Category: Meditations

 

ADVENT

Romans 8:  18 -24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: For what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?

Scripture Emphasis: Psalm 65:5 You (God) are the hope of everyone on earth. Even those who sail on distant seas.

The words of David in Psalm 65, are addressed to the Almighty. They are not the utterances of some religious recluse. They come from the red-hot crucible of living. The Psalm reveals a soul that has been overwhelmed by sins and now, witnesses to the faithfulness of God, to answer his uttered prayers. On the foundation of those convictions, he makes this proclamation:

“God, You are the hope of everyone on earth,
Even those who sail upon distant seas.”

David  here makes the not so veiled suggestion:” If He did it for me, He will do it for every child born of woman and man!”

Now there are but two conclusions one can reach concerning David’s proclamation. Either it is hyperbole, an exaggeration, a simple case of poetic license; Or this is a profound theological truth that becomes: the glory of the lighted mind.”

” O glory of the lighted mind,
how dead I’d been, how dumb, how blind!
The Station Brook to these new eyes is babbling out of
Paradise. The waters gushing from the rain are singing:
” Christ is risen again.”(1)

If it is hyperbole, that” God is the hope of everyone on the earth”, then life on this earth is best described by William Shakespeare’s Macbeth:
(Act II, Scene I). “Out, out, brief candle! Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more: it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”. (2)
It’s either that or else; it is the most glorious truth that a human being can hold on to until life’s brief candle goes out, and God ushers him into the brilliance of a new day’s dawning.
“God, You are the hope of everyone on earth,
Even of those who sail on distant seas.”

But what is to be said of those, in our increasingly secular society, who think it the hallmark of intelligence to announce to the world their absence of belief in God and Jesus Christ? There have always been those who boast about living by a Stoic Philosophy like that  William Henley expresses in ” Invictus.”

” Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.”(3)
William Ernest Henley

Does that misguided assertion alter life’s equation which David elucidates, having Old Testament Wisdom alone?
” God, You are the hope of everyone on earth,
Even those who sail on distant seas.”

There is no mention made of any opportunity for any human’s assertion of either belief nor unbelief! David does not make the state of human understanding, the contingent factor for the activity of the Divine! God’s command: Let there be light” is not dependent upon whether or not a person believes it! The person may draw the shades to continue his desire to experience the darkness, but that does not change the universal truth of light ‘s existence.
“You, God, are the hope of everyone on earth,
Even those who sail on distant seas.”
David’s words convey the truth of universal inclusivity of everyone on earth, and ‘hope’ is the common binding force.

This thought may indeed have roots in the Theological doctrine of IMAGO DEI; the belief that from creation, God shares unique qualities of human nature which allow God to be made manifest.” The faculty of reason enables one to become most God-like when that person develops a capacity to partially grasp the nature of God’s ultimate reality.” (4)

The proclamation of David has its genesis in the Old Testament and relies upon Prophets and Priests for its transmission throughout the earth. As necessary and as revealing as that truth remains, it cannot compare to the enunciation made in the New Testament of the same fact. In the New Testament, “The Word Becomes Flesh and dwells among us.” It is through a vital and living relationship with Jesus Christ that God’s gift of ‘HOPE, ‘given at birth emerges from the deep places of one’s being to enter into our consciousness, and enables us to share in God’s hope for the world.
Twilight and evening bell,
And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell,
When I embark;
For though from out our bourne of Time and Place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crost the bar.(5)

           PRAYER TO FOLLOW THIS MEDITATION

When we consider the quality of  HOPE which  You have secretly hid deep inside these bodies of ours, we bow in awesome wonder, O God.

We are mere vessels of clay, subject to frailness and death!  What an invaluable treasure You choose to store in so frail a vessel. Hope is the very ethos of Your Heavenly Abode, and You hid its germ in us as a signature gift before we arrived here ! Father, we believe that the hope that springs eternal in the human breast, is Your way of using us as Your Co-workers, to work together to have Your Will done here on earth as it is in Heaven! Your Hope, Father, on that very first Christmas Day, was that the world would see in Jesus, Your Hope for the world’s future.

He came unto His own, but they did not receive Him then. A Cross looms alongside the manger, but Hope, Father Your Eternal Hope, and now ours are resurrected. And this very night millions of us will ask You to make this Christmas Night the occasion when there  will thunder throughout this weary world a heartfelt: ” Welcome  Blessed is He who Comes again  in the Name Of our God.” WELCOME, Jesus, to this world! Take Your Power and reign! Amen.

 

 

HYMN : O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

https://youtu.be/7xtpJ4Q_Q-4

 

EDITORIAL NOTES

The translation of Scripture used in this post is New Living Translation.
1. From ” The Everlasting Mercy’ by John Masefield e Oxford Book of English Mystical Verse > 337. From ‘The Everlasting Mercy’
2.The Tragedy of Macbeth
Shakespeare homepage | Macbeth | Act 5, Scene 5
3.William Ernest Henley, in ‘Invictus’ From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
4.Reference “IMAGO DEI” http://www.religionfacts.com/imago-dei
5.From ” Crossing The Bar” by Alfred, Lord Tennyson https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45321/crossing-the-bar

 

 

‘IN THE CIRCLE OF HIS EMBRACE’

Scripture Concentration: It is strongly suggested that you spend some time studying the following scripture passage before proceeding to read the meditation.

