Believe

Posted on March 29, 2016 by billtonnis

daisies_light

God will transform your struggles to new life.

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John 20:16

Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni,” which means Teacher.

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Sometimes we feel abandoned.

I vividly remember a day when I was very sick in a hospital bed following a ruptured appendix. In the middle of the night…I felt scared, helpless and alone.

Then…suddenly I was enveloped by an overwhelming Compassion and “heard” a voice in my heart that said, “I love you. You don’t have to do anything to merit my love.”

I knew in that amazing moment that God loved all people unconditionally and was intimately with me in my struggle.

I was not alone. I had experienced Grace.

Mary of Magdala must have felt abandoned at the tomb of Jesus—grief-stricken over his death. She had witnessed her close friend’s crucifixion and had been there at his entombment. It seemed like defeat!

But how could this be?

This was her “disorienting dilemma.” She returned to the tomb to find it empty. Mary had never stopped following Jesus…even when all seemed lost. It was then in her despair and seeming abandonment that she came face to face with the resurrected Christ and experienced firsthand the ultimate victory of Love over death.

Life does not end…but is transformed!

All struggles lead to new life in the Light of Love.

Can you imagine Mary’s elation to be the first to witness this…and the first commissioned to tell the Good News?

Believe…and persevere in the knowledge that Love is victorious!

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Listen to the song of the day “Mercy Reigns” by clicking HERE.

Sample and/or purchase my songs by clicking HERE.

CD’s available for purchase at BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Rejuvenation

Posted on March 28, 2016 by billtonnis

forest_path_sunshine

God is with you and for you in every moment.

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Psalm 16:11

You will show me the path to life, abounding joy in your presence, the delights at your right hand forever.

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It’s that nagging perpetual question:

What is my purpose? What is God’s will for me?

Finding the answer is the way of contemplation.

It takes being present to God (who is Presence) and listening in the depths of your heart.

Then it takes action…taking steps in the direction that you sense God is leading you.

It might not be the popular path.

It may be a lonely path leading you away from what loved ones want for you or what your ego wants.

It may cause anxiety and anguish…but you will also experience inner peace and excitement!

This path will lead you to your true self and to God.

As Thomas Merton wrote in New Seeds of Contemplation, “Not to accept and love and do God’s will is to refuse the fullness of my existence.”

Where is God leading you?

Listen…and then take a step in that direction today.

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Listen to the song of the day “Listen to Your Heart” by clicking HERE.

Sample and/or purchase my songs by clicking HERE.

CD’s available for purchase at BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Good Friday

Posted on March 25, 2016 by billtonnis

cross_crucifixion

Death leads to life…always.

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Psalm 31:6

Into your hands I commend my spirit; you will redeem me, LORD, God of truth.

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Let go of all things that won’t last and allow the great Love of God to lead you to new life.

Respond to hate with love and kindness…then watch as evil is transformed to Goodness.

Death is an illusion of finality.

In reality…it is a pathway to transformation.

This is true in all of life’s “little deaths” as well.

All “dyings” when placed in the hands of Love…

lead to “risings.”

This is the great lesson of the crucifixion of Jesus.

Let it free you.

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Listen to the song of the day “Changed” by clicking HERE.

Sample and/or purchase my songs by clicking HERE.

CD’s available to purchase at BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Vocation

Posted on March 24, 2016 by billtonnis

Jesus_washing_feet

How are you being called to serve the world?

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John 13:14-15

“If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet. I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”

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Right when you expect John’s gospel to tell the story of the Eucharist at the Last Supper…he instead replaces that account with telling how Jesus washed the feet of his disciples.

John’s gospel was written years after the other gospels when the Christian community had more time to digest the full meaning of the Eucharist.

It is about more than “me and Jesus.” It is about you, me, God and everyone and everything. It is about Christ feeding us so that we can become Christ to others and all creation.

The word “Eucharist” comes from a Greek word meaning “thanksgiving” or being grateful. So when we receive this food…we are then meant to become thanksgiving to others.

We are meant to become Christ’s love, mercy, forgiveness and compassion to others and all creation through service. Jesus calls us to follow his example.

The entire body of Christ needs each of us so that God’s kingdom can come and God’s will can be done on earth as it is in heaven.

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Listen to the song of the day “You’ll Lead Me” by clicking HERE.

Sample and/or purchase my songs by clicking HERE.

CD’s available to purchase at BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Compassion Calls You

Posted on March 23, 2016 by billtonnis

Prodigal_son_painting_closeup

Love requires reaching out to the rejected.

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Psalm 69:9-10

I have become an outcast to my kin, a stranger to my mother’s children. Because zeal for your house consumes me, I am scorned by those who scorn you.

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Following Jesus is not easy.

It’ll mean detouring from the popular path.

Jesus espoused that we reach out to those who are not accepted…to offer compassion to those at the margins of society. He espoused that we be peacemakers and that we love our enemies.

Such behavior will draw some hefty criticism, rejection and persecution from the “in” crowd…the ones in power. Some of that persecution will come from the people closest to you…like your family and friends.

Jesus sided with the outcast.

He became the ultimate outcast to show us how ugly it is when we exclude and ostracize another.

Following Jesus will often make you the outcast because it will lead you to being with the marginalized and rejected.

It will radically lead you out of your comfort zone.

Paradoxically, that is where you will find transformation, wholeness, your true self and the state of being that Jesus called “the kingdom of God.”

It is your call to carry this cross.

It’s your path to new life.

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Listen to the song of the day “Take the Road Less Traveled” by clicking HERE.

