You, Eternal Tr…

You, Eternal Trinity, are my Creator, and I am the work of Your
hands, and I know through the new creation which You have given me in the blood of Your
Son, that You are enamored of the beauty of Your workmanship. Oh! Abyss, oh! Eternal
Godhead, oh! Sea Profound! what more could You give me than Yourself; You are the fire
which ever burns without being consumed; You consume in Your heat all the soul’s selflove;
You are the fire which takes away all cold; with Your light You do illuminate me so
that I may know all Your truth; You are that light above all light, which illuminates supernaturally the eye of my intellect, clarifying the light of faith so abundantly and so perfectly,
that I see that my soul is alive, and in this light receives You—the true light. By the Light of
faith I have acquired wisdom in the wisdom of the Word—Your only-begotten Son. In the
light of faith I am strong, constant, and persevering. In the light of faith I hope, suffer me
not to faint by the way. This light, without which I should still walk in darkness, teaches me
the road, and for this I said, Oh! Eternal Father, that You have illuminated me with the light
of holy faith. Of a truth this light is a sea, for the soul revels in You, Eternal Trinity, the Sea
Pacific. The water of the sea is not turbid, and causes no fear to the soul, for she knows the
truth; it is a deep which manifests sweet secrets, so that where the light of Your faith abounds,
the soul is certain of what she believes.
–Catharine of Siena from her Dialog (1347-1380)

Working through Catharin of Siena’s Dialog is an encouraging reminder to be passionate in our pursuit.

If I Sleep Too Long-An Ancient Cry

O lovely and loving God‚
if I sleep too long and am not aware of your many blessings‚
wake me.
Sing me an exuberant song of joy.
It is a song without sound or notes;
it is a song of love beyond all words.
Is a song of faith that no one can describe.
I hear it in my soul when you wake me
to become aware of your presence.
amen
(Mechthild van Magdeburg – 13^th Century)

The Turning

 I can feel the Earth tossing aside the blankets of her cool Spring bed as she moves to embrace the heat of Summer.  The Spring has been extravagant in its offerings of rain, the life giving hope poured into aquifers, and hidden places.  Will this be a thirsty Summer?  Will there be a cry for rain?  In the Earth?  In me?  I watch how nature doesn’t strive with the turning.  Obedient, and present with the days.  There is a quiet acceptance and a joyous celebration in the morning songs. It is here I discover the syllabus for this season.  There is a trust that though we change, and the turnings come to our lives, there is One who does not change. There is one whose love is constant, whose supply is constant, whose compassion is constant, whose care is constant, who neither slumbers nor sleeps as He watches over the work of His hand.  One who never ceases speaking us into being, and because he is, we are. 

James 1:17  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, neither shadow that is cast by turning.

So, I listen to the praise of sparrows, who can not fall without notice from their Maker, and join with the Psalmist of Israel and turn my face to the heat of a new season, while I trust as I sing:   “I will praise the name of God with a song, and magnify Him with Thanksgiving” Psalm 69:30

What do you see?

We each have something we can give to those around us, that bring life, and hope and encouragement. We can each participate in the “fast”  ( Isaiah 58) the Lord has called us to , in helping to lift up the feeble hearts, and hands, and lives of those in need, even if we seem to be the ones who need the help the most!  An encouraging story I have picked up along the way to encourage your vision-

 

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room.

One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs.

His bed was next to the room’s only window

The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.

The men talked for hours on end.

They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation..

Every afternoon, when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window.

The man in the other bed began to live for those one hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside.

The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake.

Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats.. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.

As the man by the window described all this in exquisite details, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine this picturesque scene.

One warm afternoon, the man by the window described a parade passing by.

Although the other man could not hear the band – he could see it in his mind’s eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words.

Days, weeks and months passed.

One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep.

She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away.

As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.

Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside.
He strained to slowly turn to look out the window besides the bed.

It faced a blank wall.

The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window.

The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall.

She said, ‘Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you.’

What Happens To Me When I Live?

The world is consumed with death.What happens to the body when we die, where do we go? What affects our placement in the after-life….but, I must ask , as Christians shouldn’t we be asking the “other” question?  What happens to me when I live?  Truly live.  Radically live.  Live the reality of the indwelling nature of Christ fully alive on the inside. What then?  What changes. What has to have new language because the old can not express this living of life?

I am going to be meandering here a bit I think.

