This series of blogs are responses from congregation members to drawings created by Enrique, one of our children, and his mother Katie. One Sunday in worship during the children’s conversation, we created a list of names for God. The congregation voiced the names they use for God. As our worship continued, Enrique and his mom created images of how they see and experience these various names of God.

In this blog entry, Emily has responded to the drawing of God as Lion, the name for God that she called out during our children’s conversation. I sent her three questions and she has beautifully answered them. I am grateful for the way in which Emily reminds us of the power and magnificence of lions--of how lions do indeed conquer all.

1. Why God as Lion? 

Jesus is referenced in Revelation 5:5b as a conqueror. “See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.” In Genesis, Jacob names his fourth son Judah. This tribe of Israel became the line of Kings from which David and Jesus descended.

(2) How does relating to God as Lion enhance, challenge, invoke within you? 

I like a powerful, almighty God! His strength and magnificence is portrayed in this image. 

(3) This drawing is very much apocalyptic. How does the image of dragon (Revelation) and Lion (for me Isaiah’s lion and lamb story) speak to you?  ​

I think of C.S. Lewis’ Aslan. The forces against the Lion in this series are apocalyptic, yet he calmly conquers in the final battle. The Lion King is another portrayal of a lion that meets many foes, but in the end prevails. Neither of these lions had an easy time of it. There were always the bullies and naysayers. So while the dragon may be physically larger  and appears to be more ferocious, I’m thinkin’, the harder he falls. We know who wins, who conquers. I’m glad I know the end of the story. That dragon is scary. Great drawing Enrique!

This series of blogs are responses from  congregation members to drawings created by one of our children Enrique and his mother Katie. One Sunday in worship during the children’s conversation, we created a list of names for God. The congregation shared the names they use for God. As our worship continued, Enrique and his mom created images of how they see and experience these various names of God.

In this blog entry, Trish has responded to the drawing of Beloved. I am grateful for the way in which she brings alive the many layers of Beloved, going deeper and deeper into the Core of the Sacred as Beloved. Thank you, Trish.

Enrique,
    You have drawn many beautiful drawings of what you see as The Beloved. I think you have already encountered the Beloved.

    Beloved. We don’t use that name very often. Married people, though, often use that term when they are referring to each other. Beloved. Meaning they set each other apart from and are deeper in relationship than other friends. You are also, as you know, Beloved as the child of your parents. You are Beloved by your grandparents. This is a deeper bond formed than friendship, and you know you love your friends. You can call them up and ask them how they’re doing and they do the same to you. You want to stay in touch with them and have a close connection with them.

    But the word Beloved goes deeper. You are treasured and cherished, you are the dear one. This is how the Creator of the Universe sees you. Beloved. The same being that thought up rainbows and trees and dogs thought up you. The Beloved wakes up with you, walks with you and dreams with you. As you talk to your mom and dad, so you can talk to the Beloved, for you are one. What you experience, the Beloved experiences and yes, The Beloved adores a good basketball pickup game just as much as you.

    To think of the Beloved as close as your heart beat, as close as your breathing in and breathing out, to experience compassion as the Beloved of the Universe experiences it passes all understanding. We know this happens because we have encountered the Beloved when we truly love ourselves and see the Beloved in the mirror with us. Beloved looking at the Beloved.​

