This feels very close to dhikr for me. Not that I never forget, never react, never get swallowed by the nafs, but that I return. The seeing is mercy because it means some part of the heart is awake enough to notice what was hidden a moment ago.
I appreciate the simplicity of “thank you.” Shame would only give the ego another costume. But gratitude lets the seeing become part of the polishing. Thank you, Allah, that I saw it. Thank you that the reaction is not the whole of me. Thank you that return is still possible.
I adore this. As I move through healing and along a path of seeking. I still can get royally passed, annoyed, and selfish....but it doesn't take over my entire field of vision the way it used to. I have noticed that part, but adding in the thank you instead of judgement seems like a much more realistic way too move through life without spiritually gaslighting myself into denial! Thanks for this reminder. Saved to read on the days I forget. Haha. ❤️
This puts me in mind of the old stories about sculptors: the finished sculpture is already there; all the sculptor is doing is removing the stuff blocking the view... one of these days, I hope to move past the times where ego traps me. As for this precise moment I remain semi content to occasionally see...
The seeing was the doing.' I sat with that for a long time. Still am. Not striving. Not performing. Just awareness, waking up to itself — and the only honest response is exactly what Cynthia Bourgeault said. Say, “Thank you,” at every moment I become awake enough to see. I am saving this article.
Your title captured my attention before I even read the first sentence.
Over the past few years, my own prayer life has changed in ways I never expected. There was a time when most of my prayers revolved around asking God to change something—my circumstances, myself, or the people I loved. Those prayers were sincere, but looking back, I realize how much they were shaped by my inability to truly see.
What resonated with me most in your piece was the movement from shame to gratitude. The invitation to simply say, *"Thank you,"* when another layer comes into the light feels profoundly freeing. Not because we've arrived, but because seeing itself is already evidence that grace is at work.
I also found myself thinking that gratitude only becomes possible when we trust the One who is revealing what we couldn't yet see. If I believe God is against me, awareness becomes something to fear. If I know He is for me, then even my blind spots become gifts, because they are no longer hidden from the light.
Thank you for this reflection. It gave language to something I've slowly been discovering—that perhaps the deepest prayers are not the ones that ask God to do more, but the ones that finally recognize what He has been doing all along.
Dear VMB - I just entered SS dystopia! Can you, or someone, anyone, Michael, are you listening? I’m a monthly contributor. Everywhere I turn I’m asked to upgrade. I don’t need a second membership. Next I ended up in a deep black hole trying to approve APPLE PAY for my deposits. I know the planets are seriously realigning, NOW IS the Reset of Civilization…both of my printers won’t print, I get it…😉but today all I want to do is copy latest scroll on THANK YOU for my personal Collection of scrolls…HELP!!!❤️🙏😎😉
VMB, THANK YOU,AGAIN! When I read this I immediately felt I was at home with you and Mary Magdalene. Your phrasing of your wisdoms resonates so perfectly, I sense I’m embodying you and MM. I’m not just reading words: I sense your presence. My husband, I now know, a Guardian Angel for 47 years, would speak of our Observer Selves, the “I” who is not I who walks beside me. Once again only deep gratitude for you and your accessible scrolls of Bourgealt and Others who engage us with Mary Magdalene. Your presence as my teacher always invites me alongside as an Anam Cara, too. You are special. I love every word of this scroll, and once my printers start working again (the planets are realigning big time, like in an epochal evolutionary reset of civilization!😉🙏) I will print this and add to my daily journal. So Be It. ❤️🙏
This feels very close to dhikr for me. Not that I never forget, never react, never get swallowed by the nafs, but that I return. The seeing is mercy because it means some part of the heart is awake enough to notice what was hidden a moment ago.
I appreciate the simplicity of “thank you.” Shame would only give the ego another costume. But gratitude lets the seeing become part of the polishing. Thank you, Allah, that I saw it. Thank you that the reaction is not the whole of me. Thank you that return is still possible.
I adore this. As I move through healing and along a path of seeking. I still can get royally passed, annoyed, and selfish....but it doesn't take over my entire field of vision the way it used to. I have noticed that part, but adding in the thank you instead of judgement seems like a much more realistic way too move through life without spiritually gaslighting myself into denial! Thanks for this reminder. Saved to read on the days I forget. Haha. ❤️
Many thanks for your teachings🔥
This puts me in mind of the old stories about sculptors: the finished sculpture is already there; all the sculptor is doing is removing the stuff blocking the view... one of these days, I hope to move past the times where ego traps me. As for this precise moment I remain semi content to occasionally see...
💜🌶🧠🌶💜
The seeing was the doing.' I sat with that for a long time. Still am. Not striving. Not performing. Just awareness, waking up to itself — and the only honest response is exactly what Cynthia Bourgeault said. Say, “Thank you,” at every moment I become awake enough to see. I am saving this article.
Friend,
Your title captured my attention before I even read the first sentence.
Over the past few years, my own prayer life has changed in ways I never expected. There was a time when most of my prayers revolved around asking God to change something—my circumstances, myself, or the people I loved. Those prayers were sincere, but looking back, I realize how much they were shaped by my inability to truly see.
What resonated with me most in your piece was the movement from shame to gratitude. The invitation to simply say, *"Thank you,"* when another layer comes into the light feels profoundly freeing. Not because we've arrived, but because seeing itself is already evidence that grace is at work.
I also found myself thinking that gratitude only becomes possible when we trust the One who is revealing what we couldn't yet see. If I believe God is against me, awareness becomes something to fear. If I know He is for me, then even my blind spots become gifts, because they are no longer hidden from the light.
Thank you for this reflection. It gave language to something I've slowly been discovering—that perhaps the deepest prayers are not the ones that ask God to do more, but the ones that finally recognize what He has been doing all along.
Dear VMB - I just entered SS dystopia! Can you, or someone, anyone, Michael, are you listening? I’m a monthly contributor. Everywhere I turn I’m asked to upgrade. I don’t need a second membership. Next I ended up in a deep black hole trying to approve APPLE PAY for my deposits. I know the planets are seriously realigning, NOW IS the Reset of Civilization…both of my printers won’t print, I get it…😉but today all I want to do is copy latest scroll on THANK YOU for my personal Collection of scrolls…HELP!!!❤️🙏😎😉
VMB, THANK YOU,AGAIN! When I read this I immediately felt I was at home with you and Mary Magdalene. Your phrasing of your wisdoms resonates so perfectly, I sense I’m embodying you and MM. I’m not just reading words: I sense your presence. My husband, I now know, a Guardian Angel for 47 years, would speak of our Observer Selves, the “I” who is not I who walks beside me. Once again only deep gratitude for you and your accessible scrolls of Bourgealt and Others who engage us with Mary Magdalene. Your presence as my teacher always invites me alongside as an Anam Cara, too. You are special. I love every word of this scroll, and once my printers start working again (the planets are realigning big time, like in an epochal evolutionary reset of civilization!😉🙏) I will print this and add to my daily journal. So Be It. ❤️🙏
Helpful!