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Welcome to OneLife Ministries. This site is designed to lead you prayerfully into a heart experience of Divine Presence, Who is Love. While it focuses on Christian teaching, I pray persons of varied faiths will find inspiration here. Indeed, "God" can be whatever image helps us trust in the Sacred, by whatever means Grace touches us each. Please share this ministry with others, and I hope you return soon. There is a new offering daily. And to be placed on the daily OneLife email list, to request notifications of new writings or submit prayer requests, write to briankwilcox@yahoo.com .
Blessings, Brian Kenneth Wilcox, MDiv, MFT, PhD
Interspiritual Pastor-Teacher, Author, Workshop Leader, Spiritual Counselor, and Chaplain.
Brian encourages support of the 4-Star Christian organization Compassion, which supports children worldwide; see www.compassion.com .
Opening Prayer
O let Thy grace inspire
My soul with strength divine
My all my powers to Thee aspire,
And all my days be Thine.
*Hymn "Grace, 'Tis A Charming Sound." Stanza 6, Augustus M. Toplady. 1700s.
Today's Scripture
7 So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.
8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.
*Ephesians 2.7-9 (NLT)
Spiritual Teaching
We hold that man is never so near grace as when
he begins to feel he can do nothing at all.
*C.H. Spurgeon
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Anthony de Mello told the following story about effortlessness.
To a man who hesitated to embark on the spiritual quest for fear of the effort and renunciation the Master said: "How much effort and renunciation does it take to open one's eyes and see?"
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The beginning of the spiritual Path in Christian terms begins with "salvation." Salvation is the fruit of receiving Grace.
St. Paul speaks of this grace as not only something we received to be set right with the Divine. He expounds grace as the Energy wherein we stand always, all along the Journey:
Therefore, since we have been justified [set right, made innocent] by faith [trust], we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace [free Love] in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
*Romans 5.1-2 (ESV)
C. H. Spurgeon, likewise, observed that this grace is the place we always stand. He wrote: "Between here and heaven, every minute that the Christian lives will be a minute of grace."
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Grace is a teaching on effortlessness, on surrender, relaxing into a gift offered. All we do is receive. The Message offers the image of a door open, waiting for us, in its paraphrase of Romans 5.1-2:
By entering through faith into what God has always wanted to do for us—set us right with him, make us fit for him—we have it all together with God because of our Master Jesus. And that's not all: We throw open our doors to God and discover at the same moment that he has already thrown open his door to us. We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand—out in the wide open spaces of God's grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our praise.
*Romans 5.1-2 (MSG), Emphasis Added
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While grace energizes us to action, grace itself is largely an Energy received through effortlessness. Any effort is simply the enactment of means to open to Love.
This is why contemplative prayer is a healthy practice for us. Such Pure Prayer is a means to train us in a calm receptivity to the mysterious action of God within and around us.
If we are trying too hard in prayer, we are likely trying too hard in our life generally. Effortfulness blocks the flow of Grace.
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As we become more familiar with the silent, numinous workings of Divine Energy, or Grace, we grow in appreciation of it. Biblical scholar D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones wrote of this natural response to Grace.
"The ultimate test of our spirituality is the measure of
our amazement at the grace of God."
*See "Grace," www.thegracetabernacle.org.
Quietly Responding
1. In your own words, give a definition of Grace.
2. Have you ever enjoyed effortless surrender to God? If so, what was that like for you? If not, would you like to have such an experience?
3. Do you find it easy or difficult to relax in prayer? If you find it difficult, what might be making it difficult for you to let go to Grace?
4. What are societal and religious challenges persons might face when seeking to let go to Grace?
5. What are benefits you would receive from growing in reliance on Grace?
Brian Kenneth Wilcox July 31, 2009
briankwilcox@yahoo.com
Facebook: Brian Kenneth Wilcox
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*OneLife Ministries is a ministry of Brian Kenneth Wilcox, SW Florida. Brian lives a vowed life and with his two dogs, Bandit Ty and St. Francis, with friends and under a vow of simplicity. Brian is an ecumenical-interspiritual leader, who chooses not to identify with any group, and renounces all titles of sacredness that some would apply to him, but seeks to be open to how Christ manifests in the diversity of Christian denominations and varied religious-spiritual traditions. He affirms that all spiritual paths lead ultimately back to Jesus Christ. He is Senior Chaplain for the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office, Punta Gorda, FL.
*Brian welcomes responses to his writings or submission of prayer requests at briankwilcox@yahoo.com . Also, Brian is on Facebook: search Brian Kenneth Wilcox.
*Contact the above email to book Brian for preaching, Spiritual Direction, retreats, workshops, animal blessing services, house blessings, or other spiritual requests. You can order his book An Ache for Union from major booksellers.
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