"He is Risen!"
God, The Bible
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Sunday, April 12, 2009
Saturday, April 11, 2009
The Mind of Christ
If a friend does something which puzzles us, we might ask what it was
he "had in mind" in doing it. It is in this sense that Paul uses the word
mind in Philippians 2:5. What was it that seemed important to Jesus?
What principles did he cherish? What objectives? On what footing
were his choices made?
The revelation of the mind of Christ is presented here as the story of
a great change. It befits with one who was in the form of God (verse 6),
that is, one who possessed inwardly and displayed outwardly the very
nature of God himself.
As is plain, verse 6 is speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ before his
incarnation...What a change is expressed in verse 8 when he who was in
the form of God became obedient unto death Wesley put it justly when
he wrote:
"Tis mystery all! The immortal dies!"
Mystery indeed, but at the same time the testimony of the Bible. How
it could happen we cannot know, that it did happen we are assured.
There is great stress on the fact that this change came about by
voluntary decision and in this we begin to enter into the "mind of
Christ." Verse 7 says he emptied himself, and verse 8, he humbled him-
self. In each case the reflexive expression points to personal decision
and action.
Alec Motyer, The Message of Philippians: Jesus Our Joy
Who is Alec Motyer? Now retired Alec Motyer was formerly Principal
of Trinity College, Bristol. He has extensive experience in parish
ministry and is well known as a Bible expositor, of the Old Testament
in particular.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Committing to God in Perfect trust
...the way to power lies through the realization of helplessness; that
the way to victory lies through the admission of defeat; that the way to
goodness lies through the confession and the acknowledgement of sin.
Herein is an essential truth which runs through all life. If a man is ill,
the first necessity is that he should admit and recognize that he is ill,
and that then he should seek for a cure in the right place. The way to
knowledge begins with the admission of ignorance. The one man who
can never learn is the man who thinks that he knows everything already.
...the way to independence lies through dependence, and the way to
freedom lies through surrender. If ever a man is to be independent of
the chances and changes of life, that independence must come from his
complete dependence on God. If ever a man is to know true freedom,
that freedom must come through complete surrender to God.
...the way to bliss which the world can neither give nor take away lies
through the recognition of our own need, and the conviction that the need
can be met, when we commit to God in perfect trust.
Who is William Barclay? Barclay, 1907 to 1978, was an author, radio
and television presenter and a minister of the Church of Scotland. He
was also a Professor of Divinity and Biblical Criticism at the University
of Glasgow in Scotland. Barclay is best known for his 17 commentaries
on the New Testament.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
God's unfailing love
"What can you do when you've failed and denied what you believe?"
This question and others like it came out of the heart of a person who
had stumbled badly. He felt he had no right to pray, and when he tried,
he felt self-discrimination and condemnation. We all deny our Lord in
so many little ways, but what do you do when the denial contradicts
everything you've stood for and believed? Is there a way back? How
does the Lord deal with failures?
The answer is vividly portrayed in the way Jesus Christ dealt with
Simon Peter's denial. Peter could not handle the anguish of his cowardly
denial. He had to block it out, try to forget; but his efforts were futile.
Was that why he now could not bear to look Jesus in the eye?
What adventure Peter had known following the Master! He remem-
bered with self-affirmation how on the road to Caesarea Philippi he felt
the spirit rush within him. He had blurted out the conviction, "Thou art
the Christ!" He would never forget the tone of the Lord's voice when he
told him that the church would be built on the rock of his faith. A rock?
The recollection reverberated with shock waves within him. "A rock that
cracked!" he said to himself.
But the basic message of the story is this: the Lord's love does not
fail however much we fail him. Peter had built his whole relationship
with Jesus Christ on his assumed capacity to be adequate. That's why he
took his denial of the Lord so hard. His strength, loyalty, and faithfulness
were his self-generated assets of discipleship. The fallacy in Peter's mind
was this: he believed his relationship was dependent on his consistency
in producing the qualities he thought had earned him the Lord's approval.
Many of us face the same problem. We project onto the Lord our own
measured standard of acceptance. Our whole understanding of him is
based in a quid pro quo of bartered love. He will love us as if we are
good, moral, and diligent. But we have turned the tables; we try to live
so that he will love us, rather than living because he has already loved us.
