Intermittent Streams

By Charles Robert Costello Sr.

Intermittent Streams is a reflection of the authors thirst for the Livng Water, which provided strength and sacramental grace to live out his calling (vocation). Every person is called by God to fill a co-creative relationship and live out this vocation through drinking from the Lords cup of Living Water.

The reader will enter dialogue with God and him or her selves through reviewing the living Word of Scriptures which reach out to all of Creation the love, understanding, and divine mercy of the Divine Father. Man was created in Gods image and likeness. God also gave man a free-will to either accept or reject this divine calling.

The chapters cover the uniqueness of the human being which God created and equipped him/her with VISION and Memory with which to serve God and neighbor; through these special God given human/divine senses through which require communication and Befriending.

The reader will become informed as to the role of every Baptized Christian; that is of a Spiritual Guide. This term is inherent with any calling by God. We all share, to some degree responsibility of Befriending even those in our own homes. To this end a complete description of Faithing and Befriending will be utilized in the formation process of the Spiritual Guide.

The author concludes with 29 Stories for the use of individuals or groups of individuals in home group meetings. This Faithing process is also covered. The book closes with 10 groups of spiritual direction questions; which again can be done individually or in small groups at home.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Sep 12, 2011
• ISBN: 9781463460259

Charles Robert Costello Sr.

Ordained for service in 1969, the author has developed from personal hands-on experience the collaborative zeal which can only be expressed as change agent. Serving in rural parishes (during off time hours as an industrial engineer), challenged and motivated him to share his gifts of Befriending and community building amongst the parish families which he served. It was the early experiences with prayer groups which nurtured his desire to find and develop a PLAN in which he detailed the blueprint of organizational strategies to the execution of a Catholic-Jewish Seder for 100. Your right, it didnt start out with 100! It started out with small family groups of 10 to twelve. Answering his call to vocation, his calling to Evangelization was an outgrowth and budding as his communities D.R.E. (Director of Religious Education). This served as a springboard for service as a Spiritual Guide, Chaplain and Preacher. He has be intimately associated with: Marriage Encounter, Cursillo and Knights of Columbus. As a perpetual learner, the following educational milestones have been achieved: Associate of Mechanical Engineering, Associate of Adult Technical Vocational Education. A Bachelor of Science in Human Services and a Masters of Pastoral Studies. His post-graduate work have earned him a Doctor of Divinity and Doctor of Philosophy in Holistic Ministries. In concluding wrap-up, the author has combined his 25 years of service into a purple workbook he crafted and named: Faithing on the Journey-A Guide to Adult Conversion and Reconversion. It was published in 2005 by Paisa Publishing Co., De Pere, Wisconsin.

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© 2011 by Charles Robert Costello Sr., D.D. Ph.D.. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

First published by AuthorHouse 10/13/2011

ISBN: 978-1-4634-6024-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4634-6025-9 (ebk)

Printed in the United States of America

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Intermittent Streams

Preface . . .

Introduction…

Chapter 1:

I. Memory:

A Theological Reflection of God’s Love

Chapter 2:

God’s love for you…

Chapter 3:

Vision

Chapter 4:

Faithing on the Journey

Chapter 5:

Personal Stories…

Chapter 6

A Spiritual Guide—

Case Study

I. Introduction

II. Life Concerns and Development Tasks

III. Humanity and Loneliness

IV. Call to Vocation and The Kingdom Within

V. The Dark side of God and

Dying to Self

VI. Living under the Mask

VII. A Combat Vietnam Veteran’s Story

VIII. Writings: A Poem of Faith: Oh Dear Vietnam

IX. Story and Methodology

X. The 12-Step Program for PTSD

XI. The Faithing Session: Using the Healing Powers of Scripture

XII. Aspects of the Human Condition

XIII. The Spiritual Guide’s Mantra . . .

My Response…

XV. A Veteran’s Poem: What are you crying for?

XVI. Works Cited

XVII.Resources…

forwored.JPG

Intermittent Streams

In the Name of the Father, and the Son

and the Holy Spirit . . .

As the deer longs for running water, so my soul longs for you, my God. Just as the deer longs for running water, so do our newly baptized members, our young deer, so to speak, also yearn for God. By leaving Egypt and the world, they have put Pharaoh and his entire army to death in the waters of baptism. After slaying the devil, their hearts long for the springs of running water in the Church. These springs are the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Jeremiah testifies that the Father is like a fountain when he says: They have forsaken me, the fountain of living water, to dig for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

In another passage we read about the Son: They have forsaken the fountain of wisdom. And again, John says of the Holy Spirit: Whoever drinks the water I will give him, that water shall become in him a fountain of water, springing up into eternal life. The evangelist explains that the Savior said this of the Holy Spirit. The testimony of these texts establishes beyond doubt that the three fountains of the Church constitute the mystery of the Trinity.

