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| |  | Michael Fox CPCC,
founder of m�agine!,
is a professional
coach and trainer,
author and creative artist, whose work has been featured throughout
the world.
Michael is a
Certified Practitioner
of the
Myers-Briggs
Type Indicator.�
Do you know someone
who might benefit
from our weekly email?
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Chut, chut...chut, chut...chut, chut.
It's early Saturday morning.
Chut, chut...chut, chut...chut, chut.
Oh, how I'd looked forward to sleeping in this morning.
Chut, chut...chut, chut...chut, chut.
But the neighbors had looked forward to an early start on their construction project.
Chut, chut...chut, chut...chut, chut.
They're adding a house on to their garage. No, really.
Chut, chut...chut, chut...chut, chut.
The sound I hear is the quick, rhythmic thrust of a nail gun.
Chut, chut...chut, chut...chut, chut.
Oh, how I long for quietude.
My mind reflects back to another time, to another construction site, in antiquity.
The First Temple was erected in ancient Jerusalem, not quite five hundred years after the Exodus--a defining moment in time for both God and Israel. The temple was a magnificent structure. Designed by David. Built by Solomon. Indwelled by God.
Chut, chut...chut, chut...chut, chut.
I recall that the First Temple was assembled in Jerusalem in quietude. No hammer. No axe. Certainly not a nail gun. The stones of the temple were meticulously finished in the quarry and carefully assembled in the quiet. As Casey Stengel famously and often challenged, "You can look it up" (1 Kings 6:7).
In a moment, my attention moves to another, contemporary temple under construction. Me. The Apostle Paul wrote to the spiritual progeny of David and Solomon: "Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God" (1 Corinthians 6:19).
And like Solomon's temple, this temple is built in quietude.
Solitude and silence. In terms of spiritual formation, solitude and silence represent more than being alone and quiet; it's quite different than the self-indulgence of a spa day. (Not that there's anything wrong with a good spa day.)
Solitude includes withdrawing from others and being alone. However, it also embraces, as author Robert Mulholland observes, "...beginning to face the inner dynamics of our being that make us that grasping, controlling, manipulative person; beginning to face our brokenness, our distortion, our darkness; and beginning to offer ourselves to God at those points...it is being who we are with God and acknowledging who we are to ourselves and to God" (Invitation to a Journey).
Silence, again to borrow Mulholland's words, "...is bringing ourselves to a point of relinquishing to God our control of our relationship with God. Silence is a reversal of the whole possessing, controlling, grasping dynamic of trying to maintain control of our own existence. Silence is the inner act of letting go" (Invitation to a Journey).
Chut, chut...chut, chut...chut, chut.
What's the annoying "Chut, chut...chut, chut...chut, chut" that's distracting you?
What's your relationship to solitude and silence?
Author Ruth Haley Barton refers to solitude and silence as "container disciplines" that create space for all other spiritual practices including prayer, spiritual reading, fasting, and the like. Is it possible that the entirety of your spiritual practices might improve if you'd daily create and maintain a space of solitude and silence?
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Michael Fox
m�agine!
530/613.2774
407 Myrtle Drive
Farmerville, LA, USA 71241 |
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In addition to personal and professional coaching,
m�agine! specializes in spiritual transformation coaching,
employing its proprietary models
--Values, Vision, Voice and Heart, Soul, Mind & Strength--
as well as
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator� curriculum
published by CPP, the People Development People.
Michael's books include
Complete in Christ,
Complete in Christ Spiritual Transformation Workbook,
and Biblio�files.
Coaching fees are based upon a sliding scale. Contact us for details.
For additional information, visit our website at maginethepossibilities.net.
Limited scholarships are available for spiritual transformation coaching.
On the flip side, if you are able, please inquire about opportunities
to fund scholarships for those who cannot afford coaching fees.
View our archives!
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