I Resolve. . .

"I resolve" is not what you normally hear on November 1. Most of us are just coming off the sugar high of Halloween and beginning to muster the energy to face the holidays, not thinking about a new year and it's resolutions. However, I have put off this resolution for awhile now and I don't think there is a better time than the present to begin. So today I resolve. . .

"As for me I resolved that I would succeed better this year with my experiment of filling every minute full of the thought of God than I succeeded last year." (Laubach, Frank, Letters from A Modern Mystic)

Frank Laubach was a missionary to the Philippines who wrote these words at the beginning of 1930 on the island of Mindanao where he was beginning his work with the Moros people. He was alone on the island with no other English speaking people. The letters he wrote to his father during this time have been compiled into a small book entitled, Letters from a Modern Mystic.  The letters focus on Laubach's experiment in filling every moment with thoughts of God. I read this book many years ago but was recently drawn back to it.

After losing the one thing I thought I could never live without, my faith took a beating. In all honesty, I almost walked away from it. I was angry at the world and especially angry at God. Over time, I could feel God's presence and  call to return but I still struggle with seeking my own protection and provision. My battered faith is weak and in need of a great deal of support. I miss the peace of trusting God I knew before, a long time ago before the storms came.

How do I regain that faith? I am going to begin my own experiment, my own resolution.

"I resolve to fill every minute full of the thought of God for the next 30 days."

So, its not a year but I believe in starting small. For the next 30 days, I will make a conscious and concerted effort to think about God more. Not just a 30 minute devotion in the morning or a prayer at night. But will strive to have the thought of God in my mind throughout the day - while I am at work, while I am driving in traffic, cooking dinner, watching TV with my daughter. And I resolve to share my experiment on a regular basis through this blog. Keep watching and share this adventure with me. Frank will join us as I continue to read through his book again.

What do I expect? How will I do it? I don't know. I will explore the questions as I go along. For now, "I resolve to fill every minute full of the thought of God" is enough.