Luke 7:11-17 Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. When the LORD saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.” Then he went up and touched the bier they were carrying him on, and the bearers stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.” This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.

This incident in the life of Jesus has truths that lie as deep as the deepest ocean. In the end, these truths cannot be perfectly understood by us, just because they are grounded in God’s personal love addressing a particular human crisis, and forever lie beyond our full understanding!
This incident points to what lies at the very heart of the Gospel; God’s longing to address each individual’s’ need in His world. God ever reveals His unthwarted effort to show His Love. This Love will lead individuals away from the darkness of despair and into everlasting light; away from their littleness of mind and heart and into the liberation of people escaping from the tomb of death.

If there is but one person to whom God’s love reveals itself in this hour, let there be celebration in the community of faith;  for it means one more light is shining, thereby lessening the intensity of this world’s many varieties of darkness.

Let’s examine the challenging truths Luke’s story presents.
The stricken widow of Nain neither saw anyone nor heard anything, the day of the funeral. Through her tears, she could barely see her son’s coffin and the only sound audible to her ears was the beating of her heart. She has walked this desolate road before; she has bathed its dust with her tears. She is a widow. But on the occasion of her husband’s death, her young son was holding her hand.
At this precise moment,  Luke tells us, Jesus sees her. And feeling within Himself, how broken she is, Jesus determines that her procession towards her own personal grave must be His immediate concern. It is natural to wonder, just how much more, one human being can endure! First, her husband’s death, followed by the death of her son, and the excruciating horror of facing life’s challenges alone.

It is here that His Followers find the challenge to minister in the Name of Jesus Christ. There are thousands of people stumbling their way towards their own personal graves, with broken hearts, unfulfilled dreams, and uncontrolled habits. Again one wonders, just how much more one person can endure; but the more crucial question is, ‘Will there be someone to step forward to stop their funeral procession?’  Will someone be there to bid them not to weep? Will someone bring to them a glimmer of renewed hope?

The next feature of the story is equally important, and presents another challenge for ministry in the Name of Jesus Christ; it is Jesus’ concentration on this woman’s personal need that consumes His immediate attention. Other people present at the scene, no doubt, were experiencing a myriad of problems, with differing degrees of darkness! But for the moment, it was for Jesus,” a one on one situation!   ” When Jesus saw her, His heart went out to her, and He said,” Don’t cry.”He saw her unique experience with darkness, and He ordered a new dawn for her.

I fear that in this age of multi-tasking the value of ‘ a one on one’ ministry is misunderstood. There are often people who are in need of a new dawning, and are met with the skeptical conclusion, that the situation is impossible! If we can demonstrate to our own souls that we do sincerely desire to make a difference, then we start by seeing one person’s tears and endeavor to make them our own. Then tomorrow, in the  Master’s Name, you may effectively deal with two more. Work until the sky glows red with the beauty of the dawn, and the promise is fulfilled: ” Tears may last for the night, but, joy comes with the morning!

“Religion, if it is to survive, must be personal,” writes Viktor Frankl in ” Unconscious God.” Greater care is needed in today’s world to make certain that, ” The Word that became flesh and dwelt among us, must never be permitted to become only words again.

1. Brother, sister, let me serve you
let me be as Christ to you;
pray that I may have the grace to
let you be my servant too.

2. We are pilgrims on a journey,
and companions on the road;
we are here to help each other
walk the mile and bear the load.

3. I will hold the Christlight for you
in the nighttime of your fear;
I will hold my hand out to you,
speak the peace you long to hear.

4. I will! weep when you are weeping;
when you laugh I’ll laugh with you;
I will share your joy and sorrow,
till we’ve seen this journey through.

5. When we sing to God in heaven,
we shall find such harmony,
born of all we’ve known together
of Christ’s love and agony.

6. Brother, sister, let me serve you;
let me be as Christ to you;
pray that l may have the grace to
let you be my servant too. (1)

The final feature of this story that challenges His Follower’s ministry in the Name of Jesus Christ is this. Jesus halts this mother’s personal procession towards her own grave and her son’s grave, as well, by giving them each someone to love, and some meaningful work to do. Luke puts it: ” Jesus gave him back to his mother.”

There are many on life’s journey who are broken on the wheels of circumstances beyond their control. They stumble from one meaningless day to another! Our ministry is to show them, Love, in the name of Jesus Christ, and by the Grace of Christ show them that their search for a more fulfilling life can only be discovered by faith in the One  who halts one’s funeral procession with His words: ” I am the Resurrection and the Life, anyone who believes in me though he/she were dead, yet shall he/she live

PRAYER TO FOLLOW THIS MEDITATION

O God, creator of all Compassion                                                                           Make me more compassionate towards all people, and towards the wounded earth. When people’s hearts are filled with compassion, then will we all see clearly that our sisters and brothers everywhere are meant to share in the riches of this earth, their home and ours.

However, to pray to be proprietors of compassion must be followed immediately by a request that You show us what to do when our initial prayer for compassion is answered!

Father, there is no one of us who has not seen the pain-pinched faces of little refugee children and the faces of their terrified and pleading parents, standing at our sovereign borders, begging for asylum. Father, How is compassion released into that setting? Can we pray: “Give us this day, our daily bread and remain helpless to relieve those without food or shelter? Father, Is it Compassion that forces us momentarily to feel their need?

But why is it that before anything can initiate deeper consideration, our logical, rational minds force a conclusion: there is nothing we can do! In the end, our compassion seems to wither like the fall leaves which too soon disappear.

