Break open hearts to loving presence

The Rev. Emilee Whitehurst, associate pastor for college ministry and adult education, First Presbyterian Church, 2415 Clinton Parkway:

How can I expand my consciousness of God?

Let me count the ways: spend more time in silence; give away the possessions that possess us; truly listen to someone with whom we vehemently disagree; completely forgive those who have betrayed us and then forgive ourselves for having been betrayed; live and work among those in extreme poverty. I am confident that taking risks such as these can break open our hearts to God’s loving presence. And yet, I hesitate to encourage the notion that expanding awareness of God is akin to accomplishing a specific objective.

Father Thomas Merton, a revered spiritual writer, warns against pursuing God as if the Holy One were a commodity that, once possessed, liberates us from problems or unhappiness. He insists that knowing God is not like undertaking a project.

This insight should give us some relief.

Expanding our awareness of God need not be another task on our 2004 “to do” list. Thank goodness. Instead, Merton proposes that we receive every instant of our lives, no matter what it entails, as attempts by God to know and be known by us. He writes, “Every moment and every event in each of our lives on earth plants something in our souls … Each moment brings with it germs of spiritual vitality.”

Whether it be a flat tire or a promotion, an injury or a beloved’s kiss, everything is planting seeds of awareness in our hearts and minds. This awareness of the divine is as close to us as a shift in perception, and changing our perspective can usher us into God’s presence as never before.

May we experience God’s yearning for communion with us in the ordinary events of our lives in the coming year.

— Send e-mail to Emilee Whitehurst at fpcassociate@sunflower.com.

Look at relationship with God, your friend

The Rev. Pieter Willems, pastor, Mustard Seed Christian Fellowship, 700 Wakarusa Drive:

Let me begin by saying that God wants us to be conscious of him at all times in all areas of our life. There is no time in our life and no place in our life that God is not fully conscious of who we are and what we are experiencing. The Bible tells us that he even knows how many hairs we have (Mt. 10:30). God knows every detail of your life, past, present and future. I say this, because in order to expand our consciousness of God we must understand that he is far more conscious of us than we are of him.

Why? Because he is far more than just an all-powerful, all-knowing, benevolent spiritual being who just provides the general oversight for planet Earth. He is a God who, although infinite, is a person with a personality. He created us, “in his image,” as human beings with a personality in order to have a personal relationship with him. This is the primary and foremost reason for our existence — to connect with God on a personal level.

God is all about relationship. The basis for that relationship is his love for us. He has demonstrated that love for us by sending his Son Jesus to die for everything that separated us from him. If you really want to expand your consciousness of God, then begin to look at every area of your life in terms of relationship with him. Talk to him as if your best friend were by your side. Begin to ask him for his input and counsel. God wants you to be more than just conscious of him, he wants to be your best friend. Just think about that for a moment. The God of this universe, infinite in love, power and wisdom, wants to be intimate with you.

If he really loves us this much, and is also all-knowing and all-powerful, then he knows what is best for us and wants the best for us. In view of his great love for me, if I really want to expand my relationship (consciousness) with God, then I must begin by giving my life to him. The question then becomes, “What do you want for my life?”

When this becomes the quest of my heart, then my consciousness of God is limitless.

— Send e-mail to the Rev. Pieter Willems at mustardscf@sunflower.com.