Who is Lloyd Ogilvie? Lloyd John Ogilvie, is a Presbyterian minister,
who served as Chaplain of the U.S. Senate from 1995 to 2003. Dr.
Ogilvie, had a nationally syndicated weekly television show prior to
serving the Senate called, "Let God Love You." It aired for 17 years.
Dr. Ogilvie felt his role as Chaplain was to act as an intercessor for
Senators, be a trusted prayer partner and faith counselor. He sought
to keep the office as nonpolitical, nonsectarian, and nonpartisan.
He provide spiritual leadership and support to the Senate through
many significant events including the impeachment of President
Clinton; the attacks on 911; the anthrax attack in the Senate; and
the contested Presidential election in 2000. Dr. Ogilvie has received
numerous awards and authored 49 books.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Surrender and Trust
A devoted Christian woman who conducted a large Bible class with zeal
and success once came in trouble to her minister. In her earlier years
she had enjoyed much blessing in the inner chamber, in fellowship with
the Lord and His Word. But this had gradually been lost and, do what
she would, she could not get it right. The Lord had blessed her work,
but the joy had gone out of her life. The minister asked what she had
done to regain the lost blessedness. "I have done everything," said she,
"that I can think of, but all in vain."
He then questioned her about her experience in connection with her
conversion. She gave an immediate and clear answer: "At first I spared
no pains in my attempt to become better, and to free myself from sin,
but it was all useless. At last I began to understand that I must lay aside
all my efforts, and simply trust the Lord Jesus to bestow on me His life
and peace, and He did it."
"Why then," said the minister, "do you not try this again? As you go
to your inner chamber, however cold and dark your heart may be, do not
try in your own might to force yourself into the right attitude. Bow
before Him and tell Him that He sees in what a sad state you are and
that your only hope is in Him. Trust Him with a childlike trust to have
mercy upon you, and wait upon Him. You have Nothing--He has
everything.
Andrew Murray, The Prayer Life
Who is Andrew Murray? Murray was a South African write, teacher
and Christian pastor who lived from May 9, 1828 to January 18, 1917.
Murray focused heavily on Missions and was one of the founders of
the South African General Mission.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
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Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Glorifying God as our priority
Jesus in His prayers on earth, in His intercession in heaven in His
promise of an answer to our prayers from there, makes this His first
objective—the glory of His Father. Is it so with us too? Or are not, in
large measure, self-interest and self-will the strongest motive urging
us to pray? Or, if we cannot see that this is the case, have we not to
acknowledge that the distinct, conscious longing for the glory of the
Father is not what animates our prayers? And yet it must be so.Not as if the believer does not at times desire it. But he has to mourn
that he has so little attained. And he knows the reason of his failure too.
It was, because the separation between the spirit of daily life and the
spirit of the hour of prayer was too wide. We begin to see that the
desire for the glory of the Father is not something that we can awake and
present to our Lord when we prepare ourselves to pray. No! It is only
when the whole life, in all its parts, is given up to God's glory, that we
can really pray to His glory too. "Do all to the glory of God," and , "Ask
all to the glory of God"--these twin commands are inseparable:
obedience to the former is the secret grace for the latter. A life to the
glory of God is the condition of the prayers that Jesus can answer, "that
the Father may be glorified."
Who is Andrew Murray? Murray was a South African write, teacher
and Christian pastor who lived from May 9, 1828 to January 18, 1917.
Murray focused heavily on Missions and was one of the founders of
the South African General Mission.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Jesus' call to self-denial
Self-denial conjures up in our minds all sorts of images of groveling and
self-hatred. We imagine that it most certainly means the rejection of
our individuality and will probably lead to various forms of
self-mortification.
On the contrary, Jesus called us to self-denial without self-hatred.
Self-denial is simply a way of coming to understand that we do not have
to have our own way. Our happiness is not dependent upon getting what
we want. Self-denial does not mean the loss of our identity as some
suppose. Without our identity we could not even be subject to each
other. Did Jesus lose His identity when He set His face toward
Golgotha? Did Peter lose his identity when he responded to Jesus’
cross-bearing command, “Follow me” (John 21:19)? Did Paul lose his
identity when he committed himself to the One who had said, “I will
show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name” (Acts 9:16)?