Father, reveal to us again, how faith and compassion are inextricably bound. On one occasion when hungry crowds were in  need of food, Jesus, Your Son  said to his thunderstruck disciples, ” You feed them.” Their reaction then was to be as alarmed as we are by any such suggestion to provide for them. Please help us, Father, to address the dilemma that is presenting now? It is FAITH that keeps COMPASSION alive.

Give to us the faith that prays ” Father Into Your hands do we commit our spirits. Lighten our darkness, and grant us a deeper  Victory of Faith!     All for the sake of Your Love . Amen

Hymn: Here I am Lord

https://youtu.be/EcxOkht8w7c

 

 

EDITORIAL NOTES

1.Hymn: ” Brother, Sister, Let Me Serve You”

.http://www.pateys.nf.ca/cgi-bin/lyrics.pl?hymnnumber=635

2. PHOTO: ” SHALOM, Michael’s Harbor, Newfoundland

 

Suggested Scripture: Psalm 132: 1 – 18                                                                                                            John 8:12 – 20

Text Emphasis:  Psalm 132: 17……….Here (in my Dwelling Place) I will set up a lamp for my anointed one.

Psalm 132:17 “Here ( in my dwelling place ) I set up a lamp for my anointed one.

“Fear not, little flock, whatever your lot,
He enters all rooms, “the doors being shut,”
He never forsakes; He never is gone,
So count on His presence in darkness and dawn”.

Refrain:
“Only believe, only believe;
All things are possible, only believe;
Only believe, only believe;
All things are possible, only believe.”(2)

But what is the foundation of that ‘BELIEF, and where is that foundation laid? Can ‘Belief’ be dismissed as being just another academic pursuit, with a network of psychological roots in societal and familial influences, or is ” Belief” something more PRIMAL than that, something akin to the mystery of ‘a beating heart,’ or breathing lungs; something related to the mystery of LIFE itself?

Since earliest times human beings have wrestled with ‘beliefs,’ and how to express them in cognitive terms. Many theories, seeking to explain the unsolved mysteries of the natural world were unsatisfying. There were always new demands for further investigation.

The inclusion of ‘Deity’ in ancient Greek culture, as well as in the records of the Hebrew Prophets, very early, become a key component in the demands concerning ‘Belief. ” Belief” in the Olympian gods and the God of the Hebrew Prophets becomes indispensable in engaging with the unsolved mysteries of life.

Perhaps, then, we may not be too far afield, if in our inquiry into the genesis of “Belief,” we begin right there with a consideration of the God, of Whom the Hebrew Prophets concluded: ” In The Beginning God.” We may well discover that ‘Belief’ is a natal gift that binds humankind to God, to prepare them to live as His Children here on earth.

Many parents are completely surprised when their child speaks about God and heaven; often happening at the time when the child is just starting to talk. Is it unreasonable to conclude that such ‘tiny expressions’  of belief are not at all ‘ chance expressions’ but, may well be the tiny seeds that are meant by God to germinate into an expressive and revealing “BELIEF?”

A careful reading of Psalm 132 of the Old Testament may prove helpful in our inquiry of ” Belief.”

I acknowledge that far greater minds than mine have undertaken to enlighten others, concerning the mystery of God, and our belief about our relationship with Him. I offer no profound scholarly evidence in this matter. I submit only that which I believe to be true, and which has helped me in my faith’s journey!

It is noteworthy that Psalm 132 begins with the biographer of David, presenting him as trailing clouds of glory, into the presence of God. The biographer quotes David, “I will allow no sleep to my eyes, no slumber to my eyelids, till I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.” We, therefore conclude that It is a previous encounter with God, that results in David’s cognitive response, in commitment and love towards God. It is equally God’s initiative that incites a similar reaction within the boundaries of distant communities. While in the fields of daily labor, there is felt a sense of urgency to respond to God’s Presence: “Let us worship at the Lord’s footstool.” (vs. 5-7)
It is thus made abundantly clear that the Holy One, Himself, is an integral part of this creation that uniquely bears His Image. And there is evidence that a spark of the Divine dwells in every human.

But there is yet more! Human beings never reach the state of being  ‘ finished products. ‘  As long as we are inhabitants ” of this vale of soul-making” we remain incomplete. Of all things in the created order, it is humans, alone, who remain in God’s workshop until the end.

The spark of the Divine within one’s spirit will always be subject to the fierce winds of opposition in the world. The spark could be subject to extinction if it were not for this one fact about God, made clear to David: ” Within My Dwelling Place, I have set up a lamp for you.” As it was for David, so it remains the truth concerning each one of us. The spark of eternity God gives to each child as a ‘Coming To Earth” gift, is from the lamp that God has set for us within  His Dwelling Place.

Every morning as we face a new day, the Divine Light Keeper replenishes the light within us, so that throughout our waking hours we may perform Heaven’s duty, to build the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth. Every evening, as the darkness claims the day, God tends to our lamp once more, so that in confidence and in peace we may lie down and sleep.

One day God will finally claim the spark that has served Him here on earth and will use it to supplement the light of our lamp that is always burning in our Father’s dwelling place.

A PRAYER TO FOLLOW THIS MEDITATION
O Jesus, Light Of The World,
Come, with Your searching rays, into my life this day.

