Standing Against!

Today is our last day at the centre. What a great group! We have covered some excellent material with solid engagement of the content in people’s minds and in their hearts. People who work with women in prison, couples dealing with domestic violence, divorce, division over religious legalism.

These folks stand against evil, woundedness, aggression and in relationships, distance, resentment, resistance to good, and enmity between family members.

Yesterday during our session we asked about female heros and looked at Queen Esther. In this difficult area of domestic violence, we really need both female AND male heroes!

Will you pray for them? I will give you a fuller report once we finish up.

All the best,

Irv.

Today is day 3. We have had a good start, great group of people, in a great venue.

People working hard at making a difference, becoming equipped and skilled at counselling, coaching and supporting others who want to do a good job on their lives. All of this in a very unsupportive social environment.

We had a fun moment yesterday. We talked about seeing and being seen. I cited the movie Avatar and how the phrase “I see you” was used so powerfully. And how in the Serengedi Savannah there is a tribe that greets one another by the first saying “I see you!” and the second replying “I am here!” and then they reverse. Try it with your good friend or spouse. Then we got out these huge play sunglasses and declared them to be an amazing scientific instrument that allows us to do this.

Really, what allows us to do this is to greet one another with care and kindness, paying attention to the other, and allowing the other to see into myself. This creates some great moments of connection!

I feel privileged to be here, sometimes thrilled with what goes on between us, other times feeling like I am not quite delivering where and what they need.

It’s great to have Laura with me and have her feedback and encouragement.

More to come.

Irv.

Addictions - Argh

We are off today. I am sitting at the kitchen table thinking about our time coming up. Seeking to support addictions counsellors, learning from their work, their investment, compassion, courage.

We are so strongly influenced by how we feel on the inside. When we are aware of these, we can be thoughtful and reflective and filter out what is good to respond to, not so good, what to give free reign to (think of a horse that just got spooked!). Like giving free reign to loving Laura, or Jon and Jenn, or Crista. Not so good - the driver who gave me less space than I wanted. Or more.

Many times addictions are expressions of strong emotions associated with our hits and hurts and holes in our lives. If we are unaware of these, they still demand attention, but it comes out in strange ways.

When we connect with God, He brings healing, balance, creative tensions as we allow Him access to these areas.

When not connected with Him, these internal demands are like Hungry Ghosts, to quote one of my favourite secular authors in this area, Gabor Mate. It's a great read.

So, your prayers are welcome! Thanks for your kindnesses extended.

MayGod bring healing to all our hits, hurts and holes, and increasingly joy and abandon fill our lives and flow out to others!

Irv.