Now Here

Posted on October 17, 2019 by billtonnis

Slow down and enjoy each magical moment.

(Listen to my song “Slow Me Down” on YouTube by clicking HERE)

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Psalm 130:6

My soul waits for the LORD more than sentinels wait for the dawn.

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This scripture verse speaks volumes to me…but the volumes are all silent.

As St. John of the Cross said, “God’s first language is silence.”

And Fr. Thomas Keating later added, “Everything else is a poor translation.”

When I sit in silent Centering Prayer, a Christian form of meditation, my soul is waiting…but not in the sense of any anxious expectancy.

The waiting is more in the sense of surrender and acceptance.

When I am simply present…letting go of thoughts as they come…letting go of everything…I eventually settle into a peace.

It is the “peace beyond understanding” that St. Paul talked about (Philippians 4:7).

There is an inner knowing that dawn will come in its time…in God’s time.

Meanwhile…I lack nothing.

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Listen to the song of the day “Slow Me Down” on the Mercy Reigns album by clicking HERE.

Stream and/or purchase my songs on Amazon Music by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Empty Yet Full

Posted on October 16, 2019 by billtonnis

As ego recedes…true self rises.

(Listen to my song “Pour Me Out” on YouTube by clicking HERE)

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Psalm 62:2

My soul rests in God alone, from whom comes my salvation.

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My soul…my truest self…is yearning for something…something to complete me.

It is a yearning that only the Creator can satisfy.

When I am present to the Divine Presence…the Sacred Unity of all things (in whom “we live and move and having our being” (Acts 17:28)…I realize my connection and belongingness right here and now.

I am suddenly complete – you might say “saved.”

God is always present…it is we who many times aren’t.

I must first be empty of ego and its unquenchable desires before I can experience the fullness of all Being.

As Jesus put it, “Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it” (Luke 17:33).

Then in my emptiness and freedom from attachments, I am free to be the person I was created to be in the service of the One who created everything.

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Listen to the song of the day “Pour Me Out” on the Give Praise and Thanks album by clicking HERE.

Stream and/or purchase my songs on Amazon Music by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Open Your Heart

Posted on October 15, 2019 by billtonnis

Compassionate actions are more important than mental beliefs.

(Listen to my song “Come to Jesus” on YouTube by clicking HERE)

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Luke 11:38-40

The Pharisee was amazed to see that he did not observe the prescribed washing before the meal. The Lord said to him, “Oh you Pharisees! Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, inside you are filled with plunder and evil. You fools! Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside?”

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The Pharisees were stuck in their heads.

Religion to them was all about following the laws and rules.

They seemed to forget about their hearts.

What good is being so obsessed with exterior appearances that you ignore the interior…the motivation for your actions?

You can appear all cleaned up on the outside but be all messed up inside.

Jesus was more concerned with people’s hearts.

And he was more concerned that people would simply be honest about their brokenness.

Jesus accepted all such people with the intent to forgive, heal and restore them.

That’s what unconditional love is all about!

It’s not about being perfect. It’s about being perfectly loved.

Receive this Love.

Then…pass it on to someone in need.

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Listen to the song of the day “Come to Jesus” on the Live to Love album by clicking HERE.

Stream and/or purchase my songs on Amazon Music by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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One Body

Posted on October 14, 2019 by billtonnis

All are invited, welcomed and accepted in the realm of God.

(Listen to my song “All Are Welcome” on YouTube by clicking HERE)

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Romans 1:5-6

Through him we have received grace of apostleship, to bring about the obedience of faith, for the sake of his name, among all the Gentiles, among whom are you also, who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

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The grace of apostleship is bestowed on all.

That means everyone.

It comes to us…as St. Paul states…by grace.

We are all called to belong to Jesus Christ.

And…for those who think that’s preachy…I hear you.

But I don’t believe this means you have to sign up to any set of particular beliefs.

Jesus of Nazareth is one thing…but the risen Christ is another.

Christ is the Love of the universe that holds everyone and everything together as one.

It is Sacred Unity.

I think that is the theological message behind Jesus’ statement, “And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself” (John 12:32).

No matter who you are, what you believe or what you’ve done…you are being drawn to the Unconditional Lover of all.

In Christ…you belong.