Prepare me, that I may continue to build on the Foundation You have laid, for the fortress of Peace, in this noisy and frightening world.
Quicken my hearing, that I may hear the veiled threats of shrewd leaders, whose words and deeds move this world further away from ever resembling Our Father’s Kingdom.

Open my eyes, that I may see the evidence, that inside the restless, wandering crowds the promise is surviving still; that one day there will be ONE People, Under One God, Inhabiting One world, where justice and love reigns.

Open my mouth, so that I may overcome my timidity to speak the truth. Enable me to use my voice to amplify, with urgency, Your expression of the need for more laborers to come and join with us in the gathering of Your harvest.

Open my heart, so that with an enlarged capacity for faith, I may assure the world that:

Where there is hatred, Love will yet reign;                                                      Where there are tears, Joy will follow in the morning;                 Where there are injustices now, the star of Hope will never set;                Where there are people standing alone and afraid:  We will walk together as brothers and sisters towards God’s glorious Light.  And all for Your love’s sake, Amen.

HYMN:     BE STILL MY SOUL

https://youtu.be/pwkPsKe-39Y

 

EDITORIAL NOTES

1. To gain a deeper understanding of the meditation that follows, you are encouraged to begin with a careful reading of the suggested Scripture text.

2. Fear Not, Little Flock Lyrics by J. G .Dailey

3. Photo: “The Lighthouse” taken in ‘Friday Bay’ during a recent day on the bay, with Jody and Joanne Woolfrey, in Newfoundland.

 

 

 

 

Suggested Scripture Readings:
Psalm 65 ( A careful reading of this Psalm is suggested.)
John 14: 1 – 14

Psalm 65: 2 – 4

“O You who hear prayer,                                                                                              to You all men will come. 

When we were overwhelmed by sins,
You forgave our transgressions.
Blessed are those you choose
and bring near to live in your courts!
We are filled with the good things of your house,
Of your holy temple.
You answer us with awesome and righteous deeds,
God our Savior”,

These words capture a life-changing mystery; they permit us a view of our earthy home from the door of our Father’s House in Heaven. It is an experience that the Psalm writer of Old Testament fame, David, graciously shares with us.

To gain a true perspective one must seek to view human life from beyond this world’s boundaries, while engaged in its struggles, and competitions, its pleasures, and opportunities; otherwise the truth concerning it will be malleable and distorted. Neither is the present technological boast, to view the planet from outer -space sufficient.

David offers the one viable alternative herein:
“Blessed are those You choose and bring near to dwell in Your courts! We are filled with the good things of Your House.”

The Poet, Oliver Wendell Homes in a poem called ” The Crooked Footpath,” brought back vivid memories to me, of the crooked footpath I daily traveled on my way to and from school, as a boy. The path was well worn by those on countless un-named missions. In one spot, the path veered far right; in another, it made almost a semi-circle to the left.  What endearing stories this path might tell if it could speak! It may tell the story of a weary traveler wishing soon to be home; or of the slow, meditative movement of worshipers on the way to church, seeking to find rest for their tired souls; or of the wobbling steps of one who had overindulged in a celebratory event,  and of one over-anxious young fellow, bent on intercepting the chosen direction of his sweetheart. The crooked footpath always stirred the imagination to wonder why. Oliver Wendell Homes advises against drawing any such conclusions.

” Nay, deem not thus – no earth-born will
could ever trace a faultless line;
Our truest steps are human still —
To walk unswerving were divine!

Truants from love, we dream of wrath —
Oh, let us trust the more!
Through all the wanderings of the path,
We still can see our Father’s door.” (1)

As David views his earthly home from the doors of his Father’s Heavenly Home, a Hallelujah chorus by the Celestial choir enraptures him.
As the choir soars to the breath-taking crescendo: ” And He shall reign, forever, and forever,” David turns his gaze towards the earth, and in that stunning moment, he observes millions of people, who own the evidence of answered prayers. They are coming from every direction, to witness to the goodness of God. On the lips of this happy band of pilgrims, there are songs which celebrate liberation from the tyranny of defeat and sin. Now they are on their way to join forces with David,  as the chosen of God. They, like David, will continue their earthly pilgrimage, but with resources, available only from the Heavenly Father’s open door.

Then for a brief moment, the earth is wrapped in a shroud of mist that obliterates the earthly scene from the eyes of David. The mist represents the failed attempts of humankind to regain Paradise; lost since our first parents sought to rebuild it in their own design, rather than the Father’s. Nations are in turmoil. Confused and frustrated people, bow their heads. Their hearts are heavy, for many have already experienced wars and revolutions, bloodshed and death. In despair, they whisper: ‘What’s the use? There is no way out of earth’s dilemma!”
Now from Heaven’s Door David suddenly experiences the vanishing mists. He smiles to see the advancing prayer warriors, advancing still. And in that vision, David sees the future hope for the whole world.

You answer us with awesome deeds of righteousness, O God our Saviour, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas.” ( Ps.65:)  The celestial choir recaptures the magnificent setting for David! The effulgent rays of the setting sun bathe everything in crimson glory. Tears flood David’s eyes as he hears the multitudes of earth’s millions giving back the song the angels sang: ” Our God reigns, –And He shall reign forever, and forever! ” Where morning dawns and evening fades, You (God), call forth songs of joy.” ( Ps. 65: 8)

And then he sees it. David observes the silver cord binding Heaven and earth, making them as one; he considers the streams of life-giving water! ” The streams of God are filled with water.” (Ps. 65: 9) Everywhere the streams flow there is new life. Once infertile fields, now evidence an abundant harvest; meadows, once abandoned to the aridity of a desert, now echo the sound of bleating lambs.

