Morgan Lake, in the hills above La Grande OR, is a wonderful place anytime of year. Fall colors are always jubilant. Meg and I were fortunate to be walking there with our dogs just as these paddle boarders were within the golden cottonwood reflections on Morgan Lake.
“There is no end to prayer. It echoes on forever in your soul. Long after the visible demonstration has been made and forgotten, the prayer that produced it continues to work for your spiritual advancement. The creative power of a ‘God thought’ is unlimited and eternal.” Emmett Fox
“Prayer is the sum of our relationship with God. We are what we pray. The degree of our faith is the degree of our prayer. The strength of our hope is the strength of our prayer. The warmth our charity is the warmth of our prayer. No more nor less. Our prayer has had a beginning because we have had a beginning. But it will have no end. It will accompany us into eternity and will be completed in our contemplation of God, when we are joined in the harmony of heaven and are filled with the flood of God’s delights. The story of our earthly-heavenly life is the story of our prayer.” Carlo Carretto.
”As a pilgrim we, we sometimes journey.
We often know not which way to turn.
But there is One who knows the road.
Who’ll help us carry, who’ll help us carry,
our heavy load.”Aretha Franklin, from her album “One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism”
“The meaning of life. The wasted years of life. The poor choices of life.
“Living God, I pray for your love in my life. I pray for your joy in my heart. I pray for your peace in my soul. I pray for your patience in my words. I pray for your kindness in my actions. I pray for your goodness in my sharing. I pray for your faithfulness in my relationships. I pray for your gentleness in my spirit. I pray for your self control in my choices. May this fruit blossom in and through me. Forgive me when I fail, and restore my strength to create a clean spirit in and through You.”
The Mt Emily Recreation Area above La Grande and the the Grande Ronde Valley in Union County Oregon calls recreationists anytime of year–hiking, snowshoeing, cross country skiing in the winter, and mountain biking, riding dirt bikes, hiking the rest of the year. We are so blessed and fortunate to have such a great place to enjoy so near to us.
“The heart of prayer is to recognize the presence and action of God and to consent to it. We do not have to go anywhere; God is already with us…Faith tells us that we already have God—the divine indwelling. The most intimate relationship with God is to be completely present to God, whatever we may be doing.” Fr Thomas Keating
“Love turns work into rest.” St Teresa of Avila
“Every time there is significant growth in our spiritual development, all relationships change—to God, to ourselves, to other people, and to all creation. We become a new person…. God’s Spirit lives and works within us. It is God in us serving God in other people.” Fr Thomas Keating
