Blog Archives

Closer

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Closer –

This morning at church the reverend closed the service by asking people to come to down to the front altar and pray for a woman who was leaving with a team of people to go to Africa on a mission trip. She knelt and many of the people in attendance gathered around her. As someone began to pray I heard a sound; “Clank. Silence. Clank. Silence.” I looked up and saw an elderly woman moving towards the group using a walker. By the time she made it up to the front, they were almost finished with the prayer but that didn’t seem to matter. What mattered was she wanted to be a part of the group, show her support, be closer to the one who was leaving, because she cared and caring most often requires our presence.

As she struggled I reflected on this woman and her concern for the other overcoming her condition. The world as we know it seems to be coming apart at the seams. Institutions, foundations, and truths we thought would last forever are crumbling before our eyes. What do we do? How do we stop it or at least stem the tide? I think we should do as the woman did this morning. We recognize our weakness, our lack of power and control, but still run, walk, crawl, towards a need and be present, change what we can by getting closer. When things are too big, too unruly, too far gone, it’s easier to stay where we are, shrug our shoulders and say; “There wasn’t anything we could’ve done.” or we can get “some “skin in the game.” We can try. We can put forth the effort with an attitude that only those who show up can make a difference.

blessings,
@BrianLoging (Twitter)
thewannabesaint.com

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Gathering

Apr 16

Posted by thewannabesaint.com

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Gathering –

This morning I stopped by the office on my way to a Community Group for Dads. It was cold today. Last night it was below freezing and when I left the house it was lightly snowing! I know Spring is supposed to be here but I wish it would step up and exert itself! Anyhow, when I arrived at the office there was the familiar hum of a leaf blower. Even though its cold the grass is still growing and the flowers are still blooming. I parked the truck and as walked to the office door I noticed what the maintenance man was doing. There are trees planted near the building that houses a suite of offices. Because of the wind and cold, the petals were scattered over the parking lot and in front of the office doors. Opening ours I saw them tumble into the foyer. The man operating the blower was trying to collect them into a corner and then sweep them into a trashcan. Expertly he gathered them setting the blower on high when moving them from a big space and then on low to push them into the area they needed to go.

Exiting the office, I reflected on the petals. They reminded me of the many thoughts which swirled in my head. Its Monday and my mind was filled with a list of; “to-dos, schedules, phone calls, meetings, reports, and a host of other things” which have already filled my week. My thoughts, like the petals, were scattered and needed to be gathered and sorted. I will follow the discipline of my leaf blower friend and willfully, but gently, take control where once there had been chaos by paradoxically, stilling my mind and spirit.

blessings,
@BrianLoging (Twitter)
thewannabesaint.com

Posted in Life

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Tags: #area, #arrived, #bigspace, #blessings, #blooming, #blower, #chaos, #cold, #collect, #control, #corner, #discipline, #Exiting, #Expertly, #familiar, #filled, #follow, #friend, #gathered, #gathering, #gently, #go!, #head, #high, #hum, #leafblower, #low, #meetings, #moving, #needed, #Opening, #operating, #petals, #phonecalls, #push, #reflected, #reminded, #reports, #scattered, #schedules, #setting, #sorted, #sweep, #swirled, #thewannabesaint.com, #to-do's, #tumble, #willfully, #wind, @BrianLoging, Mind, Thoughts

Gathered Together

Mar 24

Posted by thewannabesaint.com

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Gathered Together –

All over the world today youths and people of every color, creed, and nationality, clergy, organizational representatives, politicians, movie and music stars, are gathered together to protest gun violence and by their voices and presence hope to convince those who have the power to do something about people dying. You don’t have to agree with their position to respect their right and motivation to come together and show their solidarity and support. In this crazy, mixed up and messed up world at least they are doing something.

“Decisions are made by those who show up.” -Anonymous

It is amazing what a group of people, gathered together, with peace, justice, kindness, and determination can accomplish. Too often we sit on the sidelines and voice our opinions, make fun or mock those who think differently than us and are doing what their heart, emotions, and spirits, say is right and good. Perhaps we’ll make mistakes, maybe our ideas aren’t totally thought out and ordered. However, can you imagine an international movement where everyone decided to take action, do good, seek justice and change the world for the better? I can.

blessings,
@BrianLoging (Twitter)
thewannabesaint.com

Posted in Leadership

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Tags: #accomplish, #action, #agree, #amazing, #better, #blessings, #changetheworld, #clergy, #color, #cometogether, #convince, #creed, #decided, #decisions, #determination, #differently, #dogood, #dying, #emotions, #gathered, #good, #group, #gun, #heart, #hope, #ideas, #Imagine, #international, #kindness, #least, #makefun, #messed, #mistakes, #mixedup, #mock, #motivation, #movement, #movie, #nationality, #opinions, #ordered, #organizational, #perhaps, #politicians, #position, #power, #presence, #protest, #representatives, #respect, #seek, #showup, #sidelines, #solidarity, #spirits, #stars, #support, #thewannabesaint.com, #think, #today, #together, #Toooften, #totally, #violence, #voice, #voices, #youths, @BrianLoging, crazy, Justice, music, Peace, People, Thought, World

