Stream of Consciousness
Many thought processes tend to resemble a stream of consciousness. There logic and reason take a back seat to whatever happens to be making its way through that which represents itself as my mind at the moment. In some cases these thought streams tend to be random, and do not appear to make any sort of order, until a particular stream is taken in total. At the conclusion of many of these streams is an opportunity for prayer or meditation. An example follows:
Chet Atkins, yes, that Chet Atkins, co-wrote a song that asked the question, “Would Jesus wear a Rolex on His television show?” This song struck me as I was channel surfing on a Sunday morning and one of the televangelists mentioned that Jesus spoke to him and revealed whatever it was the preacher was saying. The line from the song that triggered this was paraphrased a bit, “I wonder if He’d admit He’s talked to all them preachers who say they been a talkin’ to Him?”
It was a very short leap to get from here to a song by the Kyle Family titled, “Listen with your heart”. The opening verse of this song is:
“Well, I wondered, what is wrong with me? What could my problem be?
Others say they’ve talked to God but He hadn’t talked to me.
I’ve read His word and prayed to Him and waited for a sign.
And then one day it all came clear, how could I be so blind?“
Opportunity for Meditation
Almost 18 months ago, during my normal routine of morning meditations while walking the dog, I mentioned to the Father that even though we had tons of acquaintances, and even a few friends, there wasn’t a great deal holding us in Central Texas. I asked Him to simply put us where He needed us to be, and I stopped thinking about it at all. Shortly thereafter, all of the stars began to align, and they all pointed to East TN.
We had stopped here on our way to or from visiting our daughter in D.C. several times, we had vacationed in the area several times, and AARP ( the true power in the Western World ) had published a couple of articles on the best places to retire ( which came out around the same time as my “request” that He put us where He needed us ) and the places with the best “Livability Index”.
Simple things ( okay, really dramatic things ) began to happen. Our daughter found a house only a few miles away, which she purchased, even though she was not looking at this area at all. She could not move in for 3 or 4 months as she needed to work off her lease, retire from the Air Force, etc. Consequently we moved into her house until we could find ours. Then she moved into her house a week after we moved out. The Big Guy had it all worked out for us.
I know that the Father brought us here to do something or other for Him, but He hasn’t been too clear about what it is we are supposed to do here. As a result, we take part in whatever He puts in front of us, just on the odd chance that is why He brought us here.
Thinking about how we got to East TN and all that has happened to us while here is a great source of material to be used during meditations.
Prayer or Meditation?
I had heard it said long ago that prayer was talking to God, while Meditation was listening for His response. The shift from one to another is really quite easy. The prayer usually starts with a “Thank you” and then one, a few, several, or a bunch of things for which I am grateful. This is frequently followed by a request for this, that, or the other. From here, it slides into a meditation which may be focused on a single word from that day’s readings ( I read the daily readings around 6:00 AM before the day begins ), or a Bible tract that has ‘suddenly’ popped-up.
I listen for His response, I pay attention to the world that unfolds around us as my dog and I are out for our morning walks at 6:45 AM – watching the fog form, move, dissipate in the Great Smoky Mountains, watching the dog as he explores the world around him to see if anything changed overnight.
The sound of the birds, the feel of a gentle mist, the laughter of children getting on the school bus, all of these are, to a large extent, His way of getting my attention so He can more easily make His point.
These thoughts or reactions frequently lead to another song tangent. This time, it is a song recorded by Frankie Lane called, “I Believe”.
See? The stream of consciousness will resolve itself if I give it enough time.