These are the waters that the heart of the believer longs for; these are the waters that the heart of the Traveler yearns for when he says: My heart thirsts for God, the living fountain. This is not a weak, faint desire to see God; rather all on the Journey burn with desire and thirst for God. Before they received baptism, they used to ask one another: When shall I go and see the face of God? Now their quest has been answered. They have come forward and they stand in the presence of God. They have come before the altar and have looked upon the mystery of the Savior.

Having received the body of Christ, and being reborn in the life-giving waters, they speak up boldly and say: I shall go into God’s marvelous dwelling place, his house. The house of God is the Church, his marvelous dwelling place, filled with joyful voices giving thanks and praise, filled with all the sounds of festive celebration.

+St. Jerome

Water is the refreshing, life-giving element of the world.

Our bodies are mostly composed of water,

And without it we would surely die.

Jesus tells us that any man

Who Thirsts for true life let him come to Christ,

The life-giving son of God,

Who refreshes our hearts and souls.

We cannot survive without water,

And likewise we cannot survive eternally without

Christ.

2.jpg

Preface…

Intermittent Streams is a reflection of the author’s thirst for the Livng Water, which provided strength and sacramental grace to live out his calling (vocation). Every person is called by God to fill a co-creative relationship and live out this vocation through drinking from the Lord’s cup of Living Water.

The reader will enter dialogue with God and him or her selves through reviewing the living Word of Scriptures which reach out to all of Creation the love, understanding, and divine mercy of the Divine Father. Man was created in God’s image and likeness. God also gave man a free-will to either accept or reject this divine calling.

The chapters cover the uniqueness of the human being which God created and equipped him/her with VISION and Memory with which to serve God and neighbor; through these special God given human/divine senses through which require communication and Befriending.

The reader will become informed as to the role of every Baptized Christian; that is of a Spiritual Guide. This term is inherent with any calling by God. We all share, to some degree responsibility of Befriending even those in our own homes. To this end a complete description of Faithing and Befriending will be utilized in the formation process of the Spiritual Guide.

The author concludes with 29 Stories for the use of individuals or groups of individuals in home group meetings. This Faithing process is also covered. The book closes with 10 groups of spiritual direction questions; which again can be done individually or in small groups at home.

Like the deer that yearns

For running streams

So is my soul yearning

For you, my God.

My soul is thirsting for God,

The God of my life . . .

Psalm 42

—and—

Let all who thirst come; let all who desire it drink from the life-giving water (Revelation 22:17).

God love is limitless,

And there is no need for our souls

To be dry if we will

Only lift our hearts up from the depths of

Ourselves, the living contents

With which God can fill us.

-John R. Starford

Introduction…

Today, we live in a culture which has put limitations on the free-`flowing water which flows through the hearts of those who have closed their minds and hearts to the living reality of the living reality of their calling to Vocation.[1] I once met a man who told me, My vocation is at each moment, to make this person in front of me the best person of my life!(Rolheiser 29).

The following chapters and pages will address the hunger of the human heart in search of the living water . . . which is totally free for those who seek God’s calling or ‘Vocation.’ God is the Divine lover who loves each of us as we seek Him. We are pilgrims on a journey. We do not travel this journey alone! Our Creator God called each one of us to a journey of life-long Faithing[2].

Vocation in its most basic definition is the response a person makes with his/her total self to the address of God and to the calling to partnership (Fowler 95). In other words, vocation is a purpose for being in the world that is related to the purposes of God (Walter Beuggamann 93). At baptism, not only do we become children of the living God, we are given a set of keys to unlock the living water—for ourselves and others.

We are equipped by our Heavenly Father with the gifts of Free-will… soul, memory and vision. A brief discussion of each will be covered from a practical as well as theological reflection. We will begin this reflection in the Old Testament; the first Book of Genesis, Chapter 2. In this beautiful chapter, our God describes—in living color-His creation. In this creation he brought the sinuses of human flesh and taking from the rib of the man he created a mate. Thus, humanity was born through the will of our God Creator. This salvific act of our Creator was his first total emptying of himself in total love for man.

You might be asking, How do I discover this living-water from His ‘Intermittent Stream?’ In the unfolding of these pages the author has outlined several methods/processes for one to discover wholeness and silence of the mind and soul… the bodies’ center. These methods include but are not limited to Sacred Silence!"

The process of being silent is to center you and turn off the ‘chatter’ in the brain. To this end, a brief reflection ‘centering,’ ‘meditation,’ ‘self-hypnosis,’ and ‘dreams’ will be opened.