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Listen to the song of the day “All Are Welcome” on the Give Praise and Thanks album by clicking HERE.

Stream and/or purchase my songs on Amazon Music by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Rejoice

Posted on October 11, 2019 by billtonnis

The Love that created everything is sustaining you.

(Listen to my song “How Magnificent, Wondrous and Glorious” by clicking HERE)

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Psalm 9:2

I will praise you, LORD, with all my heart; I will declare all your wondrous deeds.

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It’s easy to get bogged down in all the things that are wrong in the world.

There is such dissension, hate and fear.

But…there are many, many blessings.

Life is full of amazing experiences of awe and wonder that are free.

They are poured out on us unconditionally.

Look at the breathtakingly stunning universe that is still expanding.

Look at the beauty in nature, in art, in music, in diversity.

Let’s not lose sight of the blessings!

May we praise the Creator of it all!

How wondrous are God’s works!

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Listen to the song of the day “How Magnificent, Wondrous and Glorious” on the Mercy Reigns album by clicking HERE.

Stream and/or purchase my songs on Amazon Music by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Let It Be Done to Me

Posted on October 10, 2019 by billtonnis

When we allow our egos to fade…our true selves shine.

(Listen to my song “Let It Be Done to Me” on YouTube by clicking HERE)

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Luke 11:9

“And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

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This is a teaching that confounds the rational mind.

The rational mind says, “Wait a minute. I ask for stuff all the time and don’t receive it.”

Could that be because our egos are doing the asking…not our true selves?

Our egos want things for physical or emotional gratification and satisfaction.

These things generally will not be the answer to our deepest yearnings.

Our deepest yearnings are on the soul level.

Could it be that those yearnings are coming directly from the Spirit deep inside us?

St. Paul put it this way, “The Spirit too comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes with inexpressible groanings” (Romans 8:26).

When we sit in the silence of surrender and ask for what we need…those “inexpressible groanings” are able to rise to the surface.

Only then can we follow where the Spirit is trying to lead us.

It is then that we will find…and the door will be opened for us.

For in the seeking of what is good for us…we are already finding.

It will undoubtedly lead you to serving God’s people in ways your rational mind never would have imagined!

Trust in the process.

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Listen to the song of the day “Let It Be Done to Me” on the Mercy Reigns album by clicking HERE.

Stream and/or purchase my songs on Amazon Music by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Mercy Reigns

Posted on October 9, 2019 by billtonnis

Compassion is the Guiding Force of the universe.

(Listen to my song “Mercy Reigns” on YouTube by clicking HERE)

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Jonah 4:1-2

Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry that God did not carry out the evil he threatened against Nineveh.

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The Jonah story gives us a great lesson on how humans like to project their own anger onto God.

Jonah finally did call out the people of Nineveh to change their evil ways as God had instructed him…but he wasn’t so happy when they actually did repent.

He preferred that God would punish them for what they had done.

That was only fair in his eyes.

God’s reply to Jonah: “Should I not be concerned over the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot know their right hand from their left, not to mention all the animals?” (Jonah 4:11).

God was demonstrating restorative justice…instead of retributive.

In reality…most of the bible shows us a progression of humanity’s trying to understand who God is.

The truth is: God is love (1 John 4:8).

God had always been loving and forgiving…but humans were not.

Humans were vengeful and so they wanted God to be as well.

Our consciousness was evolving and becoming more aware of the Love that was being poured out unconditionally in all of creation.

Jesus gave us the final word on what God is like.

He said, “If you know me, then you will also know my Father. From now on, you do know him and have seen him” (John 14:7).

Jesus’ mission was to heal, free the oppressed and to extend mercy to those in need.

We are called to this mission as well.

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

Stream and/or purchase my songs on Amazon Music by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Contemplation and Action

Posted on October 8, 2019 by billtonnis

How will we know God’s will…if we aren’t listening?

(Listen to my song “Slow Me Down” on YouTube by clicking HERE)

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Luke 10:38-40

As they continued their journey he entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. She had a sister named Mary [who] sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. Martha, burden with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.”

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We are all called to serve those in need.

That was an integral part of Jesus’ mission.

So this story cannot be about Jesus saying service isn’t that important.

But I do think Martha’s motivation is in question.

If her calling was to serve that day…then she would have done so without complaint.

