Your Being Enthralled

God said:

The importance of focus is not to be overlooked. Where there is focus, there is happiness. Focus with heart's joy is happiness. 

Any focus on the negative, which is always less joyous, does not bring happiness.
When there is focus on what is called negative, there is always a division or distance. When you focus on a creative endeavor, however, your focus becomes a laser beam of attention. Focus on pain, for example, is extraneous to your Being. Therefore, awareness of pain shatters you, and you sort yourself into the category of victim. Awareness of pain is an intrusion. No matter how constant, it is intrusion rather than focus.

When you focus on something joyful (not merely pleasant), you become the coherence of that on which you focus. There is nothing else that exists in an exquisite moment of focus but your Being enthralled.
In a creative endeavor, there is a sweetness. This sweetness is much like what We experience when We, you and I, gaze into each other's eyes. Therefore, sweet focus is ennobling. It takes you out of the haphazard mainstream.

Even when your focus is on the mere sewing of a hem, there is a joy and a completion.
In that activity which is called negative, there is no completion. It is interminable.
Eternal is not interminable. Eternal is something else. Eternal has no beginning and no end. Therefore, it cannot be interminable nor seem interminable. Perhaps the reality of focus is that heart and mind work together in perfect synchronicity. Synchrony may be another name for joy. Awayness from joy is out of focus. Perhaps focus is when heart and mind do not compete. Perhaps heart and mind become balanced on a fulcrum of joy.

If We could say there is a scale of joy, the measurement line would indicate the degree of joy. Pleasure and pain would appear on the scale of joy somewhere along the line.

Or we could call the scale God, and have Me at one end. For Our intents and purposes, the other end could be called Limited Degree of God or Lack of Awareness of Joy. Quick fixes, from candy to drugs, would fall at the other end. Teaching and theft would be at different ends of the scale, for one is giving and the other is taking.

We could consider that the ends of the measurement line meet so there are no ends, and then what We would have is a circle. We could call this circle Life. The circle Life has degrees of God awareness along it. The scale would be of life with awareness of God and life with diminishing awareness of God and back again. Until one is totally immersed in God-ness, there would be movement on the scale to on degree or another. That's where you are now.

It is a long walk you take indeed when you don't know what you're about or what the walk is for. May you be spared from such a walk. Spare yourself. A walk without Me (I mean, of course, without Me lively in your awareness) is a barren walk, no matter what side shows there are along the way.
Take a God walk today. No matter which route you are on, no matter which hill you climb, with awareness of Me, your step will be lighter. Maybe you won't be so keen on noticing some of the boulders. Maybe some of the boulders won't even be there.

Why would anyone want to be without Me in their awareness?

Aurora Slaughter and the Enthralled Tribes of America

How overly-enthralled we are becoming to our ideological tribes? Enough, perhaps, to wonder if our too-passionate engagement with ideas is poisoning our communal well, and robbing us of our humanity. At a moment when we should be united as a people responding to evil in our midst — and a mass murder is not a “tragedy”, it is evil on legs — it’s disheartening to realize that while the dead were not yet cold, the injured were still dying or being treated, the people who are charged with the public trust of telling the nation its stories, (and to do it factually, without passion or prejudice) were so quick to abandon that charge with a smiling possibility that political hay could be made.

On ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Friday morning, in a segment with host George Stephanopoulos, Ross said James Holmes, the man who allegedly murdered 12 people in the Aurora movie theater, appeared to be a member of the tea party movement based on information from Facebook, which Stephanopoulos said “might be significant.”

ABC News has since apologized for that. Some are calling for Brian Ross to be fired. I’m not sure about that; on one hand, he was likely only repeating what some producer told him. On the other, he’s an experienced journalist and he should have, perhaps, had the common sense, discretion and maturity to both wait for confirmation and — here’s a crazy idea — consider whether it was the moment to inject politics into the story, in any case.
Worse, it seems his recklessness has resulted in threats against the incorrectly identified man.
Over at Instapundit, Glenn Reynolds has some links about that, and he writes:

They know how to be exquisitely sensitive and non-prejudgey when it might be a Muslim or some other protected minority, so maybe the only way to encourage them to show better judgment the rest of the time is to cost some people their jobs. Who was the producer? Meanwhile, I look forward to the libel suit. . . .

