Becoming Love Podcast - IamSignificant.c

Ask folks about love and most often you will get a description of what love does. As awesome as this is, taking a few minutes to think about what love IS will go a long way to help us live lives of love in our day to day lives.

Today Michael shares a fresh take on Palm 109 as rendered by Nan C. Merrill in her book: Praying the Psalms. Merrills take is especially intimate and speaks with tenderness through a lens of love.

Micheal introduces Lectio Divina and the practice of listening with the ears of our hearts.Today's text tells the story of an encounter that Jesus had with two sisters. Settle in and see what bubbles to the top of your heart, and what invitations of the Spirit are presented to you.

What a Show! - Last Sundays Oscars were one for the history books. Cruel Jokes and Slaps stole the show and electrified Social Media as everyone chimed in with their opinion with plenty of finger-wagging to go around. In this episode, Michael shares a perspective that seems to be missing - and it might make you squirm!

Do you have well-meaning folks in your life that just HAVE to tell you 'what they think your problem is? Or "if you just did __________" You'd do well. How many times are these folks so off the mark and you are left feeling bruised, misunderstood and a little pissed? This is friendly fire.

Pain (and our Triggers) get our attention to areas in our life that need some loving attention. Michael shares his experience with emotional triggers and the transforming gifts that can often be discovered when we lovingly and thoughtfully accept their invitation to look deeper.

Winter has settled in - in the CornCob City. And I was reminded of a little story, and it stirs me everytime I reflect on it. So I thought I would share it on the podcast in my own words.

In the first episode of Season 2, Michael set some of the ground work for the upcoming season. He dreams a little bit about the importance of story, how they help us, how they can hurt us and how our most significant stories need to be refreshed in light of new information - all while being faith to the constitutive story of Jesus.

Michael explores a few ideas of Love at the very foundation of the Cosmos and how we partner with God with acts of self-giving love.

Michael shares just a few thoughts on what he means when he talks about becoming love.

Michael leads us in a simple spiritual experience exercise launching from a poem by Meg Wheatly. Sit back. Relax and a take a couple deep breaths and open your heart to the Spirit.

In this quick episode Michael explores the idea that we experience grief in waves, ebbs and flows, and that it is okay to not be okay AND it is okay to feel okay. He also quickly talks about the relationship between grief and mourning.

Michael shares a few thoughts on grief and how sometimes faith can sometimes take us deeper into the weeds of our loss. He pulls the pin on unhelpful beliefs that keep us from comfort and healing of our heart.

Michael recorded an Advent message about Waiting for the Amadeo community. Michael shares his own experiences of waiting and the challenges that are often a part of waiting especially through the tough stuff.

Michael talks about the This Light Lingers - a virtual drop-in for the brokenhearted. Michael gives a bit of a sneak peek of the themes and topics with a taste of some prowerful insights for navigating grief towards healing your heart.Link: https://iamsignificant.ca/grief-support/christmas2020/

Michael reflects on the story from the bible about the stoning of Stephen and the two expressions of Kingdom in this story. Michael leans into love with its radical forgiveness and its refusal of retributive violence. The upsidedown Kingdom of God.

Michael shares a bit of an update of his work lately and a poem/prayer by Ted Loder "Losen My Grip." Let the words of this prayer stir the Spirit in your own life. Listen for the invitation of the Spirit for you to let go and discover you are held safely in the hands of the God-who-loves.

Michael expores some initial thoughts on conspiracy theories - what makes them attractive and why. He also explores why some people of faith might be paricularly suspectable to conspiriacy theories and ways we can navigate life going forward.

In this installment Michael explores loss in its various forms from the perspective that we are not alone, and there is a present hope rooted in a future promise. Exploring grief and the necessity to engage it and to feel it as a pathway to healing your heart.

Michael sits down with singer, songwriter, and penny-philosopher to explore the themes in his latest album "Can't Hold it All".Jake's info:https://jacobrosemusic.com/homeStreaming on all the popular streaming sites

In this epidode we explore in a really brief way the feeling of longing, and reasons why longing may be really uncomfortable and ways it can be a wonderful gift luring us deeper and deeper into the places that really satisfy.

Michael shares a bit about the last year and the spiritual practice of meandering. Listen as Michael shares how this was a gift that came out of a really tough circumstance, and the joy discovered in the midst of sorrow.

Michael shoots from thhip with an anemic spirituality that masquerades as divine love while burying their heads in the sand to injustice. Michael teases out legitimate anger versus violence along wiith a call to refine that anger towards non-violent action towards listening, understanding, dismantling systems of injustice, and reconciliation. An anemic love no longer content to hide from the world, to engage it with the vision, hope, reconciliation, and the beauty of divine love.

Michael shares some thoughts about fear, the love of God and what it means to walk in the long shadow of the fear of death. He brings us home on the reality of the extravagant love of God, the role of Spiritual practices, and faithful, forgiving friends.

Michael shares a favorite story which is a neat allegorty for the spiritual journey - of the divine kiss and the lure of love.

Launching from a favorite SNL bit, Michael talks about Fear and our response to fear and how some of our relgious thinking and the ways we use scripture are not always helpful or healthy.Saturday Night Live segement featuring Bob Newhart - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BjKS1-vjPs

Michael continues from the last episode finishing some thoughts about fear and shift gears towards love and practical ways to engage our current inner life with a call towards creating beauty and being love

Michael spends a few minutes exploring fear and grief in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and explores a couple of the unhealthy ways we dear with fear, and a couple of suggestios for selfcare.

Michael begins to share some thoughts about what he sees as a great spiritual migration. In this episode he explores it from a perspective of Nones, dones and Free Range christians and how they have come to where theey are at, and the opportunity ahead for Good News.

Michael shares a story of a dad and adult child over Chrristmas and the demonstration of heroic love for the health of the relationship and the adult child. Michael continues to explore good news storys rooted in demonstrations of love in simple and grand ways that foster hope and encouragement in a world that is seemingly saturated by 'bad news'.

Michael introduces us to the very basics of a spiritual direction relationship and a few of the ideas that seemed important as this was record.

Michael shares a story of empathy, creativity and the power of love along the journey of grief - our own or supporting others in their journey.

Michael spends some time looking at Agape love and how it it has been pigeonholed in a way the New Testament writers didn’t. Michael explores a working definition of love and how the various expressions of love can be genuinely loving and of God. Freeing us from an non existent hierarchy of kinds of love, we discover a freedom to love as we can without the religious induced shame of “not doing it right”.

Michael talks a little about tenacious love and its fruit of hope, and how sometimes in the difficult seasons of the soul we can use a little help from our friends - To help us find the light that lingers - the God who loves. A love that burns through the fog of despair and the darkest of the dark nights of the soul. Michael shares about the power of just showing up and being present for others.

Michael shares a story about the difference between Heaven and Hell and challenges us to respond to the invitations of the Spirit to love well.

We are dusting off an old idea and putting together short, simple podcasts in hopes to encourage you in living lives of love in everyday life. This inaugural short episode explores a few simple thoughts about the rhythms of creation and life, and an encouragement to stop and listen for the invitation of the Spirit along with the courage to step off the treadmill of religious obligation and into the rest of the heart-beat rhythm of God.