Of course not. We know that the opposite was true. They found their
identity in the act of self-denial.
Self-denial is not the same thing as self-contempt. Self-contempt
claims that we have no worth, and even if we did have worth we should
reject it. Self-denial declares that we are of infinite worth and shows us
how to realize it. Self-contempt denise the goodness of the creation;
self-denial affirms that it was indeed good. Jesus made the ability to
love ourselves the prerequisite for our reaching out to others
(Matt. 22:39).
Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline
Who is Richard Foster? Foster is a Christian theologian, educator,
and author in the Quaker tradition. His best know work is the
Celebration of Discipline, which offers instruction on a variety of
inward and outward spiritual disciplines, such as, prayer, fasting,
simplicity, confession and worship. It was named by Christianity
Today as one of the top ten books of the twentieth century.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Our only legitimate goal
If we are not our own, but the Lord's, it is clear to what purpose all
our deeds must be directed. We are not our own, therefore neither our
reason nor our will should guide us in our thoughts and actions. We are
not our own, therefore we should not seek what is only expedient to the
flesh. We are not our own, therefore let us forget ourselves and our own
interests as fast as possible.
We are God's own; to him, therefore, let us live and die. We are God's
own; therefore, let his wisdom and will dominate all our actions. We
are god's own; therefore let every part of our existence be directed
towards him as our only legitimate goals.
Oh, how greatly we have advanced when we have learned not to be
our own, not to be governed by our own reason, but to surrender our
minds to God! The most effective poison to lead us to ruin is to boast
in ourselves, in our own wisdom and will power. The only escape to
safety is simply to follow the guidance of the Lord.
Our first step should be to take leave of ourselves and to apply all
of our powers to the service of the Lord. The service of the Lord does
not only include implicit obedience, but also a willingness to put aside
our sinful desires to surrender completely to the leadership of the
Holy Spirit.
The transformation of our lives by the Holy Spirit, which St.
Paul calls the renewal of the mind, is the real beginning of life but
foreign to pagan philosophers. The philosophers set up reason as
the sole guide of life, of wisdom and conduct. but Christian
philosophy demands of us that we surrender our reason to the Holy
Spirit. This means that we no longer live of ourselves, but that
Christ lives and reigns within us (Eph. 4:23; Gal. 2:20)
John Calvin, Golden Booklet of the True Christian Life
Who is John Calvin? Calvin, 1509-1564, a theologian and reformer,
was French by birth, but most of his productive years were in
Geneva, Switzerland. He was an early and prominent influence
during the Protestant Reformation through his biblical
commentaries, sermons, theological tracts. He is regarded as the
forefather of Presbyterianism.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Fasting from Criticalness
The Lord continues to deal with me about m critical spirit, convicting
me that I have been wrong to judge any person or situation:
Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge
others, you will be judeged, and with the measure you use, it will be
measured to you. (Matt 7:1-2; NIV)
One morning last week He gave me an assignment: for one day I was
to go on a "fast" from criticism. I was not to criticize anybody about
anything.
Into my mind crowded all the usual objections. "But then what happens
to value judgments? You Yourself, Lord, spoke of 'righteous judgement.'
How could society operate without standards and limits?"
All such resistance was brushed aside. "Just obey Me without question-
ing: an absolute fast on any critical statements for this day."
As I pondered this assignment, I realized there was an even humorous
side to this kind of fast. What did the Lord want to show me?
The experiment
For the first half of the day, I simply felt a void, almost as if I had been
wiped out as a person. This was especially true at lunch with my
husand, Len, my mother, son Jeff, and my secretary Jeannie Sevigny,
present. Several topics came up (school prayer, abortion, the ERA
amendment) about which I had definite opinions. I listened to the
others and kept silent. Barbed comments on the tip of my tongue
about certain world leaders were suppressed. In our talkative family
no one seemed to notice.
Bemused, I noticed that my comments were not missed. The federal
government, the judicial system, and the institutional church could
apparently get along fine without my penetrating observations. But still
I didn't see what this fast on criticism was accomplishing--until
mid-afternoon.