Sample and/or purchase my songs by clicking HERE.

CD’s available for purchase at BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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The True You

Posted on March 22, 2016 by billtonnis

cosmos_flower_budding

You are an eternally loved child of God.

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Isaiah 49:1

The Lord called me from birth, from my mother’s womb he gave me my name.

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You are a creation of God…a beloved daughter or son.

God loved you into existence. 

There is nothing you can do to change that unconditional love. God wants nothing more than to love you as you are and transform you into a living channel of love.

Your Creator wants you to realize your full potential…not for your own personal fulfillment…but to take part in the building of the kingdom of God in the here and now.

That will require letting go of your ego-centered plans…so God’s plans can rise within you. As Jesus put it: “Not my will but yours be done” (Luke 22:42).

What is God calling you to be? “You”! That’s what God is calling you to be!

But to be your true self requires letting go of the false self your ego has worked so hard at constructing.

Lent is just the season for “dying to self”…so that a “rising” can occur.

Jesus showed us the model. Resurrection is assured.

New life…your true life…is promised.

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Listen to the song of the day “Glorify You with Me” by clicking HERE.

Sample and/or purchase my songs by clicking HERE.

CD’s available for purchase at BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

 

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All Shall Be Well

Posted on March 21, 2016 by billtonnis

sunrise_water

If God is Love then what is there to fear?

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Psalm 27:1

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom do I fear? The Lord is my life’s refuge; of whom am I afraid?

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God is in the loving energy that holds everything together.

God is Love.

God holds all and loves all without condition.

That includes you.

You do not have to do anything…achieve anything…or prove anything for this to be so. As St. Paul said in Romans 8:31, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”

So…why do we fear?

Simply open yourself to God’s loving gaze. It is a Light that is always shining upon you.

It is quite simply…Grace!

When times are tough…God is not absent; you are not being punished. God is still intimately with you…and is getting you ready for a wondrous turnaround.

Something old is dying…and new life is germinating.

“Love never fails” (1 Corinthians 13:8). “I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).

God is working unceasingly that you become the fullness of who you are:

A beloved son or daughter of God.

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Listen to the song of the day “God’s Love Is All You Need” by clicking HERE.

Sample and/or purchase my songs by clicking HERE.

CD’s available for purchase at BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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New Life In Progress

Posted on March 18, 2016 by billtonnis

Flower_bloom_3-17-16

Abiding in Love leads to transformation.

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Psalm 18:2-3

I love you, Lord, my strength, Lord, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my God, my rock of refuge, my shield, my saving horn, my stronghold!

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Whatever struggle you are going through now…know that you will get through it.

It is in the getting through it that you will find new life and transformation.

This is of God’s doing…of our Loving Creator’s desires…Who is in the process…delivering you to a better place…to wholeness.

This is your salvation.

It is the process of what is happening everywhere and to all that is. We are evolving along with all that is…to a greater wholeness.

“We know that all creation is groaning in labor pains even until now” (Romans 8:22).

God’s goodness is drawing everything to this Omega Point.

Keep your focus on Love and Goodness. One day you will look back on this struggle and thank God for the blessing it has become.

Look at Jesus on the cross and see how what appeared to be the ultimate humiliating defeat…was transformed into the ultimate glorious victory!

Dying leads to new life!

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Listen to the song of the day “Lift Up Your Voices” by clicking HERE.

Sample and/or purchase my songs by clicking HERE.

CD’s available for purchase at BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Grace

Posted on March 16, 2016 by billtonnis

forest_sunshine

God’s love for you is free and unconditional.

Are you sharing it?

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John 8:31-32

Jesus then said to those Jews who believed in him, “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

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The words of Jesus are living words that still impact and transform lives.

When we read his words and allow them to sink deeply into our hearts…when we come to know the unconditional Love of God at the soul level…we are transformed.

We are no longer confined by the bonds of fear, judgment, or the need to prove ourselves to be worthy of God’s love. From this place of freedom we are led to sharing God’s love in the unique way that only each of us can by using our gifts and talents.

An experience of the living Christ at the heart level will soften the rigid “rules and regulations” model of childhood Christianity and allow us to move into the Compassionate Mystery.

It is Grace that saves us and will lead us on the journey to also love unconditionally and accept everything as belonging.

This is truly freedom.

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Listen to the song of the day “Changed” by clicking HERE.

Sample and/or purchase my songs by clicking HERE.

CD’s available for purchase at BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

 

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Trust In Love

Posted on March 15, 2016 by billtonnis

cave_waterfall_sky

God is with you and for you.

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Psalm 102:2-3

Lord, hear my prayer; let my cry come to you. Do not hide your face from me now that I am in distress. Turn your ear to me; when I call, answer me quickly.

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In the Psalms we see every human emotion poured out to God.

It is part of the human experience to call to our Creator for help in times of need. And we believe that God actually listens to us and cares for us.

God is as close to us as our very breath.

But sometimes it seems as though God is not answering our calls.

Could it be that God is not absent…but that the silence is an answer?

We are all very impatient. I know I am. We want quick fixes.

But let us trust that God is answering us because we are beloved sons and daughters.

As Rainer Maria Rilke wrote, “Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live along some distant day into the answer.”

Perhaps the waiting is part of the Loving Process that will lead us to a deeper trust, faith, healing, wholeness…and becoming our true selves.

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Listen to the song of the day “You’ll Lead Me” by clicking HERE.

Sample and/or purchase my songs by clicking HERE.

CD’s available for purchase at BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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