He’s not the only one to make the fair point that, during the Fort Hood shootings, the press and politicians went out of their way to repeat, ad nauseum, “we do not know anything about this shooter; we should not assume anything.” It’s a sound policy, and it’s one that should not be one-sided — only put into place when it suits the script.
ABC News’ error has revealed to us, though, something of how the press operates in the 21st Century: violence and evil occur; people are dying; “quick, go check the registration rolls of political opponents and see if there is any way we can associate this shooter with them…”

We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.” Lincoln’s Second Annual Message to Congress, December 1, 1862.

The expression, the smile, on Brian Ross’ face said it all. Enthrallment to ideological passions rules the day for the press, and it appears to be toxic.
And just so, on social media we quickly saw this weird imprematur come forward from Time’s Michael Grunwald, who said, “Sometimes there’s nothing wrong with politicizing a tragedy”. Even, apparently before the blood has been washed away, and the first thing about the shooter, or his deranged thinking has been discovered. For some, it’s never too early to sneer, or even to opine with a too-clever-by-half pun.
Very quickly, and predictably, the issue of gun-control has been brought up on social media, and on the tube. MSNBC apparently had such a passionately anti-gun prepared that it even made Dan Abrams — no gun-lover, he — uncomfortable. He tweeted:

I’ve written extensively on 2nd Amendment NOT guaranteeing individual’s right to own guns but MSNBC segment on this now feels wrong.

At TNR, Amy Sullivan has called for an “honest debate” about guns. Meanwhile, at Slate Dave Weigel wondered if a movie patron carrying a gun could have stopped the attack and decides “no” but demonstrates open-minded consideration on his twitter feed, where folks are offering stuff like this in response.
Lest anyone think I am only picking on the mainstream media that is very clearly aligned with the Democrat party, only accusing folks on “the left” of enthrallment, I stipulate that it is not a one-way phenomenon. On any given day, with any story, the enthrallment to ideology that has made us tribes perpetually at war can easily be found on “all sides”, all over social media, and in print and television — it’s everywhere; it is us; it is you and me.
But the mainstream media has a public trust, and they are abusing it.

More importantly: sometimes, just once in a while — like when human blood is still being cleaned and wounds bandaged, and shocked parents are clinging a little tighter to their children — it might behoove us all, and perhaps even make better people of us, if we can just resist the urge to score a cheap political point or exploit emotions, and give a bit of respectful silence to the grief in our midst; to acknowledge that sometimes, the only appropriate words are offerings of sympathy and prayers, and that anything further is just rampant ego, giving always-divisive evil yet another assist.

Enthralled by God's Love

Have you ever been in a situation where you know something is wrong but did not do anything about it? One Sunday at worship service while singing the song "When I look into His holiness", the Holy Spirit convicted me.

"When I look into His holiness" is a song of worship with serious meaning, and it is often sung with a mistake in the lyrics, which I discovered some years back. Sometimes I would point out to a few students in the Christian fellowships when they make the mistake in their "praise and worship" time. However when they don't make the correction, I never did anything else. Most other times I just sang the correct version on my own.

The mistake is in the line "When my will becomes enthralled in Your Love" where "enthralled" is frequently but wrongly substituted with "enthroned".

My will becoming enthroned in God's love means my will is exalted by God's love, that God's love revolves around me, and therefore, I am more important. On the other hand, my will becoming enthralled means I am captivated by and submitted to God's Love, which is the correct meaning in the context of the song.

I wonder how the original writers feel if they know their song has been changed and, sometimes, massacred. There are many instances where lyrics and melodies of songs have been unintentionally taught wrongly and intentionally modified without acknowledging its writers and their original works. It is time we seriously consider our responsibility in handling the intellectual/creative property of others.

I wonder how we can sing the wrong lyrics (of the song discussed) so many times without suspecting that something is amiss. I confess that there are times that I sing without thinking, but my worship will be meaningless if that is all I ever do. We need to be more mindful when we sing in worship of what the song means and whether we mean what we sing.