All of this foreshadows a later time in history when the life-giving stream binding Heaven and earth together, arrives on earth in the person of Jesus Christ,  as” The Living Water.”(John 4: 1-42)
The lambs in this scene populating the rejuvenated meadows( Ps. 65: 13 ) will forever remind us of the Coming of the Lamb of God; Who involves us in the challenge to bring to all the earth, the Gift of New Life.

A PRAYER TO FOLLOW THIS MEDITATION

Father, I kneel in the splendor of Your House.
I am struck with the sheer beauty that envelopes me.
Just the thought that comes to me at this moment is overwhelming; that I, a mere creature of this earth, can climb the heights of Zion, to Your Abode, without moving an inch from this place of my meditation. I find that David discovered that mystery long ago:” I was glad when they said to me,’Let us go to the House of the Lord. And here we are standing (already) inside Your gates, O Zion!” (Psalm 122:1)
Father, what a difference it makes to view life on earth, while in Your Company! To adopt the current vision of life offered by this world will result in insecurity and fear. But when my soul realizes Your nearness, Hope springs eternal in my breast! It is because I have first-hand knowledge of answered prayers, that I join that mighty multitude of believers, who come to You, again and again, to be directed in my life by Your vision for this waiting world.

Father in a doubting world, let me be Your light;
In a boasting world, let me share Your Wisdom;
In a despairing world, let me speak boldly of Hope;
In a fear-mongering and the hate-filled world, let me show the Love of Jesus Christ. Thank You, Father, I will lie down now and sleep, here in Your court, before Your Open Door, Amen

HYMN:  Just As I am  

 https://youtu.be/CxA0TFe3-Uo?t=8s

 

EDITORIAL NOTES

1.OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES. ” The Crooked Footpath”
https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-crooked-footpath-2

2.Hallelujah Chorus
Georg Friedrich Handel
The Hallelujah Chorus, from Handel’s Messiah, is one of the most well-known musical pieces from the baroque period.

3. The photo we have titled: ” Sheep Shall Safely Graze.” This photo is taken in Lawrenceton, NL.

 

 

Suggested Scripture Reading: The Book Of Job is unsurpassed in its poetic expression, and in its in-depth look at human suffering.

Job 42: 5 “I had only heard about You before,but now I have seen You with my own eyes.

Luke 24:19 – 34

Luke 24: 17 They stopped short, sadness written across their      faces     

There are many, who, having attained the rights of passage from adolescence to adulthood soon find a world that is far different from their expectations. The familiar is missing. The once easily accomplished now presents a frightening challenge. Things once freely acquired now bring financial distress. Coupled with these there is a conscious longing, coming like molten lead dripping on a naked brain, for the lost sense of security, and for universal friendship, all wrapped in a warm blanket of childhood’s faith.
The poet Elizabeth Akers Allen has many who borrow every night her longing:

“Backward, turn backward
O Time, in thy flight.
And make me a child again,
Just for tonight.”(1)

The longing for the simple rudiments of faith known in childhood is a universal phenomenon.they are the sign of God’s intention to equip every infant with specialized knowledge of His Heavenly Presence, for as long as they inhabit this earthly domain.
The English poet, William Wordsworth, suggests as much in “Intimations Of Immortality.”
“We come
From God, who is our home:
Heaven lies about us in our infancy!
Shades of the prison-house begin to close.
Upon the growing Boy,
But he beholds the light, and whence it flows,
He sees it in his joy;
The Youth, who daily farther from the east
Must travel, still is Nature’s priest,
And by the vision splendid
Is on his way attended;
At length the Man perceives it die away,
And fade into the light of common day.”(2)

It is erroneous to conclude that faith must be left behind as a relic of childhood, as one proceeds to adulthood. It is the expectation that faith matures along with one’s intellectual ability. The mystery of faith’s development coincides with the unfoldment of one’s spiritual prowess.

Many times spiritual growth is stymied by an attack upon faith or even a wounding of the same, with results extending far beyond the witness of the young.
Robert Browning was a master of the dramatic monologue.
In “Fears And Scruples” he expounds upon the developing faith of a child. In the voice of a child, he presents a pictorial image of God.

“Of old, I used to love him.
This same unseen friend, before I knew:
Dream there was none like him, none above him,-
Wake to hope and trust my dream was true.”

But too soon, dark clouds heralding an approaching storm begin to form on the horizon. The blast of cynical comments batters from every side.
How can you have a friendship with someone you never see?
Is your belief founded only on words of others, who have never seen him either?
What kind of a friend is he, who insists on playing ‘Hide And Seek” with you?
Is this friend always spying on you through a brick wall,–or do you have the ability to see through brick walls?”

Belief stagers and stumbles for a moment, and then rebounds, with vigor! Addressing the cynics, he retorts:

“Hush, I pray you! What if this friend happens to be –God?” (3)

Similarly, consider one who is an exemplary witness of the faithfulness and mercy of God. In the twinkling of an eye, Job changes from riches to rags. He sits alone, deprived of family and most of his friends. His fields, once a suggestion of his abundant wealth, are now empty and bare.