For several years, I had been praying for on talented young man whose
life had gotten sidetracked. Perhaps my prayers for him had been too
negative. That afternoon, a specific, positive vision for my life was
dropped into my mind with God's unmistakable hallmark on it--joy.
Ideas began to flow in a way I had not experienced in years. Now it was
apparent what the Lord wanted me to see. My critical nature had not
corrected a single one of the multitudinous things I found fault with.
What it had done was to stifle my own creativity--in prayer, in
relationship, perhaps even in writing--ideas that He wanted to give me.
Last Sunday night in a Bible study group, I told of my Day's Fast
experiment. The response was startling. Many admitted that
criticalness was the chief problem in their offices, or in their marriages,
or with their teenage children.
Who is Catherine Marshall? Catherine Marshall was the wife of famed,
Presbyterian minister and preacher, Peter Marshall. She came into the
public after his death when she published a memoir about him,
A Man Called Peter. Catherine went onto write a large number of
books and eventually became a publisher. She lived from 1914 to 1983.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Friday, April 3, 2009
God's Instrument
No Christian should ever think or say that he is not fit to be God's
instrument, for that in fact is what it means to be a Christian. We may
be humble about many things, but we may never decline to be used.
John the Baptist told the people by the river Jordan, "I baptize you
with water, for repentance, but the one who comes after me is mightier
than I, and I am not fit to take off his shoes." Then Jesus himself came
to be baptized by him, and John tried to dissuade him, saying to him,
"Do you come to me? I need rather to be baptized by you." Jesus
replied, "Let it be so for the present; we do well to conform in this
way with all that God requires." So John baptized him whose shoes he
was not fit to take off.
The gospel is full of reassurances to us, some of them startling. You
are salt to the world! You are light to all the world! Even the hairs of
your head have all been counted! These words were exciting to those
who heard them. Things might be dark but they were to be the light of
the world. They were given a new sense of their value as persons.
Especially was this true of women. One can hardly describe the joy of
the first disciples, who were given by Jesus such a sense of their
significance in the world. This same sense of significance has been
given again and again to other people by disciples of Jesus. Of these
none was greater than Fancis of Assisi. He might well have prayed:
To those who have lost their way, let me restore it to them.
To those who are aimless, let me bring purpose.
To those who do not know who they are, let me teach them that they
are the children of God and can be used as His instruments in the
never-ending work of healing and redemption.
There are therefore two things for us to do. The first is never to
doubt that God can use us if we are willing to be used, no matter what
our weaknesses. The second is to see that God can use any other person
who is willing to be used, whatever his weaknesses, and if need be, to
assure him of this truth."
Who is Alan Paton? Alan Stewart Paton was an anglican priest educated
at the University of Natal in South Africa. He was an outspoken
opponent of apartheid, and perhaps best know for his novel Cry, the
Beloved Country. He also wrote a series of meditations inspired by
St. Francis of Assisi's familiar prayer on being an instrument of God's
peace. Paton lived from 1903 to 1988.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Holy Fellowship with Jesus
But even if our conduct and conversation were more consistent with
our faith, I would still have this third charge against us: there is too
little real communion with Jesus Christ. If, by the grace of God, our
conduct and conversation were consistent and our lives were
unblemished, many of us are still sorely lacking in that area we call holy
fellowship with Jesus.
Men and women, let me ask you, How long has it been since you have
had an intimate conversation with Jesus Christ? Some of you may be
able to say, "It was only this morning that I last spoke with him; I beheld
his face with joy." But I fear that the great majority of you will have to
say, "It has been months since I have been with the Lord."
What have you been doing with your life? Is Christ living in your
home and yet you have not spoken to him for months? Do not let me
condemn you or judge; only let your conscience speak: Have we not all
lived too much without Jesus? Have we not grown contented with the
world to the neglect of Christ?
Charles Spurgeon, Spiritual Revival, the Need of the Church (audio cd)
Who is Charles Spurgeon? Spurgeon was a baptist preacher in England
who lived from 1834 to 1892. He was an amazing preacher that is often
referred to as the "prince of preachers." He also founded a pastor's
college, an orphanage, and an institution to promote literacy.
