Mystics

It has been eluded to, that I have in my quest to actually think on my own and begin to know my God, have become a "mystic".
Here are a few definitions of what a "mystic" is.....

A) someone who believes in the existence of realities beyond human comprehension

B) Just as in earthly life lovers long for the moment when they are able to breathe forth their love for each other, to let their souls blend in a soft whisper, so the mystic longs for the moment when in prayer he can, as it were, creep into God. Soren Kierkegaard

C) Someone who has divine intent and who can lift the lid of doubt to comprehend a reality beyond most human understanding. Mystic is from the Greek word - mysticos. Someone who is spiritually aware though not necessarily religious in a religious sense. A mystic is absolutely focused on a path to God. A mystic is heart centred and love is the driving force. A mystic is not aware of being a mystic. If he or she was then they are not mystics. Many may claim to be mystics and of those there are thousands but the true mystic is a discovery of heart.

D) Any Christian can have a mystical experience in the normal course of life, the Christian mystic on the other hand makes a conscious effort to draw near to God through deep prayer and the use of spiritual exercises aimed at opening the heart and mind to God. The mystic may feel overwhelmed by God’s love or power or wisdom and moved to tears, so mysticism is dismissed as overly emotional by some Christian academics.

If these are some of the definitions, then so be it....I confess.....but, like it says above, a "mystic is not aware of BEING a mystic". So, if people call that to a mystics attention, does that THEN disqualify them? Too many rules....can't go there....all I know is that "my determined purpose is to know Him".....if that makes me a mystic, then so be it. I much prefer the title Mystic to the title of Fundamental Evangelical Religious Right. And yet...it is not about labels...labels are for men....it is LOVE not LABELS that matter....and so....as a mystic...I will leave you with this quote ( though there are SO MANY to share!!!)

"We are all of us more mystics than we believe or choose to believe...We have seen more than we let on, even to ourselves. Through some moment of beauty or pain, some subtle turning of our lives, we catch glimmers at least, of what the saints are blinded by; only then, unlike the saints, we go on as though nothing has happened. To go on as though something has happened even though we are not sure what it is or just where we are supposed to go with it, is to enter the dimension of life that religion is a word for." Fredrick Buechner

Ashes

"to grant consolation and joy to those who mourn. To give them an ornament of beauty instead of ashes..." Today, reading, my Father gently reminded me of the pictures I took in Canada of the burnt Kootney Park Forrest. The huge felled trees that had the smallest life form growing right next to it...it intrigued me, but now I can see why more clearly. It is not just that you have "ashes", but that ashes are the REMAINS of something burnt. Something destroyed by intense heat, by a careless act, by an act of God.....still, the fire started, burned, destroyed, smoldered, and the once strong trees are consumed by it....until they have not the strength to stand and must fall to the ground charred, broken, unproductive.....and yet....it is the ashes of these burns that actually FEED the new Forrest....they provide the nutrients and environment for new growth. Something that was once a solid form has changed its state of being. It is now become food for the new and ever changing Forrest. And those new growths bring new life, not only to the Forrest, but to the creatures who live there as they can come feed on the new growth. And so it with my life...with our lives together....we were burnt a year ago, we have fallen, but we are being fed on the ashes and strengthened ...we grow green in the shadow of our once tall standing life. There is life after a burn....from the passersby view, it seems hopeless and devastating...it looks like it can NEVER be pretty again! But to those who know....who have seen these fires....who know the outcome either by experience, or training, or just paying attention, it is a bitter sweet picture. The loss of what was, is sad....but the hope of what that loss will bring is exciting! And so we are...."a burned out Forrest and no one could do anything for me. But You put food in my body, water in my dry bed and to my blackened branches You brought the springtime green and a new life...nothing is impossible for YOU.... You have redeemed my soul from the pit of emptiness, You have redeemed my soul from death."