Is that the way God rewards the steadfast witness of anyone?
That consideration is prima facie concerning Job, throughout his Old Testament community. Who is on the throne of this universe? Is it a kind benevolent God, or is it some uncaring, malignant force of evil? Even Job’s wife despairs. ” Curse God, and die! She counsels her suffering husband. With untempered fervor, Job addresses his counselors: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised.– I heard about You by the hearing of my ears, but now I have seen You with my own eyes.”

A story of greater pathos is impossible to find than that which tells of the two would-be followers of Jesus, from Emmaus. The two are returning home following the horrific experience of observing the crucifixion of the young prophet, Jesus, thought by many including themselves, to be Israel’s Messiah. But this is the evening of the Resurrection Day. Even though rumors are circulating concerning an empty tomb, in the same Garden where the body of Jesus was interred, home, the refuge from heartache and endless sorrow, beckons them on. In the attempt to explain their leaden steps and broken hearts to an unrecognized fellow traveler, their grief comes tumbling from their lips. ” We had hoped that he was the Messiah, who had come to rescue Israel–but they crucified him! And this all happened three days ago.”
Later, that evening they discover the identity of the unknown stranger traveling with them on the way. It was their Risen Lord. Their feet become equipped with wings as they hasten back to Jerusalem, to join the company of fearless witnesses proclaiming:” The Lord has risen, He has risen indeed!”

Faith may lie wounded, but it never dies. It may be shaken, but it is never destroyed. It may be eclipsed, but it is never permanently obliterated. It is the very essence of faith which God undertakes to guard. The door through which the Grace of Heaven arrives to resurrect a faltering faith always remains open at God’s command. Only a person’s conscious decision can ever close that door!

This world is awash with a flood of evil forces that seeks to diminish or even destroy the original beauty of belief, and trust in God. The hour is now when all believers must’ stand firm in the faith,’ and without fear or intimidation announce: “Jesus Christ is Lord, and our God reigns forever and forever.”

PRAYER TO FOLLOW THIS MEDITATION

Father. I don’t ever remember seeing the Evening Star perform in such a magnificent pageant as it did this evening!  The whole western sky seemed poised to let the glory of the Evening Star be seen. The sky provided a backdrop of blue velvet for it; the exceptionally black clouds on the horizon revealed their more tranquil nature, in breath-taking splendor, in colors of crimson and gold. And there, center stage, seeming of the whole universe, was Your Evening Star!

The Light radiating from that star had to be a light shining from a window in Your Heavenly Home. Father, was that Your way of reminding us that Your light still shines in the darkness of this world, and the darkness has never extinguished it?  Was the appearance of this Evening Star, to remind us that you share the glorious light from Your Heavenly Home with us always, even when clouds obscure our sight of it. You have fixed the light of Heaven in each person’s spirit; Jesus, the Christ, is our abiding Evening Star.

Father, some will scoff at my simplistic faith and discount the expression of my belief. But I ask You to give me the courage to”Stand Firm In The Faith.” May I always remember that if the light of the Evening is the light from Your window, that You are always at that window keeping watch over us all. ” While he was yet a great way off, his Father saw him, and had compassion on him ,and ran out to meet him.” And that is always our story. Thank You, Father. Amen

Hymn: Son Of My Soul

https://youtu.be/hxeYGSJuZto

 

 

EDITORIAL NOTES

 Here and throughout this meditation, the quotations
from the Holy Bible are from the New Living
Translation, Unless otherwise noted in the text.

1. Elizabeth Akers Allan. In, Rock Me To Sleep, Mother,                               Thomas R. Lounsbury, ed. (1838–1915). Yale Book of American Verse. 1912.
2. William Wordsworth, in Ode. Intimations Of Immortality,                     Arthur Quiller-Couch, ed. 1919. The Oxford Book of English Verse: 1250–1900.
3. Robert Browning,  in. Fears And Scruples.                                                     https://www.gradesaver.com/robert-browning-poems/e-text/fears-and-scruples
4. Photo: Unknown                                                                                                                    ” They that wait upon the Lord                                                                                Shall renew their strength.                                                                                    They shall mount up on wings,                                                                           like an eagle”.

 

 

You may gain a further understanding of the meditation that follows by reading the suggested scriptures The Editorial notes at the end of the post may also prove to be beneficial)

Suggested Scripture Reading 2 Timothy 1:18

2 Timothy 1: 14
Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you – guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit Who lives in us.

Another fridge magnet is added to our collection. Many of these magnets convey brief, cryptic messages; none more so than the newest addition.
” OUT OF MY MIND, BACK IN FIVE MINUTES” it reads.
I am somewhat taken aback, not so much by the addition of another ornamental magnet with its somewhat obscure message, but by the fact that for the suspected chooser, it is entirely out of character. The years between the beginning and the time of my discovery of this message, provide substantial evidence of the coolest, most calm, and stable individual to be found anywhere. She was always there, always the same stabilizing force, whenever I returned for my own five-minute reprieve from madness, following a tough day at the office.
It is a somewhat familiar cliche, to say nothing about the experience, for individuals to define a specific encounter as something to “drive one out of one’s mind.” And unfortunate, as it is, there are some for whom this experience threatens to continue, but without the promise, it all will be over in five minutes.
It is time to offer one more Beautitude: Blessed is the woman or man whose inner secret provides sanctuary to another when the pressures of life threaten to overtake them.
But let this truth be clearly understood. It is the hallmark of our humanness to feel the full-blown effects of stress, worry, fear, and depression. It is instead the method by which one chooses to deal with all of these, which is the most essential consideration.
Some will follow the promises offered by a pilgrimage to some far away meditation retreat center. Some will surrender themselves to mind-changing cults and abandon the orthodoxy that fortified their ancestors in many trying circumstances, yet others still, will turn to hallucinatory drugs and alcohol, seeking an escape from the pain of their own company. But the end result is often the same unaffected product.
There is a striking scene in William Shakespear’s tragedy. Macbeth. In Scene 5, Act 3, the knave Macbeth is desperate as he seeks an escape for Lady Macbeth from her psychotic ramblings that are torturing both of them. Pressures related to a horrendous past are taking their toll. Therefore , Macbeth seeks counsel from a physician,