Spurgeon was a strong Calvinist whose preaching often caused much
controversy.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Conduct and conversation
In the first place, look at the conduct and conversation of too many
of us who profess to be children of God.
It has become very popular to join the Church in our day. Many
people have recently joined the Church in our country. But are there
any fewer cheats than there used to be? Are there less frauds
committed? Do we find morality more extensive? Do we find vice
coming to an end? No, we do not. Our age is as immoral as any that
preceded it. There is still as much sin, though perhaps it is more cloaked
and hidden.
It is well known that it is no guarantee of a man's honesty that he is
a member of the Church. The lives of too many of the men and women
of the Church give the world cause to wonder if there is godliness in any
of us. We reach after money, we cover, we follow the wicked ways of
this world, we oppress the poor and deny rights to the working class--
and yet we profess to be people of God! The Church lacks revival in the
lives of its members.
Second, let us take a look at the conversation of many professing
Christians. Pay attention to the conversation of the average professing
Christian. You might spend from the first of January to the end of
December and never hear them speak about their faith. They will
scarcely even mention the name of Jesus Christ at all. On Sunday
afternoon what will they talk about at the dinner table? It will not
be about the minister's sermon, unless they want to point out some
faults.
Do they ever talk about what Jesus said and did? What he suffered
for us? When we go to each other's houses, what will we talk about?
I have concluded this: you will not know how to get to heaven simply
by eavesdropping on the conversations of the members of the Church!
We talk too little about our Lord. Is this not the truth? Many of us
need to pray, "O Lord, revive your work in my soul, that my conver-
sation may be more Christ-like, seasoned with salt, and kept by the
Holy Spirit."
Charles Spurgeon, Spiritual Revival, the Need of the Church (audio cd)
Who is Charles Spurgeon? Spurgeon was a baptist preacher in England
who lived from 1834 to 1892. He was an amazing preacher that is often
referred to as the "prince of preachers." He also founded a pastor's
college, an orphanage, and an institution to promote literacy.
Spurgeon was a strong Calvinist whose preaching often caused much
controversy.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Temptations
There is a vast difference between being tempted and yielding to it.
And yet, if I know in advance that certain places will tempt me and I go
there anyway, I am guilty of each temptation that comes my way.
The way to deal with temptations is to look away from them and at
the Lord. if you are still subject to them, continue to resist. There is
no sin as long as you say no.
For every great temptation there will be many small ones. Wolves
and bears are more dangerous than flies, but we are bothered most by
the latter. You may never murder anyone, but you will certainly
become angry. You may avoid adultery, but it is not easy to control
your eyes. You may never steal anything from your neighbor but you
may covet it.
Let these flies and gnats buzz around you. Instead of fighting with
them, do the very opposite of what the temptation is suggesting. For
instance, if you are tempted to be vain, think about the troubles of
others. If you are greedy, remember how death will take it all away
from you, and then go give something away or pass up a profit. Make
the effort and you will be hardened against future temptations.
Who is Francis de Sales? Saint Francis de Sales, August 21, 1567-
December 28, 1622, was Bishop of Geneva and a Roman Catholic saint.
As an accomplished preacher he sought to bring Protestants back to
Catholicism. He is mostly known for his writings on spiritual formation.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Obedience, the golden rule of spiritual undestanding
The golden rule of understanding spiritually is not intellect, but
obedience. If a man wants scientific knowledge, intellectual curiosity
is his guide; but if he wants insights into what Jesus Christ teaches,
he can only get it by obedience. If things are dark to me, then I may be
sure there is something I will not do. Intellectual darkness comes
through ignorance; spiritual darkness comes because of something I do
not intend to obey.
No man ever receives a word from God without instantly being put
to the test by it. We disobey and then wonder why we don't go on
spiritually. "If when you come to the altar," said Jesus, "there you
remember your brother hath ought against you... don't say another
word to Me, but first go and put that thing right." The teaching of Jesus
hits us where we live. We cannot stand as humbugs before Him for one
second. He educates us down to the scruple. The Spirit of God unearths
the spirit of self-vindication; he makes us sensitive to things we never
thought of before.