There is a significant event[3] in every person’s life. This event is instituted by God to redirect that person to a life of significance. This event is a ‘Calling’ or Vocation. The key issue here is Free-will; the gratuitous gift of God to you and me. It means that each person can do one of three things in reference to God’s will for us. To interpret, accept, or reject (USCC 59).

Water from ‘Intermittent Streams,’ was born in the heart of a young man. A pilgrim who responded to Vocation, this is a life long process of daily conversion… of dying to self. This is a fundamental-option [4] you and I are called to drink from the ‘living water’ of Intermittent Streams especially in times of difficulty; turning away from sin. In times of a death and loss. Scripture opens the door:

If you knew the gift of God and who is saying to you, Give me a drink. You would have asked him, and he would have given you Living Water" (John 4:6).

Packed in the following chapters and pages outline the different ways the reader can access his/her life to this Living Water right into the core resulting in personal wholeness. The reader, who takes the words on these pages seriously, will enter a sacred journey.

Developing or deepening of our Spirituality is a sacred process which can lead one to a personal transformation; a personal metanoia. The process must have a life long commitment. There is no graduation for the soul in this life! Our faith life must be a work in process. How can I develop my Spirituality with a focus on love of God, self and neighbor?

Sacred Silence, prayer, meditation, self-hypnosis, faithing on the journey, and Befriending are all avenues to individual instruments of God’s Will.

Chapter 1 opens with a theological reflection on memory—its importance to mean in the Kingdom of God and his love for mankind. Sacred Scripture records this love relationship between God and creation starting in the Book of Genesis.

In order for one to receive God’s flowing, healing, refreshing, restoring miracle water—one must develop a plan to wholeness. This plan centers on the core of man and his/her devotion to sacred silence. This chapter gives a list of steps involved in achieving sacred silence and meditation.

One might ask, What is prayer? The best definition of prayer is that it is a lifting of the mind and heart to God. Prayer is a dialogue; man breaks silence in two ways: a dialogue with his fellow man, and a dialogue with God.

Meditation

Meditation literally means to distract your mind from your conscious thoughts which lets your subconscious thoughts or your inner thoughts come to the forefront. Two common categories of meditation are: Concentration Meditation and Mindfulness Meditation. In concentration meditation the person meditating holds attention on a particular object while constantly bringing the mind back to concentrate on the chosen object. One example of this is to pay attention to the movement of your own breath—or to focus in on the flame of a candle.

Mindfulness Meditation-In this type of meditation, the person meditating sits comfortably and by focusing awareness on an object or process. This may be the most commonly recognized form of meditation. The meditation might focus on the breathing process, a visualization exercise or a montra. You know the picture we see commonly of a person sitting with their legs crossed on the floor chanting ohm? That is an example of mindfulness meditation. In this meditation you are encouraged to keep your mind and thoughts in the now, and if your thoughts wonder—to bring your focus back to the present. With practice, it becomes easy to rid you of intrusive thoughts and to stay in the now.

Going deeper . . .

We become like that which we love: If one loves the material—one becomes like the material; if one loves the spiritual, one is converted into his outlook, his ideals and his aspirations. Given this relationship between love and prayer, it is easy to understand why some souls say: I have motive to pray. A higher form of prayer—their petition and potent remedy against the externalization of life—is meditation. Meditation is like a daydream or reverie, but two important differences: In meditation we do not think about the world or ourselves but about God; and instead of using the imagination to build idle castles in Europe, we use the ‘WILL’ to make resolutions that will draw us nearer to one of the Father’s mansions. Meditation is a more spiritual act than praying prayers; it may be likened to an attitude of a child who breaks into the presence of mother saying: I’ll not say a word, if you will just let me stay here and watch you.

Meditation allows one to suspend the conscious flight against external diversions by an internal realization of the presence of God. It shuts out the world to let in the Spirit. It surrenders our own will to the impetus of the Divine will. It silences the ego with clamorous demands, in order that it may hear the wishes of the Divine heart. It uses our faculties, not speculate on matters remote to God, but stir up our will to confirm more perfectly with His will. It creates a truly scientific attitude toward God as truth, freeing us from any pre-possessions and our biases so that we may eliminate all wishful thinking from our minds. It illuminates from our lives the things that would hinder union with God and strengthens our desire that all good things we do shall be done for His honor and glory.

The author has taken His life of dying to self to paint a portrait of Faithing and Befriending. Not everyone is called to become ordained or cloistered but they are called to follow their ‘Vocation.’ Everyone is required to listen and respond to the inner calling which God presents to us. This is to all of us a life time process.

It is hoped that the words on these pages will assist you in preparing, listening and responding to God speaking to you. In the chapters to follow, contain the writings of a fellow traveler who