Your kingdom vs. His Kingdom

I am new to the Presentation community. I attended Cornerstone in March 2013 and am a member of the team who is delivering the March 21-22, 2014 Cornerstone.  I hope to see you there.

The Presentation community is very special. You have a visible love for the Lord. You are a warm, welcoming and inviting community.  Thank you for making me feel at home.

I attended the Mission this past week and received new insights, joy and peace.

Mission highlights:

The kingdom of man is the insatiable desire for material wealth and continuous involvement in activities that keep us distracted from a deep, meaningful, fulfilling relationship with God. To the extent that we view God as something we have to “get” which makes going to mass a chore or another thing to do.

The Kingdom of God is seeking Him in every moment of every day. Yes, His Kingdom is open 24/7 and seeking it will give us unconditional love, joy, peace and rest, not exhaustion! 

His Kingdom gives us answers to our prayers, concerns and questions when we open to silence.

His Kingdom is the source of everlasting love and life. All of our longings and desires are satisfied in our relationship with God. And best of all, it is FREE!

How do we make a shift from the kingdom of man to the Kingdom of God?

First we must determine what is important to us.
What is important to us is discovered when we look at how we invest our time and money.

TIME:

Discovery process;
   Understand the difference between need and want.
   Review schedules to categorize what is needed and what is not.
   Stop doing what is not needed. Create boundaries around our time because it belongs to God.
   The new space of time is spent developing our relationship with God and our family.
   Be aware, the “new” you may not be acceptable to some people in your life. Don’t give up or give
   in. Pray for these people. This is an opportunity to help them move from the kingdom of man.
  Most likely, they will see a new, lighter and happier you and will want what you have, give freely,   bless and love.

How do we spend time with God?

   Recognize God is with us (beside and within) 24/7. He is our constant companion.
   Talk with Him like we would talk with a loved one throughout our day.
   Meditate and pray.
   Read the bible (check out this website for help with understanding the bible, www.wau.org).
   Go to mass, often.

Money:

Discovery process;
   Look at all the material goods we have and determine what is needed and what is not needed.
   Donate what is not needed.
   My son challenges me with this statement; “mom, all we need is one cup, one fork, one knife, one
   spoon and one plate.” And I can only wear one pair of shoes at a time. How much do I really need?

Our bible reading will enlighten us to God’s guidance for living. And as we come to understand His way of living we begin to weed out habits that are not healthy for us.

We begin to ask:

Do my actions support what I believe?
What would God think?
How would God want me to handle this issue?

Our stress is self inflicted because we choose to live according the kingdom of man. A change in our attitudes about our lives, opening to the Kingdom of God, can make a huge difference in the outcome of our life events.

God gave us the power to choose. He is hoping we will chose him, all the time, because he has an abundance of love, peace and joy to give to us.