumstance, expectation, intention, and definition. What one person sees as a way to connect with another feels like a disconnect to the other person. Only when they are both willing to discuss the felt experience of a break in their connection do they see the effect of all these nuances. On my daily dates with God I am continually invited to learn new ways to create connection within myself and by consequence others. Being willing to breathe into my heart the possibility that the displeasing element of myself, one I was hoping to do away with becomes an invitation to find the face of love in an expected corner of my being. The recognition that God is present to the creative ways love calls upon us to connect to our inner and outer world specifically to expand the understanding of love is beyond me. It is why I return day after day, moment after moment to the connection that I have with a God of my understanding. Through the connection to God, felt or not at the moment, lies the promise of hope to connect with love in a way I never could have imagined was possible.

What creative connection to love is God inviting us to open our eyes to today?

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Apr 6

Be Creative Happenstance!

by Colleen
On the one hand, it sounds like a good idea to plan. On the other, it sounds more fun to see what happens. Of course, it is neither one nor the other, it is about the reality of both. The true reality is that no manner of planning can account for any situation. Regardless of how much we map out of an experience or encounter, there will be variables because all around us all the time there are inhales and exhales. Life is a living thing and that means people, experiences, ideas, emotions, time, and space. All of reality, as we know it is subject to the flow. I have learned on my daily dates with God that the less time I spend either resisting or waiting for the happenstances of life, the more at peace I am. How we ride the waves of happenstance with an acceptance of its occurrence is what creates real life. I am open to spending as much time as possible in the story that this is not the way it is supposed to happen, whatever it is. Or I can step back and open my heart to what the happenstance is here to teach me, tickle me, or open me up to about life and myself. Being grounded in the truth that no matter what kind of happenstance occurs means I acknowledge it cannot break me, though it might break me open. Open to breathe deeper, love more creatively, and see life from a different angle. Happenstance is neither good nor bad, it is how much of my heart and mind are invested in the opportunity to learn from it.

Are we resisting or inviting the happenstances of life to show us something about the truth of who we are at our core today?

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Mar 30

Be Creative Kerflooey!

by Colleen
My inclination towards the effectiveness of discipline can give the impression of rigidity and fear when it comes to the kerflooey of life. In moments or experiences of feeling off-kilter, I have heard God call me to step into what I perceive as the madness or brokenness of whatever it is. In the moments when our minds cannot grapple with kerflooey, we are sort of pushed by life to open up the creativity encased in the lens of our hearts and see what is there. It is what enables us to find joy in the mystery, to let go of the known and explore what we are made of. On my daily dates with God, a consistent message centers around the purpose of life being one of learning and growing. Ultimately, to help us lean more into love. If we rely on the illusion of perfection and hold fast to the whole and unbroken pieces of life as how it is supposed to be we miss out on ourselves. It is not about what is happening in the world, it is about who we are becoming as we learn to navigate what is present for us. It is a stretch and it will feel uncomfortable to step into looking through the creative lens of our hearts when faced with kerflooey of the kind our minds want to resist. In doing it anyway we invite ourselves into a broader and more beautiful complexity of love and life that God knows we are always already in. Besides, doesn’t just reading or saying the word kerflooey bring a smile to your face and kick up your heart a bit?

What elements of kerflooey are inviting us to look at them through the creative lens of our hearts and get to know ourselves today?

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Mar 23

Be Creative Polarity!

