Learning To Fly

ORDINARY LIFE - Thoughts and Ideas to Help You Live a Happier Life

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Summary of June 23, 2013

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Dear Folks -

I have come to believe that a good metaphor for doing the inner work that contributes to psychological and spiritual growth is that of flying.

I begin this talk, "Learning to Fly," by talking about what psychological roots of my fascination of flying. As important as the psychology energies that contribute to our desire to be forever young and above it all are, it is also important to be grounded. Without this commitment to maturity and wisdom, we become isolated and fearful.

I based this talk on parable of Jesus about the farmer who had such a bountiful crop that he didn't know what to do with it. In his misguided effort to keep it to himself he lost his life.

If you were in attendance, you are aware that we had some technical difficulties showing all of the slide presentation. You can find the complete set of slides via the link below. There are also links to the audio version as well as the complete text of the talk.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

To download the complete text click here Download 6:23:13 - Complete text

To download the presentation slides click here  Download 6:23:13 - Learning to Fly

To download the audio click here Download 20130623

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Choosing - A Better Way to Live

Dear Folks -

The "life talk" I offered in Ordinary Life this week was concerned with how we must consciously choose to be involved in the on-going process of identity formation. If we don't choose who we are and how we are to live, the world will make these choices for us. Further, we cannot do this choosing isolated from other "like-minded" people. As Ira Progroff said, "This solitary work we cannot do alone."

That's a brief summary of the talk. The full text can be found by clicking on the link  below. The audio version has some additional material and it is available via the link below as well. You can also access the presentation slide by clicking on the link below.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

To read the complete text click here  Download 6:16:13 - Complete text

To view the presentation slides click here  Download 6:16:13 - Choosing

To download the audio of the talk click here Download 20130616 -

 

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Presentation by Dr. Jim Bankston - June 9, 2013

Dear Folks -

This past week in Ordinary Life Dr. Jim Bankston, the retiring Senior Minister of St. Paul's, spoke to us. It was a time for him to say farewell in a more personal manner to the class and for us to surprise him with a gift to a scholarship that has been established in his honor.

There is no text of his talk but a link to the audio is below.

In the introduction I referred to a clip of a video that we played that powerfully demonstrates Jim's integrity. The audio of that was not recorded. I highly encourage you to contact St. Paul's either by phone, 713-528-0527, or via the internet, http://stpaulshouston.org, and order the video of that service. It costs $10 and is perhaps one of the best things of its kind I have ever seen. You won't be disappointed, I promise.

Also, on May 27 Dr. Bankston spoke at the Breaking the Silence Gathering. Although there is no text of that talk either, there is a YouTube video available and I encourage your watching that as well. Please pass this on to others. Here is the link to that video -

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=PDscdQRfcdQ&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DPDscdQRfcdQ

The link to the audio of the talk the Rev. Terry Thompson gave in the Ordinary Life Gathering is also below.

Several people have asked for the content of the announcement slides that are shown at the beginning of Ordinary Life. They change, for the most part, every week. But they do contain the teaching points and goals of Ordinary Life - as well as some cool optical illusions. A link to these is also below.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

To download the audio of Dr. Bankston's talk click here Download 20130609 - mp3

To download the audio of Terry Thompson's talk click here  Download 20130602

To download the announcement slides click here  Download Announcements Presentation

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Winning the Lottery

Summary of May 26, 2013

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Dear Folks -

The "life talk" I offered in Ordinary Life this week was based on the very difficult teaching of Jesus that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich person to live in the "realm of God." That is to say, if we put our time and and energy into defending and protecting, we can't hear the good news of freedom and love.

Included in this talk is reference to research done that shows how the words we have used over the past fifty years reflect that our culture is growing more individualistic and less moral. Warren Buffet’s "ovarian lottery" theory is also included. The talk ends with one of my favorite stories from Judaism about how the love two brothers had for each other created Sacred Space.

That's a brief summary of the talk I offered in Ordinary Life this week. The full text I spoke can be found by clicking the link below. . As is sometimes the case, the audio version has some significant additions. You can find links to the audio and the presentation slides below as well.

Much love,

Bill Kerley

To download the complete text click here Download 5:26:13 - Complete Text

To view the presentation slides click here  Download 5:26:13 - Winning the Lottery

To download the audio click here Download 20130526 - Mp3

 

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