MACBETH
“Cure her of that.
Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased,
Pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow,
Raze out the written troubles of the brain
And with some sweet oblivious antidote
Cleanse the stuffed bosom of that perilous stuff
Which weighs upon the heart?”
DOCTOR
“Therein the patient
Must minister to himself. ” (2)

The clinical synopsis of this situation reveals the futility of the known efforts to deal with any such invading crises.
Our Creator has so equipped the human species, that each one may gain possession of inherent quality, which not only keeps them sane in life’s turmoil but unveils the awesome wonder of the human creation. Indeed, it is so, as the author of Psalm 139: 5 testifies: “We are fearfully and wonderfully made.”
Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk, was also a distinguished scholar, theologian, and mystic, wrote of the most urgent necessity for one to gain possession of one’s self:

” We must recover possession of our own being before we can act wisely or taste any experience in its human reality. As long as we are not in our own possession all reality is futile.” (3)
I am compelled to draw your attention to one historical character of the Christian era, who epitomizes the reality of one who succeeds in gaining possession of ‘his own being.’
Meet Paul, the grand old warrior of the Cross of Christ. It is through the bars of a Roman prison that he is forced to view the threatening storm clouds of his martyrdom. But not a trace of concern or pressure, rather the conveyance of an unshaken certainty that a force mightier than that which Roman authorities can wield upon him, is in possession of him. “For me to live, is Christ, to die is gain” is his abiding testimony.
( Philippians 1:21)
It is not for himself that Paul here reviews the mystery of God’s Presence within a person, which alone makes possible the recovery of one’s self; instead, it is to stir the memory of the much younger friend and brother, Timothy. Paul has been preparing Timothy to be his successor in continuing the mission of spreading the Christian message.
In the changing world, the younger Timothy could be susceptible to the world’s new ideas and interpretations. Most certainly, Timothy will be forced to hear the worlds cynics question his involvement in the mission of spreading the new religion. “Timothy,” they will argue. “Just consider that your friend and mentor Paul is in prison and this time most likely he will not come out alive! Is that what you want from this life? Consider also the fact that many of the so-called Christians are abandoning the new religion in droves. Timothy is it really worth the investment of your self?

“Paul speaks:
Timothy, call to mind the treasure that you already possess inside. Recall the faith your mother and grandmother knew, equipping them with that inner power to stand firm in the will of God. Remember every mustard seed of faith you have seen grow through the Grace of Christ in your lifetime. Timothy, the voices of the world will become stronger. Listen not to them. You must protect the treasures God has entrusted to you. And the Spirit of the Living Christ living in you will reveal the most dynamic self you can ever become.

A PRAYER TO FOLLOW THIS MEDITATION

What language can I borrow, that can come anywhere near to adequately expressing my praise of You, my Father.
My praise seems to break through language and escape, leaving me in hushed silence.
I guess what I really feel is love. I know not how to express it though . unless thought itself be equipped with the Rhapsody of music, or be translated by some heavenly visitor to my soul.
I grow silent in thought at the realization of how” we humans are so fearfully and wonderfully made.” ( Psalm 139:14) You designed us to be intrinsically bound to the earth with its rich abundance; but yet you reserve a room inside each one of us for Your dwelling, from which You inspire us to tell the whole earth about Your Glory. Spirit with spirit is always meeting thereby making conversation always possible, between the two.
We ask You to put more courage into our hearts so that when the world starts screaming at us in protest, timidity and fear will not take us over. With an extra measure of Your Grace and Love, may the message of Your Truth flow from our lips. It is all for Your Glory, in Jesus Name, we pray, Amen.

Hymn: Here I am,  Lord – Aled Jones

:https://youtu.be/EcxOkht8w7c

 

EDITORIAL NOTES
1. Here and throughout this meditation, quotations
from the Holy Bible are from the New International
Translation, Unless otherwise noted in the text.

2.William Shakespear. Macbeth. Act 3, Scene 5

Whttps://www.litcharts.com/lit/macbeth/act-3-scene-5illiam Shakespear. Macbeth.

3. Thomas Merton. No Man Is An Island

https://ifarus.com/man-island-thomas-merton

4.Photo. ” ComeYe Apart With Me And Rest   

                           Awhile” Mark 6:31.

The Scene is Tizzards Harbour, Newfoundland,

July 2018.

 

You may gain a further understanding of the meditation that follows, a reading of the suggested scriptures will be most helpful. The Editorial Notes at the end of the post may prove to be beneficial)

Suggested Scripture Reading: 2 Corinthians 3: 1 – 18

2 Corinthians 3:18
And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the LORD’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the LORD, who is the Spirit.