But she was miffed that her sister Mary wasn’t helping.

Jesus replied to her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her” (Luke 10:41-42).

The “one thing” necessary is to follow your particular calling.

It appeared that Jesus deduced that Mary was being true to her calling…and that was to capitalize on this opportunity to listen to Jesus teach.

And for her to do so would have shown great courage…because women would not have usually been allowed to sit at the feet of the rabbi while he taught.

That privilege was reserved for men.

So Jesus was making quite an impactful point here.

I think this story also gives us a good model for having a balance of both listening and acting.

We need contemplative prayer to “hear” God’s call…so we can determine what action to take in carrying out that calling.

May we all have a healthy balance of contemplation and action.

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Listen to the song of the day “Slow Me Down” on the Mercy Reigns album by clicking HERE.

Stream and/or purchase my songs on Amazon Music by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Divine Justice

Posted on October 7, 2019 by billtonnis

True Love uplifts and restores.

(Listen to my song Love Will Always Lead You Home on YouTube by clicking HERE)

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Jonah 2:1-3; 11

But the LORD sent a great fish to swallow Jonah, and he remained in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Jonah prayed to the LORD, his God, from the belly of the fish: Out of my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. Then the LORD commanded the fish to vomit Jonah upon dry land.

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Jonah received a mission from God to go to the city of Nineveh and to tell the people to turn from their evil ways.

But this was not something that sounded appealing to Jonah.

Who would want to do that?

Go to a big town and work in the trenches for positive change? That would be hard!

And after all, I’m not qualified!

So Jonah traveled the opposite direction. And as the story goes…the ship he was traveling on encountered a great storm and eventually the powers that be decide that Jonah was the reason they were in peril…for he had disobeyed God’s orders. So they throw him overboard.

That’s where today’s scripture picks up the story.

Just like Jonah, we are all called to work for the common good.

We are all called to work for justice…but out of love and compassion for those in need.

Our goal is their restoration…not punishment.

Each of us will be sent to do this using our unique gifts and talents and in our unique life situations.

If we refuse this calling…or if we simply are too lost to even hear the calling…we will encounter stormy seas.

You will be out of sync with the loving Flow of God.

But don’t worry…God (or Love itself) will not abandon you!

When I was so miserable with my own chosen path that I couldn’t take it any more…it felt as though I had fallen into the sea and was gobbled up in the belly of a whale. But then…I was spewed onto dry land.

I ended up with my old guitar in my hands. And with a new sense of direction and hope in my heart…I began writing songs.

Twenty years later, I have four original music albums of inspirational music, a devotional book, and a ministry to those in need.

Love never fails (1 Corinthians 13:8).

Never!

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Listen to the song of the day “Love Will Always Lead You Home” on the Mercy Reigns album by clicking HERE.

Stream and/or purchase my songs on Amazon Music by clicking HERE.

Remember…God loves you!

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Gut Check

Posted on October 4, 2019 by billtonnis

What if love was our main motivation in life?

(Listen to my song “Glorify You with Me” on YouTube by clicking HERE)

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Baruch 1:21-22

For we did not listen to the voice of the LORD, our God, in all the words of the prophets he sent us, but each of us has followed the inclinations of our wicked hearts, served other gods, and done evil in the sight of the LORD, our God.

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Well…some things never change!

For hundreds and hundreds of years the prophets repeatedly critiqued the people of God on their wayward ways…calling them away from their pursuits of “other gods.”

Today…prophets continue to call God’s people away from their pursuits of other “gods” like power, prestige and possessions…all the various forms of greed.

We each need to ask ourselves: “What am I pursuing in my daily life?”

Is it more money, more fame, more attention, more pleasure…what?

These things aren’t bad in and of themselves…but it’s a matter of priorities.

The top priority is pursuing God…and God is love (1 John 4:8).

So how are you pursuing Love?

Not love in the schmaltzy way of this world…but in the laying-down-your-life-for-another kind of Christ way.

Are you becoming a more loving, compassionate, caring, forgiving and just person in the way you live?

That is the question.

Your life is the answer.

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Listen to the song of the day “Glorify You with Me” on the Give Praise and Thanks album by clicking HERE.

Stream and/or purchase my songs on Amazon Music by clicking HERE.

Remember…God is love!

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