Trish Herron

Pantokrator (Divine Ruler of All)
Submitted by Rita Noe

Having grown up in a fundamentalist Pentecostal church, the word “icon” had never been in my vocabulary. I heard about such things as a rosary and crucifix from my Catholic cousins, but was taught that they were “graven images,” forbidden by God in the Old Testament.
It wasn’t until undergraduate and graduate school, while studying art history, that I heard the word icon, eikon in Greek, referring to visible images depicting heavenly beings.
Following the conversion of Constantine and the establishment of Constantinople as the chief center of Christianity, icons became common, more so in Eastern as opposed to Western Christianity. They were usually created as paintings on panels or as mosaics.
The use of icons in Eastern Orthodox churches passed through several stages of acceptance and rejection. Iconoclasmic episodes saw the destruction of thousands of icons made prior to c. 1000 A.D. Artistic style also followed the roller coaster of severity and emotion, elaboration and simplicity.
My education as an icon appreciator was heightened by a trip to Yugoslavia in 1984, where I visited many Orthodox churches, and an Oasis class held at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Albuquerque in 2016. I even have an artist friend in Corrales who paints traditional icons.
When my United Church of Christ congregation voted to share space with St. Francis Episcopal Church last September, I was introduced to many examples of icons throughout the building. Our pastor has introduced several icons to us during February and March, including that of the Black Madonna.
Sometime between January and March, while searching for wood inspirations online, I discovered that a woodworking technique I had seen before has an “official” name—Intarsia. It’s an Italian word for inlaying different colors of wood, much like a mosaic made from clay tiles. 
Pastor Jocelyn’s mention of icons caused me to look up my photos from Byzantine cathedrals. I found several of icons, and thought, “Icon, I CAN!”
It took 10 days to plan it out, painstakingly cut the wood pieces with a jeweler’s saw from 1/8” stock, round over all the edges, and fit the pieces as precisely as I could. I glued them onto a backing board made of ¼” Black Lignum, then framed it with ¼” Padauk. Coats of oil and wax finish it with a subtle glow.

The icon represents Jesus the Christ as “Divine Ruler of All,” denoted by the position of His right hand, and the Gospels in His left hand. The woods are Wenge (the starry celestial skies); Yellowheart for the golden halo and book; Canary wood for the hair and facial features; Ebony for the face, neck and hands; walnut for the outer robe; Padauk for the red undergarment. Maple forms the bottom ring and a sash across the shoulder.

It’s interesting to note the hairstyle. Very early Christian images of Jesus had short, frizzy hair. By the time of Constantine, the hairstyle had changed to a middle part with long, flowing curls. All Byzantine icons feature a stylization that became mandatory. I also find it curious that Jesus is holding the Gospels, which were not written until decades after His death. Bound in gold, no less. (Sorry, my occasional irreverence is kicking in.)

I showed the finished product to an atheist friend, and she asked if there is a market for pieces like this. I replied, “This is how I pray.” I commune with the Divine while working with wood. I marvel in the Creator’s beauty of colors and woodgrains. I feel as though I am touching God.​

P.S. If the image offends anyone in any way, flip it over. There’s a wonderful mountain landscape on the back.

This series of blogs are responses from  congregation members to drawings created by one of our children Enrique and his mother Katie. One Sunday in worship during the children’s conversation, we created a list of names for God. The congregation shared the names they use for God. As our worship continued, Enrique and his mom created images of how they see and experience these various names of God.

In this blog entry, Shari has responded to the drawing of God as Powerful. I am grateful for the way in which she brings God's love and power together, reminding us of God's power to change and transform us.

How do you experience God as Powerful in your life?

I consider God’s Power and God’s Love to be synonymous. When I have experienced His Power in my life, it has come with a huge dose of love—even when I didn’t recognize it as love at the time. As I write this, I am thinking about Elijah when he ran from Jezebel. He was hiding in a cave and whining about all that he had done for God and now this! The Lord told him to go stand on the mountain, as He was about to pass by. I’m sure Elijah thought at the time, “Yes! Now we’re going to see some action!” There was a powerful wind that tore the mountain apart, but God was not in the wind. Then an earthquake—same thing. A fire, but still nothing. Then there was a gentle whisper. I, like Elijah, have not experienced God’s power during one of my temper tantrums or pity parties. It is after I have calmed down and let Him speak in that gentle whisper that I am in awe of His Love, of His Power. 

Can you remember a time when God as Powerful changed your life?

We often relate God’s power to physical healing, or miracles on a grand scale—but through my personal experience, even though I have witnessed what I perceive as miracles and have had a physical healing of my own, His greatest power, in my opinion, is when He changes a heart. I know this, because He changed mine. I had been an Evangelical Christian for over 30 years when my 37-year-old daughter told me she was gay. I did not take this news well. I didn’t just knock on Heaven’s door, I tried to beat it down, demanding that God change her! Silence. When I was worn out and totally out of ideas on how He should accomplish this, I heard the gentle whisper. He very lovingly told me (as only God can tell someone this lovingly), that I was the problem. That it was my lack of love and judgmental spirit that had to change. Although it didn’t happen overnight, changes in me took place until I felt an overwhelming sense of joy beyond what I had ever experienced, and I now embrace my precious daughter for who she is. That is Power! 

What Scripture arises in you as you contemplate God as Powerful?