When Jesus brings a thing home by His word, don't shirk it. If you
do, you will become a religious humbug. Watch the things you shrug
your shoulders over, and you will know how you do not go on
spiritually. First go---at the risk of being thought fanatical you must
obey what God tells you.
Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest
Who is Oswald Chambers? Chambers, born July 24th, 1874 in
Aberdeen, Scotland, died November 15th 1917 in Egypt, became a
Christian following a service conducted by renowned preacher,
Charles Spurgeon. We was Scottish Protestant Christian minister
and teacher, best known as the author of the widely-read
devotional My Utmost For His Highest.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
The prayer beneath
Begin where you are. Obey now: Use what little obedience you are
capable of, even if it be like a grain of mustard seed. Begin where you
are. Live this present moment, this present hour as you now sit in your
seats, in utter submission and openness toward Him. Listen outwardly
to these words, but within, behind the scenes, in the deeper levels of
our lives where you are all alone with God the Living Eternal One, keep
up a silent prayer, "Open Thou my life, Guide my thoughts where I dare
not let them go. Be Thou darest, Thy will be done." Walk on the streets
and chat with your friends. But every moment behind the scenes be in
prayer, offering yourselves in continuous obedience. I find this internal
continuous prayer life absolutely essential. It can be carried on day and
night, in the thick of business, in home and school. Such a prayer of
submission can be so simple. It is well to use a single sentence,
repeated over and over and over again, such as this: "Be Thou my will.
Be Thou my will."
Who is Thomas R. Kelly? Kelly lived 1893 to January 17, 1941.
He was an American Quaker. He taught and wrote on the subject
of mysticism.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Finding a place
The first problem is to find a place where the outer confusion can be
shut off, where the bright lights and the telephone cannot break in, and
where even religious discussion is stilled. The purpose is not to create,
or make something happen, but to allow it to happen, and where it
takes place is an individual matter. Some people find it easy to quiet
down in a church where the rule of silence is observed. For others it
may be one's own room, or in a garden or near the water, or on a
mountain top.
...there is manna in certain places that can draw a person in silence,
for instance in a room which has known the silence and listening of
many people. This was the kind of power that Jacob felt when he
awoke from dreaming of the ladder to heaven and cried out, "Truly,
Yahweh, is in this place and I never knew it!" Then he was afraid and
said, "How awe-inspiring this place is! This is nothing less than a
house of God; this is the gate of heaven!" And he made a sacred
monument of the stone on which he had lain and poured oil on top
of it, and he named the place Bethel (Genesis 28:10-19). We in the
Western tradition are often reluctant to admit that there is reality
behind an experience like this.
...Each of us can have a place like this, where stillness can take over
and one becomes open to a reality beyond oneself.
Morton T. Kelsey, The Other Side of Silence
Who is Morton T. Kelsey? Morton Kelsey died at the age of 84 in 2001.
He was an Episcopalian priest who wrote dozens of books on spiritual
formation. Kelsey also helped develop the spiritual formation program
at San Francisco Theological Seminary in San Anselmo, California.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Friday, March 27, 2009
The gift of interruptions
A few years ago I met an old professor at the University of Notre
Dame. Looking back on his long life of teaching, he said with a funny
wrinkle in his eyes: "I have always been complaining that my work was
constantly interrupted, until I slowly discovered that my interruptions
were my work."
That is the great conversion in our life: to recognize and believe
that the many unexpected events are not just disturbing interruptions
of our projects, but the way in which God molds our hearts and pre-
pares us for his return. Our great temptations are boredom and
bitterness. When our good plans are interrupted by poor weather,
our well-organized careers by illness or bad luck, our peace of mind
by inner turmoil, our hope for peace by a new war, our desire for a
stable discernment by a constant changing of the guards, and our
desire for immortality by real death, we are tempted to give in to a
paralyzing boredom or to strike back in destructive bitterness. But
when we believe that patience can make our expectations grow, then
fate can be converted into a vocation, wounds into a call for deeper
understanding, and sadness into a birthplace for joy.