Intimacy

Mar 19

Posted by thewannabesaint.com

Intimacy –

This afternoon I stopped by a store to run in and grab a few items. When I parked there was a man sitting in his car and as I pulled into a spot he was staring at me. I gave him a head nod and didn’t think much of it As I gathered my things and exited the truck I looked again and he was no longer visible because his, I am assuming, girlfriend was bending sideways across the center console “appreciating him.” She was kissing him and whatever else because I averted my eyes not wanting to see anything that would burn an image in my brain! I went into the store came out a few minutes later and was hoping the car had gone but alas it was still there. Most of the windows were fogged up except the driver’s window and the driver was smoking a cigarette. I looked at my keys, hopped in the truck and drove away, quickly.

Intimacy is one of the greatest emotions and connections humans can share. Lust, on the other hand, is hormonal, selfish, addicting, and satisfied in ways which can hurt others. Our world is filled with lust. Lust for power, fame, money, reputation, knowledge can all be subjects of our lust if they are used only for our selfish purposes. True intimacy is also powerful but the opposite of lust. Lasting intimacy is giving ourselves to another. We have intimacy when we decide to put the other one first, serve the other. In a world where lust burns quickly, brightly, we need those who would rather do a slow burn which lasts a lifetime.

blessings,
@BrianLoging (Twitter)
thewannabesaint.com

Posted in Life

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Tags: ##brain, ##opposite, #across, #appreciating, #assuming, #averted, #bending, #blessings, #brightly, #burn, #burns, #center, #connections, #decide, #easily, #emotions, #exited, #fame, #filled, #first, #fogged, #gathered, #girlfriend, #giving, #greatest, #hoping, #hormonal, #humans, #image, #intimacy, #kissing, #knowledge, #lasting, #lasts, #lifetime, #longer, #looked, #lust, #money, #need, #ourselves, #parked, #power, #powerful, #purposes, #quickly, #rather, #reputation, #satisfied, #selfish, #serve, #share, #sideways, #slowburn, #staring, #stopped, #subjects, #thewannabesaint.com, #think, #true, #visible, @BrianLoging, World

Searching

Dec 2

Posted by thewannabesaint.com

Searching –

This morning my family gathered together to write my father’s obituary and order of service for his memorial. After a while, we took a break and I walked outside with my niece and spotted a huge Sycamore leaf. It was the biggest one at first we could see and then it became a competition on who could find the largest one of all. We searched a long time and when we were convinced we had discovered the most sizeable one we began looking for the smallest one. This was harder because we had to look under, beside and move other leaves to find the smallest. Finally, we believed we had the tiniest Sycamore leaf in the yard.

It was another busy day with people visiting, numerous phone calls, memorial service being organized, visiting the florist, and other errands. In the hustle and bustle of things, a family must do when one they love has passed it’s hard to find the peace one desires. The big things, the things which must get done are easy to find, it’s the small things; the glimpses of hope, the good memories, times when the good of a life well-lived shines in the darkness of a loved one parting.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Saint John, chapter 1

blessings,
@BrianLoging (Twitter)
thewannabesaint.com

Posted in Life, scripture reflection

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Walking Forward Glancing Back

Nov 3

Posted by thewannabesaint.com

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Walking Forward Glancing Back –

This morning, between two lectures at a rehabilitation center, I ran a few errands. Pulling out of a parking lot I took a look at the time and realized I didn’t have long before I needed to be at my next appointment. As I pulled out of the parking lot an elderly couple was walking hand in hand towards their vehicle. They weren’t in a hurry, weren’t glancing at watches, didn’t seem to have anywhere else to go, content just being together.

I watched them and smiled. I thought about how quickly life has passed before them. I reflected on similar subjects Beth and I talk about. We make noises when we get up and sit down. A quiet night at home is a Godsend. We fall asleep on the couch before nine at night and we’re only forty-five! We are amazed at the people we know and the life milestones they pass. We think about teenagers we were blessed to share our lives with and how now they’re parents with little ones of their own. We are humbled by how quickly the years pass and saddened at how many folks we’ve loved and lost already.

Sitting in my truck, watching this couple, I was reminded it’s not the hastily gathered things of life which last. What has real meaning, what endures, what is truly valuable and worth our life’s investment are those things which take lifetimes to build, are never taken for granted and are appreciated glancing back over our shoulders as we walk forward.

blessings,
BrianLoging (Twitter)
thewannabesaint.com

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Posted in Life

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Tags: #appreciated, #back, #build, #gathered, #glancing, #hastily, #investment, #last, #life, #lifetimes, #nottakenforgranted, #realmeaning, #reminded, #trulyvaluable, #walkforward, #whatendures, #worth

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Gathering

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Walking Forward Glancing Back

Brian Loging, OSBO

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…..a place for sojourners on this spiritual path called life

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Closer

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Gathering

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Gathered Together

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Intimacy

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Searching

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Walking Forward Glancing Back

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Brian Loging, OSBO

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