Oddly enough, it is Psalm 46:10 “Be still and know that I am God . . .” First, it seems like a personal message directed to me, one who has a difficult time being still,  but also it reminds me that He is the powerful one – not I! 

How does relating to God as Powerful still allow you to relate to God as Compassion/Merciful? Are they the same? How do they relate to each other in your life.

I can only see God’s Power as Compassionate, Merciful and Loving. Through the years, I have heard so many teachings about the punitive nature of God. Apparently, “punitive” is only in the eyes of the beholder, because this beholder sees only a Powerful, Merciful, and Compassionate God. 

​

Sara Bessey’s 40 Simple Practices for Lent, day 23:  Tell someone you trust the truth you’ve been holding back.​

As I read the instructions for this day, Teresa of Avila’s Interior Castle came to mind. I have recently been diving deeply into her understanding of our Soul and the Sacred imaged as an Interior Castle. In Teresa’s image, there are seven dwellings. Each dwelling takes you closer and closer to the center, to the Sacred, to Oneness.

To get into the dwelling in the first place, we must enter it through prayer and meditation. Once we are in the first dwelling we learn that progression further into the dwellings depends upon a few things:  humility, trust, self-understanding, and learning to stay centered in the chaos around you.

Here is Sara Bessey inviting us to deepen trust, as well as humility. Sharing of secrets with another creates a feeling of vulnerability, an inner fear of humiliation. Once the secret is shared, once it is heard without judgment, once the secret is no longer a secret, we recognize that our fear of humiliation was actually a fear connected to something deeper in our psyche, something blocking us from trusting fully, from being humble.

Feel the release of telling a secret for a moment. Bring to mind a moment you shared something secret—something you were afraid to share with another. Allow yourself to feel the beforehand: the fear, the ways in which you tried to talk yourself out of sharing, all of those emotions. Feel them for a few moments.

Then allow yourself to feel the after. Feel the release of the secret. Feel what happens in your body and spirit. Was the weight lifted? Did something shift in your heart? Was some dense heaviness released? Did you experience growing inner freedom?

Notice what happened. Offer a few moments of gratitude for this re-membering—that humility and trust offer us a path to greater inner freedom, to deeper connection with the Sacred.

Now, prayerfully consider what “secret” is currently holding you back, holding you hostage. Is it time to share it with a trusted friend, therapist, spiritual director, pastor, family member, etc.? What do you need to instill within yourself to obtain the courage to share it?

When you are ready, share it. Share it prayerfully. Share it with great humility. Share it with understanding that the Sacred is inviting you to healing, to freedom. Share it from your heart, with no judgement upon yourself.

May you feel the Sacred’s embrace as you share this secret.
May you know God’s mercy and grace through the sharing of this secret.
May you find a deeper Presence of the Holy as you share this secret.

Amen.

Today in Sara Bessey’s 40 Simple Practices for Lent, she invites participants to go to Native-Land.ca and educate ourselves about the Land we live on.

For me this is a reminder of a few things:
(1) Who owns the Land? We seem to think we own it if we bought our house or our landlord if we rent. A person owns the land we live on. This is a Western mindset. It is one set upon domination and individualism vs stewardship. We go back to Genesis 2 and say, “God told us to have dominion over the land and rule it.” That is not what God said. God was inviting humanity to be caretakers, stewards of the Land; to recognize that the Land was gift from God, belongs to God our Creator. We are gifted with it for our lifetime, our time of ‘ownership.’ We do not own the Land. It belongs solely to the Creator of this Universe, to the Sacred, to God.

The Jubilee year in the Hebrew Bible brings that forth. Every 500 years the Land went back to its original owner, all debts forgiven, the slate wiped clean, a new start. A gift from God.

Who owns the Land? This question brought forth for me my childhood education in public school on the east coast. We learned all about the Pilgrims and how they came ashore. We learned how generous the Native Americans were, how they shared their land and food with the English. Never in my elementary school or public school teachings were we taught that the English stole the land from the Natives. They took ownership, a concept that Native Americans did not have at that time. They then kicked the Native Americans off their Land.

When we think about Land ownership we are being asked to remember privilege and racism and how those two came together to suppress and oppress the Native population, bringing some tribes close to extinction/genocide. It is important, at least for me, to use the word genocide. The Trail of Tears and other historical moments of ‘moving’ natives to more appropriate lands was steeped in racism and as effort to rid the US of the Native population (genocide).