I wonder how many of you are like me, knowing the error but not doing anything substantial. Here is what I learn from this incident about doing something to right a wrong.

I need to work hard, researching for concrete facts (in other cases, to find evidence) to back up what I claim.

I need to communicate it appropriately (choosing the right words and approach) through the right channel (who can/will make the change)

I risk rejection or unpleasant repercussions

I am compelled to act (against the easier path of not rocking the boat) as I am enthralled by God's Love.

Merlin Enthralled

“Merlin Enthralled” is from Richard Wilbur’s 1956 poetry collection Things of This World, a book that was awarded both a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award. The poem offers a new look at the ancient legend of Merlin, the magician who served as counselor to the legendary King Arthur of England. The episode that Wilbur recounts is from the end of Merlin’s life when he falls under a spell cast by Niniane, a sorceress who lulls him to sleep. In most versions, this story ends with Merlin trapped within a tree or cave or tomb where he slowly wastes away in an agonizing death, but, in Wilbur’s poem, Merlin lies peacefully beside a lake, becoming one with nature as he dies.

Among this poem’s noteworthy aspects is the way it modernizes a traditional story dating back almost a millennium. Arthur, Gawen, and the other knights, who have stood for centuries as figures of military force, are shown to be almost childlike when they cannot find Merlin, while the sorcerer himself seems to be released, rather than captured, by Niniane (the medieval sense of the word “enthrall” entailed holding one in slavery). Wilbur’s use of formal elements of rhyme and meter links this work with centuries of poetic tradition, but he uses enough verbal flexibility to make this formal structure nearly inconspicuous. “Merlin Enthralled” is generally considered to be one of the best of Richard Wilbur’s early poems, a standout in a career that has lasted for more than fifty years.

Merlin Enthralled Summary

Lines 1–4
At the start of “Merlin Enthralled,” the knights of the Round Table are already aware of Merlin’s disappearance. The first few words, “after a while,” indicate that they have waited for some word of him or for someone to lead them into action. The fact that they have no clue about where to begin looking is made clear in the first line, which specifies that they are “aimlessly riding.” The reference to their “drained cups” shows that the knights have held off their search until their drinks were finished. In line four, the lack of any “unnatural sound” presents readers with a paradox. If “unnatural” is taken to be a bad or threatening thing, the sort of mischief an evil sorcerer might perpetrate, then its lack is a good thing, but if Merlin himself is considered something different than nature, then the lack of unnatural sound might indicate that he is dead.

Lines 5–8
In line five “mystery” is personified. The word is usually used to describe a mood, but Wilbur gives it human characteristics. It watches the way a person would watch, and it “darkle[s],” which is the action of making things dark or mysterious. In line seven “mystery” is said to have a voice, which is the sound of the wind through the leaves. Line eight describes the squirrels as making an “alien” sound as they chase each other. They are contrasted with the “ancient” trees that are solid, still, and steady.

Lines 9–12
The third stanza refers back to the distorted reality frequently implied throughout the poem. Wilbur does not describe for readers what it is that might have made the knights stop, or what they felt that made them suspect that Merlin might be near the edge of the lake. Instead, the poem describes this feeling in line nine with the vague word “something.” Stopping and being still for once, the knights pay attention to the small things of nature that they might ordinarily be too busy to notice, such as frogs and insects. Line eleven describes the bugs skating on top of the water and states that the top of the water is “shut,” as though nothing could penetrate it. In line twelve, the sun is described as hot enough to dry out algae on a log.

• ENTHRALLED (adjective) 

  The adjective ENTHRALLED has 2 senses:

1. held in slavery
2. filled with wonder and delight

  Familiarity information: ENTHRALLED used as an adjective is rare.

• ENTHRALLED (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Held in slavery

Synonyms:

bond; enslaved; enthralled; in bondage

Context example:

born of enslaved parents

Similar:

slave (held in servitude)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Filled with wonder and delight

Synonyms:

beguiled; entranced; charmed; delighted; enthralled; captivated

Similar:

enchanted (influenced as by charms or incantations)