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How to Possess Your Soul in Troubling Times
By your patience, possess your soul said Jesus in Luke 19:20 after warning his followers of persecution and hard times. The phrase possess your soul really hit me. After all, my husband was laid off unexpectedly a couple of weeks ago and if anything, I have not felt in possession of myself. Angry, frustrated, and disappointed, yes. Patient? Not particularly. We seem to be living in times where possessing your soul or exhibiting patience is no longer a virtue. The talking heads on cable news interrupt and berate each other nightly, their main purpose to inflame their audience. Patience does not get ratings. Losing it nightly in front of cameras…
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The Wait of Glory: Mindfulness and the Mind of Christ
The men in my family lose their ability to wait in line at the age of forty-five. I remember my grandfather, as we were getting ready to go to Disney World, almost losing his nerve and bickering with my grandmother. “The lines, Mary Alice,” he said in urgent tones, “Think of the lines!” Later, my father came to visit me in Kentucky. At what was supposed to be a quick trip to the grocery store, we waited at the meat counter for the lady to slice pastrami. But we were in Kentucky and in Kentucky, a trip to the grocery store is a chance to become acquainted. At length. Twenty…