As we think about the history of the Land we are on, it is important to acknowledge the pain, the oppression, the injustice, the theft that happened, especially here in the US. No land in the United States was acquired other than through stealing, taking, privilege.

As a white American my heritage is filled with moments like this. Although I myself did not do the action, I am benefitting centuries later from the actions of my historical people. For me, as I contemplate the Land I live on, the Petroglyphs and their ancient historical value as a trade route, I recognize the harm done by White Man and how that harm continues today — to Land and to the Native population. I confess to the Sacred the role of White Man asking that not to be my experience, my expression of my own whiteness.

Today, I honor this Sacred Land I live on. It is Sacred. The Petroglyphs have a powerful place in the history of the Native Cultures. It saddens me when I walk through this Sacred Land and notice defacing of Petroglyphs, defacing and marking up of rocks as if the person was trying to make their own. I witness how privilege, disregard for the Sacredness of Land, this white heritage continues to cause harm.

I weep in my heart of hearts, crying out to the Sacred for transformation, for healing of this wound hundreds of years old.
I weep for this Land who has lost its practice, its role in the life of its people.
I weep for the people, the Pueblos who have lost their land so that we could creat Albequerque.

And I hope that one day each person’s heart will be transformed and see the Sacredness of the Land all around them.
I hope that one day each person’s heart will be aligned and aware that the only Owner of this Land is our Creator.

May we all take time to learn about the Land we live on.
May we all take time this day to honor its heritage, to honor those who lived upon it before us — its ancestors.
May we all take time this day to offer a gift, an offering, a prayer of healing to the Land we live on.
May we all take time to thank our Creator for this beautiful creation.
​Blessed Be.

As you all know, I am participating in Sara Bessey's 40 Simple Practices for Lent.  Today, day 10, is 40 things, experiences, or people I am thankful for.  This day comes at a time when I have been feeling the pull back to my book:  Grateful Heart, 100 themes on gratitude.  

This day feels like a gift to bring myself back into conversation with my book, Grateful Heart, whose rough draft was finished December 31, 2019.  What is left is for me to take the hand-written rough draft and type it into my computer, editing and creating the draft I will send to an editor friend, a pastor friend and a writer friend.

Grateful Heart arose during a silent retreat while I was praying and listening to what to do with the quarter-time I am not pastoring.  (I am a 3/4 time pastor at the moment.)  This book arose while walking with the Sacred.  Teach gratitude as a spiritual practice.  Offer a tool that will help people create a spiritual practice of gratitude.  This book is aimed at doing both.  Below I will follow the first 40 themes of my book, offering a gratitude for each them.