Who is Henry Nouwen? Nouwen, January 24, 1932 to September
21, 1996 was a Dutch-born Catholic priest and write who authored
40 books on the spiritual life. Nouwen's books are widely read by
both Protestants and Catholics.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Why and how to love God
You have asked me to tell you why and how God is to be loved.
God himself is the reason why. Without limit is how.
For the wise, that is answer enough.
But now I will speak more elaborately, if less profoundly, for the
benefit of less agile minds.
There are two reasons for loving God. First, there is no one more
worthy of your love. Second, no one can return more in response to
your love.
God deserves our love because he first loved us. His love for us was
genuine because he sought nothing for himself. See the object of his
love: enemies. For it, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled
to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been recon-
ciled, shall we be saved through his life. Paul writes to the Romans.
God's love was unconditional.
How much did he love? The anwer is in John's Gospel: "For God so
loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever
believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." The Son, speaking
of himself, said, "The greatest way to show love for friends is to die for
them." We, the wicked, then, should love the Righteous One in return.
Who is Bernard of Clairvaux? Bernard, 1090 to August 20, 1153, was a
French abbot principally responsible for reforming the Cisterician
monastic order. Bernard was the first Cistercian monk placed on the
calendar of saints. He was canonized by Pope Alexander III, on January
18, 1174.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
The inadequacy of our love
Faithful people understand how fully they need Jesus and his death
on the cross. Seeing his love, they desire to return what little they can.
Those who know they are loved are better able to love. The one who is
forgiven more loves more. Seeing the wounds of Christ, the believer
says, I am faint with love.
Who is it that remembers God? It certainly is not a stubborn and
rebellious generation. Christ says to them, "Woe to you who are rich,
for you have already received your comfort." The ones who remember
God are those who can say, I remember God, and was troubled: I
complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Our soul is Christ's bride
and loves him ardently. But even when she thinks she is completely in
love, she feels that her love is inadequate, because she is loved so much.
And that is true. How could she love as much in return? God loves
with all his being.
Who is Bernard of Clairvaux? Bernard, 1090 to August 20, 1153, was a
French abbot principally responsible for reforming the Cisterician
monastic order. Bernard was the first Cistercian monk placed on the
calendar of saints. He was canonized by Pope Alexander III, on January
18, 1174.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
At war with thoughts
Someone will always praise good works. It is more difficult to justify
meditation and prayer. You will face a difficult dilemma. You will need
to defend yourself against criticism from those who are more active on
the social scene. You will also have to fight with your own ideas.
Perhaps you think, "I do not commit adultery or covet my neighbors
property. Therefore I must be OK." You are forgetting that there are
more than two or three categories of sin. The possibilities for sin are
vast. Are you arrogant? Angry? Insincere? What is the origin of these
things? You are required to be at war with the thoughts of your mind.
It's like the frightening discovery of a robber in your home. You resist
him, fight with him. In the same way your soul needs to return one blow
for another in the combat with your own thoughts.
How can you engage in this kind of contest between will and soul if
you think you are already good enough? Maybe you have two or three
kinds of sin under control, but dozens more are still chewing on you
and you have not even identified them.
If you think the struggle is hopeless, you do God an injustice. An
older child can usually win a fight with a younger one. It is an unfair
contest. But the soul, if it truly looks for God's help, is equal to the
struggle.
You are no match for yourself. Only God can help you. Yes, you can
struggle. You can put up a terrific fight against your own nature. You
can, as it were, trample down the weeds. Uprooting them is something
only God can do. This is why we turn to Jesus.
Pseudo-Macarius, The Fifty Spiritual Homilies and the Great Letter
Who is Pseudo-Macarius? Pseudo-Macarius, also known as Macarius
Symeon, lived 949 to 1022 A.D. He was born in Galatia, Phaphlagonia.
He was educated to be and served as a courtier to emperors in
Constantinople. At the age of 27 he retreated to a monastery. He
eventually became the abbot of St. Mammas Monastery in Constanti-
nople. The Eastern Orthodox later deemed Macarius Symeon a saint.
He was a poet deeply steeped in a meditative practice of retiring
inward, by ceasing to register the sense in order to gain experiential
knowledge of God.
To visit the Lenten Meditations site, click here.
To visit The Practical Disciple, click here.
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