The Biblical narrative of creation recorded in Genesis, ascribes to the Almighty the formation of each animal, bird, and creatures of land and sea, after its unique kind.
Each one leaves the hand of the Creator as ‘a fait accompli.’ They are destined to survive in” nature, red in tooth and claw”, depending upon their unique instinct for survival. Humankind, in contrast, is the one species which remains in God’s workshop throughout the entire experience of earthly existence. Humankind is ever the subject of an imperfect verb, denoting a continuing action. It is this truth that St. Paul expounds in a letter to the Corinthians.” We too are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
Because it is of our nature to appeal to our intellectual ability to understand all things, this supernatural mystery often seems “like an idle tale; empty talk, or silly story.”
( see Luke 24:11)
According to the beliefs confirmed by his own experiences, St. Paul, suggests that there is a “Veil” either physical or psychological, that distorts or completely obstructs one’s ability to comprehend the reality concerning the eternal. In the case of Moses, as the suggested  scripture indicates, the veil is physical, in the case of the Resurrection of Jesus, lack of faith, and the obsession with common worldly wisdom, was in consequence, the “Veil.”
Hear of the celebration of the poet John Masefield upon having that veil removed in his life:

“O glory of the lighted mind.
How dead I’d been, how dumb, how blind.
The station brook, to my new eyes,
Was babbling out of Paradise,
The waters rushing from the rain
Were singing Christ has risen again.
I thought all earthly creatures knelt
From rapture of the joy I felt.
The narrow station-wall’s brick ledge,
The wild hop withering in the hedge,
The lights in huntsman’s upper story
Were parts of an eternal glory,
Were God’s eternal garden flowers.
I stood in bliss at this for hours.”(1)

Another thing essential in the contemplation of the progressive transformation experience, according to St Paul, is the prospect of the individual reflecting” the Lord’s glory.”
It is acceptable these days when referring to our totality as human beings to use the phrase “body-mind (soul) and spirit. The body is that aspect of being that relates one to the physical, material world. The spirit is that aspect of being that refers to what is right, and beautiful, to hope and to the transforming power; to God! The mind or soul is the vehicle of choice making. Here decisions are made either to accept the persuasive influences of the body and its addictions to the world or to follow the more subtle persuasions of the spirit and the impact of the eternal.
The soul’s conscious decision to yield to the spirits’ promptings is to walk in the light of the Lord and to reflect His Glory progressively.

” Speak thou to Him, for He heareth.
And Spirit with Spirit shall meet.
Closer is He than breathing,
Nearer than hands and feet.”(2)

Some years ago my Pastoral Care responsibilities brought me to Trudy’s hospital bedside. Trudy, at that time, was near the end of her life’s journey. She had suffered many long, painful months of chemotherapy but her brain tumor was not responsive.
There is one incredible attribute of this lady I feel compelled to divulge. It was what seemed to be her natural ability” on all occasions to reflect the Lord’s glory.” She remained utterly unabashed concerning her belief in God. She portrayed with more transparency than ever before, the destiny now awaiting her. These facts were testified to by the almost constant stream of visitors to her bedside.
One morning my friend and colleague of another faith community, and I, were carrying out our routine responsibilities, when we learned from the night nursing supervisor, that it had been a particularly difficult night for Trudy. Immediately, acting upon the request of our informant, we both entered Trudy’s room. There was ample evidence within the surroundings that the night had been long with undefinable pain, and the heroic attempts to relieve it. My colleague broke the silence: ” Trudy, we understand that you had a very difficult night.” ” Yes, ” she said, her voice bearing the evidence of the memory of how difficult it had been. But then there was an immediate and remarkable change in her tone. ” It was the most horrible night I have ever lived, but did you boys see the sunrise this morning? I never saw such glory in all my life.” We both had to admit that we had not seen the sunrise that morning. “There,” she said, managing an angelic smile,” I didn’t sleep much last night, but I saw the sunrise. It was a consolation gift from God; He wanted me to know that: ‘pain may endure for the night, but joy comes with the morning.'” ( Psalm 30:5) Later we both admitted to each other while we did not experience the sunrise that morning, in Trudy’s response we had seen the glory of the Lord.

PRAYER TO FOLLOW THIS MEDITATION

Father, there is a glory in every sunrise that you give to us, reminding us of the Glory of Your dwelling place. You order the sun to come into our world to dispel the lingering shadows of the night. That fact reminds us of the coming of Your Son from the glory of Heaven, to lift every shadow from the souls of Your children, so that each may see and believe.
As the sun slowly makes its way to the western horizon, so also may Your Son progressively gain victory in our lives, thereby leaving a trail of beauty at the end of our day
As the sun with its healing rays, reaches at high noon to the far corners of the world, bringing warmth and growth, so may Your Son’s influence penetrate the drawn shades of this world, to let the glory of Your Presence with us be known anew. In His Name and for His Glory, AMEN

                                                   EDITORIAL NOTES

1. Here and throughout this meditation, the quotations from the Holy Bible are from the New International Translation, Unless otherwise noted in the text.
2.Nicholson & Lee, eds. The Oxford Book of English Mystical Verse. 1917.
337. From ‘The Everlasting Mercy’
By John Masefield https://www.bartleby.com/236/337.html

3.The Higher Pantheism https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45323/the-higher-pantheism
By Alfred, Lord Tennyson

(4) PHOTO: Is the courtesy of granddaughter MARTHA WOOLFREY. It is taken in Twillingate, Newfoundland.

HYMN: O Love, That Wilt Not Let Me

https://youtu.be/nt69WDtYNLo