1 - I am grateful for my life -- for all the ups and downs that have brought me to where I am.  Looking back, I would not remove any of the obstacles, challenges, dark-times.  They all brought vital gifts and learnings for me.  Without them I would not be who I am today.  I am grateful for who I have become.
2 - I am grateful for that there is a powerful Compassionate Presence in this Universe that I refer to as the Sacred, God, Christ, Spirit.  I am grateful that my connection to the Sacred entices and invites me to healing, growth, becoming a better human, deepening compassion and more.
3 - I am grateful for prayer, for a way to have conversation and be in relationship with the Sacred.  I am ever changed each time I sit silently listening, each time I walk communing with Creation, each time I speak into the Love that surrounds me.
4 - I am grateful for my body and holds my spirit and soul.  I am grateful for the gifts it gives me: walking, exercise, touch, stillness, and more.
5 - I am grateful for each of my five senses this morning:
     5b - Sight: the beauty that greeted Pippa and I as dawn awakened creation
     6 - Hearing: the sounds of the birds singing at the feeders
    7 - Smell: the scent of chai tea awakening and feeding my soul.  Pippa is grateful for the scents on the grass and rocks, her news...
    8 - Taste:  maple syrup that flowed over the french toast I made, sweetening and moisturizing it.
   9 - Touch: I am grateful for the gentle awakening touch Pippa gives in the morning, leaning on my body awakening me, and for my hands that can pet and love on her.
10 - I am grateful for my intuition that is awakening in me a greater and deeper understanding of where my anxious-self connects in my body, when she arises, and what she needs to breath and be free.
11 - Body Communication:  I am grateful for the way my body communicated that I needed to slow down, to rest, to stop over-working.  I am not so happy how it did it, but that I was able to listen before I ended up in bed flat on my back.
12 - I am grateful for the nourishment Pippa finally ate this morning, for learning that with egg on her dry food she will eat and nourish herself.
13 - Sleep:  I am grateful for a full nights sleep without disturbance.
14 - Movement: I am grateful for my personal trainer who has created core building exercises for me, arriving in my email each morning.
15 - Learning:  I am grateful for the things I am learning about Pippa to help her with her anxiety.  This morning I learned that going out before light creates anxiety for her.  Going out after the sun has risen, when you can see the world creates a more relaxed enjoyable experience.
16 - Mindfulness:  I am grateful for this Lenten practice that is creating a mindfulness in me regarding my anxious self, and that part of me (calling it after the flower essences that Pippa and I are taking) that Outbursts when overwhelmed or anxiety rises too much.
17 - Hobby:  I am grateful for the fiber arts that I engage in: crocheting, weaving, knitting.  They invite creativity and relaxation/meditation all at the same time.
18 - Accomplishments:  I am grateful that for some reason I am not turning on my TV, an accomplishment I have been working on for months.  With Pippa, with my intention of paying attention to my anxious self, the TV has needed to stay off.  It seems to be a numbing agent, numbing me from myself, from my inner world, from healing and growth.
19 - Spiritual practices:  I am grateful for Open the Door by Joyce Rupp.  This devotional is the devotional that the small groups I lead at St Paul's are engaged in.  It continues to invite me to open the door of my heart wider and wider.
20 - Spaciousness:  I am grateful for the ways that a morning cup of chai tea, a meditative sit, and time standing and puttering around the yard (while Pippa does her thing) creates spaciousness in my morning.
21 - Sabbath:  I am grateful that today is my sabbath and I get to take the pace I desire, the walks I want to take, read a good book, work on my book and more.
22 - Rest:  I am grateful for a book, Saints for All Occasions, that gave me a spiritual and mental rest this past week, a rest that TV would not have given me.
23 - Stillness:  I am grateful for the stillness of the early morning before anyone is up and moving; although Pippa is not so grateful for that stillness.  It seems to make her jumpy.
24 - Generosity:  I am grateful for the generosity of friends who have been present helping me teach Pippa good inside greeting and manners, as well as are helping me work with her on her leash.
25 - Creativity:  I am grateful for the ways in which my Wednesday small group engaged Open the Door creatively, drawing and painting their doors and sharing those drawings and learnings.
26 - Laughter:  I am grateful to have laughter back in my house.  Pippa brings such joy and hilarity.  
27 - Indulgence:  I am grateful for the small indulgences I allow myself, especially my Honey Mamma's raw chocolate bars.  These chocolate bars have supported me and freed me from sugar, giving me the chocolate that I so yearn for in a healthier way.
28 - Household tasks:  Today is laundry day.  I am grateful that I have a day when I can putter and do household tasks instead of trying to cram them into a busy schedule.
29 - Errands:  I am grateful for the staff who have been helping me get all the stuff a dog needs.
30 - Tedious Tasks:  I am grateful for the dishwasher that helps me keep my kitchen clean.  I am also grateful for the ways in which Thich Nat Hahn's writing have reworked dishwashing to open me to its spiritual practice qualities.
31 - Job:  I am grateful for the job of pastoring -- its many blessings and its many challenges; for the aspects I love (preaching, worship creating, small groups) to the aspects I do because it is part of the job (best practices, administration, currently financial/Trustee stuff).
32 - Work:  I am grateful for the soul work that God has brought into my life, especially the books She has laid upon my heart: Grateful Heart, 4 Elements children's books, Animal Spirit Medicine Oracle Cards and book, Silent Retreat for Beginners, and more.
33 - Play:  I am grateful that Pippa has become more comfortable and is playing with me now.
34 - Mountaintop of Yesterday was finalizing the adoption of Pippa.  I am grateful for that!
35 - A moment of feeling cherished:  Pippa licking me and smiling and wiggling with joy that I am her human.
36 - Low of the day (yesterday):  Realizing that the place I adopted Pippa from really is not going to be able to help me with her behavioral reactive leash issues.  Their behavioral person was no help.  He had nothing to truly offer.  It was frustrating.  I am grateful that I asked, that I listened, that I spoke what I needed and that I asked for resources that will be helpful.  This low of the day yesterday comes with a gratitude for voicing what I needed to voice in a compassionate gentle manner.
37 - Unexpected grace:  I am grateful that I was able to be gentle with myself yesterday, bowing out of a previous engagement, allowing myself the space and time to settle in and finalize Pippa's adoption.
38 - Challenging moment:  Pippa reacted outside on leash.  I am grateful that the human she reacted to did not react back, but rather understood what was happening as I spoke "She is a rescue."  I am grateful that I was able to handle Pippa without my anxiety going over the top.  It rose.  I breathed.  Pippa calmed as we walked away.  We are learning together.  I am learning that outbursts within myself happen in those moments.
39 - Moment of balance, peace and harmony:  snuggling up with Pippa at the end of the day, book in hand, warm herbal tea.  Lovely.
40 - A moment with the Sacred: My small group did a visualization during our 7 minute sit.  I am grateful for how the Sacred arrived and offered insight and healing in that short time.