What do you think?  What happens to us when we live?

New Seed

New seed is faithful.  It roots deepest in the places that are most empty -C.P. Estes

Gen 8:22  “While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease.”

The Lord made a promise. He smelled the sweet aroma of Noah’s worship, and promised his earth seasons. She would not lay dormant, shapeless, or void again.  The passing of Winter and the coming of Spring reminds us of the faithfulness of our God. As he gives the earth we step on change, so he gives us, his earth change. We are the red earth of his hands, his workmanship and we hold his breath.  The ancient breath, and the new breath given us in Christ.  We have a promise of seasons in places that have been the most void of life.  Our response is to open the gate. To not bar our heart from the shame of the desolation, but to open the gate and allow the Master Gardener to enter with his seed bag in hand, and gaze across the desolate landscape and throw with all the creative power of His being. Ours is to receive.  To not judge the seed thrown, or its placement.  Ours is to yield to the rooting, and trust the Father for Heaven’s Rain. 

Lord come into my garden.  Take delight in me.

From my friend Kelly, what a beautiful devotion.

Embrace the Blessing

I am overwhelmed today by God’s kindness, gentleness, justice, and mercy.  Whatever the need that I find myself experiencing, there is always an abundant and appropriate supply to satisfy it. The amount, the type, and the timing of His supply is always perfect.  And it is always offered as a result of His graciousness, rather than my deservedness.

This morning I am in the midst of one of those moments when my heart, mind, and my will feel as if they have momentarily aligned perfectly in union with Him.  It is as if we are making a connection in the spirit, much like eye contact between two souls who love and know one another at a very deep level.  There is an interaction that takes place that does not require words.  In fact, words would diminish the moment because they are inadequate to express the depth, the scope, and the beauty of the…

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Keenings

Reading a poem by George Herbert rightly titled the Agony.  The last line has gripped my heart.

Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up for thyself wrath in the day … when God shall judge the secrets of men, according to my gospel, by Jesus Christ. (Rom. 2:4-5, 16)

THE AGONY

Philosophers have measured mountains,
Fathom’d the depths of seas, of states, and kings,
Walk’d with a staff to heaven, and traced fountains
But there are two vast, spacious things,
The which to measure it doth more behove:
Yet few there are that sound them; Sin and Love.

Who would know Sin, let him repair
Unto Mount Olivet; there shall he see
A man, so wrung with pains, that all his hair,
His skin…

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A great post on prayer from a fellow blogger. Enjoy!

Chief of the least

Your Father knows what you need before you ask him…(Matthew 6:8)

I struggle with prayer.

Conceptually and practically.

Most of those struggles are probably because I put unwarranted credence on my feelings at any given prayer moment. If I don’t feel a tangible groaning, or a burning in my chest, or goosebumps on my neck, then my prayers must have been rendered ineffective. Right? If I voice my prayer simply and without a series of major spiritual manifestations then certainly my appeals never made it past the bedroom ceiling. Right?

Wrong.

I am submitting to the awful doctrine that unless my prayer experience “feels” right to me, then God is impotent to answer them. In a twisted way, that is putting emotional subjectivism on the throne and kicking a Sovereign King off of it.

On top of this, Matthew 6:8 raises a different objection in the conscientious Christian:

God already knows what we will ask, so why…

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If- The care of a soul

If the care of a soul (or a community) be entrusted to me,

and I consent to subject it to weakening influences,

because the voice of the world-

my immediate Christian world-

fills my ears,

then I know nothing of Calvary love.

Amy-Carmichael, IF

Proverbs 2:2  Incline your ear to wisdom and your heart to understanding

It is a privilege to be entrusted with a soul. To care for and nurture the inner man with weighty substance of things eternal.  The phrase:  “voice of the world” echoes deep. What are the sounds I have trained my ear to listen for?  Earthly pleasures? Pleasing promises? Accolades? Most worthy causes? Does my ear know how to pick out the phrases of a soul’s heart cry when the face before me is all smiles and “no worries?”  Do I discern the voice behind the words?  Do I listen for heart phrases, and silent sighs? Have I turned from the still and small to embrace the clamor and clang of man’s cymbal-lic honors, and tinkling praise? Oh Lord, let me not consent to weaken the message of hope, or bend under the pressure of the praise of men.  Let me fear The King, and know wisdom.  Let me love the silence between the words and know Calvary love.

Pro 9:10  The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.