by Colleen
Sometimes I feel like I am walking around in opposite day. Some of you may remember a game we used to play at kids where we would declare that it was opposite day. I am not sure how much thought if any there was put into it as I recall it was mostly about being contradictory in everything that we said and did. There was something fun about saying one thing and doing the complete opposite or saying and doing things you would not normally do. In the adult world, in general, a mismatch between words and actions is a lack of integrity and someone who is acting in a completely opposite manner than normal is having an off day. Integrity is a highly valued character trait in my book and I have worked intentionally to create a life as a person of integrity. Another angle on this idea, however, is from the lens of polarity. It is a known fact of physical science that we live in a world of polarity. When kids play opposite day they are experimenting in those polarities. As adults, we lose sight of the value of this kind of play. What would it be like to hold a completely opposite opinion of someone or something? What could happen if we decided to believe the opposite version of a story we create about a given person or situation in our day? Understandably, it would be uncomfortable. Only uncomfortable because we have gotten so used to our lens and our perspective that we have forgotten the complete opposite is always in existence. Instead of assuming it is wrong or bad, if we chose to play in the polarity of it, we might discover more of what it is about. God encourages us to learn and grow and play because it is the purpose of being alive. Finding creative ways to exist in the polarity of life is only confrontational to us if we have forgotten what the point of life is all about. Choosing a creative approach instead of a fearful approach to polarity will open the eyes of our minds and hearts to another side that we have left out of the full picture of life.

What areas of our lives might we benefit from playing with its polarity today?

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Mar 16

Be Creative Propulsion!

by Colleen
We can endeavor to move forward whether we believe we have what it takes to get there or not. The simplicity of taking action creates the necessary propulsion. The very nature of taking action of any kind gets us into motion. It how we use that action and what we allow to drive it that brings us to the end result. We can be propelled by our mind’s ideas, our heart’s intention, or our body’s needs. Most of the time it is a combination of them all. God encourages us to play an active role in generating intentional propulsion to create a life reflecting the truth of who we are. It means learning to notice how our mind works, understanding the functions of our body and identifying the inner landscape of our hearts. We are whole people and while we often allow the propulsion to move us based on defaulted systems, we can at any moment take creative control. I can allow my mind’s stories about why this situation is happening at work and why I am irritated all the while propelling my heart into a closed and hovered space prompting my body to slouch and my energy to recede. Most likely I will until I decide it would be a more creative use of my energy to notice that what is happening is for my learning and not because life is out to make things difficult for me. One thing about living a life soberly is there is no one left to blame and because of my daily dates with God, I learned there is not much point in blame. It may be handy but not fruitful. All it seems to garner is the propulsion of more victimhood. I played that role for a long time because it was the default one. When I woke up and reconnected with my heart, I began to form a picture of a life that propelled me into a realm of understanding and acceptance. The gift is a willingness to see when I have managed to propel myself back into that mode and turning on my creativity which shows me how to use the propulsion of my very being how to get up and out.

Are we aware of the ways we are lacking the creative use of propulsion to develop the kind of life that reflects the truth of who we are today?

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Mar 9

Be Creative Clemency!

by Colleen
If there is one thing I have learned more in the last year is the value of tenderness and mercy. Both when it comes to others and myself I find that I am best able to practice clemency when I step out of the context and notice the process I am in. The subject matter, the situation at hand or the story I am making up in my head as to why something is happening surprisingly is of little interest to my heart. When I pause, take a breath and step back to take in all of what is going on the lens of my heart can step in. It is easy for me to get caught up in my head about what is supposed to be happening but after many years of trying my best, I cannot fight reality. At any given moment I am where I am. Regardless of what I think about it, it is where I am. No amount of shoulding on myself or the situation ever changed it. The lens of clemency my heart shows me in the moments where my head wants to show me what is not okay about what is makes it easier to breathe. We have all found ourselves in moments facing things we never thought would happen or reacting in a way outside of our comfort zone. The heart’s creative level of clemency in those very times is indispensable. It is the space of tenderness that is foreign to the mind right up until the message of clemency reaches up from our hearts and casts the light of mercy and allows it to fall gently upon the scene. It is hard to believe the road to access the clemency within our hearts begins with a simple breath.

What moments of our lives would benefit most by accessing the clemency of our hearts today?

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Mar 2

Be Creative Novelty!

by Colleen
One of the ways that we keep growing as human beings are through new experiences. When we come across something that does not fit our template of known information or experience our brain has to find a way to either incorporate it or disregard it. However, the longer we live the more things are simply absorbed into the known or close enough to qualify as a known category that we do not experience as a novelty. God invites us to practice interrupting our default mode of categorization and creating novelty. When we pause and take a breath, we can look at someone or something again. We can ask ourselves, what is here that I have not seen before. We have the capacity before walking into a conversation with a familiar person to remind ourselves to listen more than we speak or let go of whatever fixed ideas we might have about the conversation’s outcome. Doing this opens up the eyes of our hearts to show us something our fixed mind may be blind to. We can grow from an interaction we might be dreading. We can be surprised by all the novelty that surrounds us when we allow ourselves to be creative with the familiar.