What are your 40 gratitudes today?  
I invite you to share them, or at least one, in the comments below.... 

We live in a world that keeps us busy.  Our jobs keep us busy, and many times overwork us.  Our personal lives have us on the go — so much to do with so little time!  There is noise everywhere in our lives: our devices, TV, traffic, music, social media.  Many of us do not get the opportunity to experience Silence on a regular basis as part of our day to day life.  Getting away, being Intentional, and greeting Silence is vital to our spiritual lives and to deepen our relationship with the Sacred.
The Silence I am talking about is not so much not talking or an absence of noise.  It is about creating sacred space to listen deeply within.  

Silence is more than meditating and praying.  It is about being in a state of consciousness that opens you to listening to the depth of your Soul and the Sacred.  It is about connecting in and journeying with the Silence that comes into Presence during meditation/centering prayer and is there ready for you once you awaken from that prayer-time.  

There is a softness, an invitational quality to this Silence that is different from being in your home alone doing chores.  That silence feels lovely.  The Silence you engage here is one that, yes is lovely for the most part, yet has an invitation, a challenge, to soul work.

To greet Silence, we need to create regular periods of time where we step away from the noise of our lives; where we create the time and space to sit, to walk in nature, to attend to our interior hearts and lives, to Be fully present with ourselves, with our Soul, with the Sacred.  

Sara Bessey, in her 40 Simple Practices for Lent, suggests the beginning of this on Day Five:  Choose silence for the day instead of TV, radio, etc.  And she deepens it on Day Six:  Unfollow or mute five social media accounts that make you feel angry, afraid, envious.

The work of this Day Six is the work of intentionally choosing to step closer to Silence, to Soul.  I have found that social media is noise in my life.  It does not bring me joy.  It took a good amount of self-reflection before I was willing to admit that it does not truly connect me with others either.  It offers a mask that creates an illusion of connection, of friends and family, of socializing.  Yet, something is missing.  For many times when we sign off social media we do not feel uplifted, any more deeply loved.  

Rather, I feel distracted, like I whittled away valuable time.  I feel frustrated, disheartened by all the anger, bullying, hatred that runs through my various feeds from time to time.  Twitter is the worse for me.  Instagram is the one that leaves me smiling, laughing, uplifted.  

Catherine Price, in ​How to Break Up with Your Phone, invites you to begin to practice mindfulness with social media.  She invites the reader to pay attention to their emotional state before going on social media: why are you going on social media?  How do you feel before you open the ap?  Then after the experience of social media: how do you feel after being on social media?  Did it meet or exceed your expectations?  Did it create the feelings you were hoping for before you went on?

The truth is, if we peel the surface layers away, the answer that arises is that social media does not create want we hope it will, what we yearn for in our lives.  Social media creates noise that allows us to stay numb to what we are truly seeking.

Silence invites us to be present with what we are feeling, to hold it before the Sacred, to ask for guidance and healing, and then to sit companioned in our struggle, in our hopes, in our prayers.

I invite you this day to take stock in social media.  

How do you use it?  
How and when does it amplify your life?
How and when do you use it to distract you, to numb you from life?

What do you really want?  How conscious do you want to be in your life?  How much power do you want social media to have over you, numbing you from your own conscious awakened experience of life?

​Silence and the Sacred are there if you invite them in.  They will companion you into a deeper understanding of yourself, your Soul, your life, your purpose.  All you have to do is create space and time, ask, sit, and listen.