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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 hope 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 please 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 .
Affirmation
Go into quiet, and spend a brief time repeating inwardly the following. Or you may want to sing it as a chant. Afterward, proceed to the Scripture.
The Holy Spirit flows through me to all.
Scripture
Here, you may want to meditate on this Scripture, or do Lectio Divina with it, before proceeding to the Spiritual Teaching.
Romans 8.13 (ESV): For if you live according to the flesh [GK sarx] you will die [spiritually], but if by the Spirit you put to death the [errant] deeds of the body, you will live [spiritually].
Spiritual Teaching
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The Holy Spirit, “spirit” being feminine in Hebrew and Greek, is the Feminine Face within the Trinity. We could say the Holy Spirit is the wife-mother aspect corresponding to the Father aspect, and the Son is the generation of the two.
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The Spirit is so intimate with us, and so ready and wanting to help us, we can turn to Her and know the Divine is responsive. Blessed Padre Pio refers to this as a charism. A charism is given by the Holy Spirit for the good of the person and Body of Christ:
Throw yourself confidently into the arms of the heavenly Father with childlike trust and open wide your heart to the charism of the Holy Spirit, who is only waiting for a sign from you in order to enrich you.
*Eileen Dunn Bertanzetti. Ed. Padre Pio's Words of Hope. Meditation 51.
Our Scripture reminds us of how to live in intimacy with the Spirit, so we can live, literally, a life of charism; thus, being, literally, a charismatic Jesus Disciple – a conduit of the Blessing of God, blessing and being blessed, being blessed and blessing. Jesus, in such charism, blesses through you.
To walk this way, is to be holy. Not holier-than-thou. Holy – set apart, devoted to God. This means participating mystically in the death of Jesus, as signed in your baptism. The “flesh” dies. This is the Greek sarx, and it refers not to the body, but is a theological term in the writings of St. Paul. This “flesh” refers to what contemplatives call the False Self – this self is the self revolving around itself, the selfish self, the I-must-have-it-my-way self. We are to be Christ-centered, not self-centered. Then, we are in our True Self, the self in union with Jesus, and open to the mystery of the Spirit.
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When we are practicing the True Self, we grow to be less anxious and troubled. We feel more calm, more quiet within. We can feel this amidst noise and trouble. Tonight, I went to enjoy fellowship and a band outside. Many persons were present, and the band was loud. Yet, I felt centered and calm, even while enjoying the surroundings and band playing rock music from the 70s and 80s.
In the charism of the Spirit, we can, ironically, enjoy sound without and, still, enjoy quiet within. We can carry within a portable sanctuary of Quiet. Again, words from Blessed Padre Pio:
Live calmly and do not worry excessively, because in order to work more freely in us, the Holy Spirit needs tranquility and calm. And for you, every anxious thought is a mistake, as you have no reason to fear. It is the Lord who works within you, and you must do nothing except leave the door of your heart wide open so that he might work as he pleases.
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For most of us, if not all, we open and shut the door in our relationship with the Holy Spirit. That is, we open our heart and trust, rejoicing in confidence in God's Help. Then, we shut the door through worry or fear, or another thought and affect. This is okay, as long as we keep returning to open the door, and soon. As we are faithful in re-opening the door, we find the door stays open longer, and the door stays open under more pressure than before. This is a sign we are growing in the blessing of the Holy Spirit, Who graces us with a more full living of our True Self in God.
Responding
Centering Prayer
This is the practice of Centering Prayer. One process in this Prayer is to use a prayer word or phrase to bring the attention back from thoughts. These thoughts reflect habitual tendencies, often of an afflictive nature – fear, worry, anger, jealousy.... As you release these thoughts, you are dissolving their power. Therefore, Centering Prayer is a means leading to a more calm inner life and outer disposition, as well as a more consistent, spacious openness to the Holy Spirit and the flow, or charism, of the Divine Presence.
Before entering the practice of this Prayer, choose a prayer word – preferably of one syllable, and no more than two syllables. Examples include: Jesus, Love, Peace, Grace, God, Christ, Holy, Blessing, Joy, ...
1.Go into the Quiet. I recommend for Christians to do the Sign of the Cross upon entering the meditation or inwardly to pray a prayer of invocation or the Our Father, or Lord's Prayer; persons of other faiths may choose another sign - persons may choose any devotional rite suitable. With eyes closed and properly breathing – for meditation, in and out of the lower abdomen. Breathe deeply several times.
2.Notice what you are feeling and how this shows up in your body. Do not do anything, simply observe.
3.For a time follow the breathe, in and out. Simply observe. Place a little more attention on the breath outward, with your awareness following it outward from your nostrils – as though your awareness is extending outside into the surrounding air.
4.Now begin using a prayer word, your mantra, in the following manner: On the outbreath, bring the word into awareness, on the inbreath let the word go and relax. Keep doing this. If the mind wanders, do not be upset or critical of yourself; simply go back to your prayer word.
You may reverse the use of the prayer word, with the word inwardly spoken on the inbreath. Also, rather than a prayer word, you may use the breath - focus on the breath either on the inbreath or outbreath, release the focus on the other breath.
Some persons may be aided by an image. If so, use the image and word, or breath, together. Release the image when releasing the focus on the word or breath.
5.If at any point you feel yourself drawn into pure Silence, let go of the word. You may return to it to recenter yourself – and as many times as you need to.
6.Before coming out of the meditation, dedicate your meditation. An example: “I dedicate this meditation to the spiritual healing of all creation”; “To the blessing of all children”; “To peace on earth among all creatures”; … You may choose to pray slowly the Our Father, or Lord's Prayer, or choose another appropriate rite.
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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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