How much novelty could possibly be in store for us when we choose to be creative with the usual circumstances of our day today?

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Feb 23

Be Creative Strength!

by Colleen
On some level, it seems unfortunate that it is only when we face adversity or challenge do we get a sense of who we are. It only seems that way because it appears paradoxical. Why couldn’t we the whole spectrum of ourselves through an internal lens of awareness? Who says we don’t? Who says that it is not in fact that internal awareness which moves us to walk into and face those very challenges? As far as I can tell if there is nothing else true about life it is that it is meant to be lived. All of it. Not just the good or fun stuff. The hard stuff, the ugly, the frightening stuff, and so much more. As someone who was busy numbing out the pain of life for many years, it seemed as though life was something to get through. Early on it got wonky and I was hurt profoundly. In my child’s mind, I took that to mean I best be on guard and there was little room for anything else. Thankfully, the spirit of life within me would not listen to my mind as the sole authority. Underneath the bruising breathed a heart that was untarnished by life’s circumstances. Every now and then it would sneak out and catch me by surprise. The surprises served as evidence that perhaps there was more to life than I could conceive in my own mind. Within each of us lies a strength supported by the universal imperative of life to keep going. It uses the energy of our hearts to propel us forward in the very challenging moments we think we can’t go on. I remember times when I wanted it all to just end and quickly, yet there I was still breathing. What is that? I could not deny that clearly, my heart contained a level of creative thinking about the purpose of life which laid outside my mind’s eye. When I was most broken down and found myself in recovery. It was a moment of reckoning with the fact that I could not continue on with what I was doing and had no idea what other options there were. Thankfully in the rooms of 12 steps, I found a community of people with like-minded hearts. People who could show me based on their experience what they had done when despite their best efforts their hearts kept pumping and moving forward to face whatever challenges and joys would lie ahead. God invites each of us to tap into the creative strength of our hearts when our minds appear to be tapped out of ideas on how to take the next indicated step. It just takes one breath to shift our mind’s eye to an awareness of the presence of our hearts which hold the key.

Are we willing to notice when we have tapped out of the mind’s ideas of how to creatively face whatever it is because it is calling for the strength of our hearts today?

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Feb 16

Be Creative Challenge!

by Colleen
It is not until we step into action that we can fully know which things challenge us. Sure there are challenging ideas and we can know or sense something that may be difficult but we do not actually know until we attempt it. When the ideas are put into action we need to step into them with our full being.  We are involved as a body, mind, and soul.  Our whole nervous system is on board, or at least we determine how much of our whole system is involved. There are times when we take action on something we think will be easy or familiar only to discover there is internal resistance.  Part of who we are on some level finds whatever we are involved in as challenging. When we notice the resistance we may back down and not even realize it is happening.  We get distracted, we are not willing to schedule the time needed to make sure it is completed, we feel sleepy, or we forget altogether.  We manage to take the energy needed to face whatever it is within us that is asking us to pay attention by leaning on outside circumstances to create excuses.  This is not because we are weak people or defiant, or cowardly. It is because we have yet to discover the truth of who we are at our core.  We have the courage within us to face whatever it is.  We just get surprised by what fear or resistance looks like because we imagine it to make sense all the time.  We compare ourselves to others and think we need to justify what is coming up for us.  God invites us to notice what kinds of challenges are calling on the creativity and courage of our hearts to show up to our lives.  It does not matter that it is the same or different for others.  It is about the process, not the content.  When we notice others showing up courageously in their lives, we can trust that we have that same capacity (process) within ourselves.

What challenges are showing up in our lives as discomfort, resistance, or fear calling on the courage within us to show up today?

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