In The Name Of Jesus

Posted on January 3, 2012 by Alan

A new year—new beginnings—a time to re-enter the ‘blog’ world!

Here are some thoughts from Karl Rahner on this mysterious threshold of crossing into a new year:

“One can fall into despair or melancholy when one realizes on New Year’s Eve that yet another part of one’s earthly life is irrevocably past. But time passes on toward God and eternity, not toward the past and destruction. And so—in God’s name!…But we Christians know the definitive name of God: Jesus. For that is the name which that child received who is God and the eternal youth of the world, who is a man and as such the eternal countenance of God. Let us sign the cross of this Jesus on brow, mind, and heart. Let us say with relief: our help is in the name of the Lord! And then stoutheartedly let us cross the threshold of the new year. If his name shines above it, even its darkest hour will be an hour of the year of the Lord and of his salvation.”

Amazing stuff! Even the darkest hour can be received and overcome because ‘this is the year of the Lord.’ May we move forward in confidence and enthusiasm—’full of God’—because this is his year and he is near.

The Resurrection

Posted on April 23, 2011 by Alan

“The resurrection shows the limitlessness of God’s reliability. ‘Strong as death is love’ says the Song of Songs (8:6) but the resurrection proves that God’s love is stronger than death. Now we are secure and safe in the love of God. Now we know that there is no limit to it. His forgiveness makes evident that our sins are drowned in his love. The resurrection reveals that our death is overcome by his love. Now we can really trust God and rely on him. All fear will disappear from our lives. The resurrection unearths the depth, the quality of the reliability of God’s love” (Peter van Breeman, As Bread Is Broken).

Jesus is Lord! He has broken through the death barrier and as a result leads and draws us into his life. He has given us the best thing—eternal life!

Let us remember that while we live under the human overcast the light of resurrection still shines above and will win the day.

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A Power In Your Life

Posted on January 5, 2010 by Alan

Words from Martin Luther King Jr. as we begin 2010:

“So I say to you, seek God and discover Him and make Him a power in your life. Without Him all of our efforts turn to ashes and our sunrises into darkest nights. Without Him, life is a meaningless drama with the decisive scenes missing. But with him we are able to rise from the fatigue of despair to the bouyancy of hope. With him we are able to rise from the midnight of desperation to the daybreak of joy. St. Augustine was right—we were made for God and we will be restless until we find rest in him”.

A power in our lives promoting meaning, hope, joy and rest—words and realities we all desire to experience. Thank you Martin for the reminder and the encouragement!

Spirit Words

Posted on January 3, 2010 by Alan

‘To Live With The Spirit’

To live with the Spirit of God is to be a listener.

It is to keep the vigil of mystery,

earthless and still.

One leans to catch the stirring of the Spirit,

strange as the wind’s will.

To live with the Spirit of God is to be a lover.

It is becoming love, and like to Him

toward Whom we strain with metaphors of creatures:

fire-sweep and water-rush and the wind’s whim.

The soul is all activity, all silence;

and though it surges Godward to its goal,

it holds, as moving earth holds sleeping noonday,

the peace that is the listening of the soul. (Jessica Powers)

The Spirit encourages us to listen—to be quiet. It is in listening that the voice is heard…’and after the fire a sound of sheer silence…when Elijah heard it…’

To train ourselves to listen is the place where the Spirit Words are heard.

The poet reminds us.

Doxology

Posted on December 28, 2009 by Alan

A poem of praise from one of my favorite poets. Here is Doxology:

God fills my being to the brim

with floods of His immensity.

I drown within a drop of Him

whose sea-bed is infinity.

The Son is never far away from me

for presence is what love compels.

Divinely and incarnately

He draws me where His mercy dwells.

Praise to the Father and the Son

and to the Spirit! May I be,

O Water, Wave and Tide in One,

Thine animate doxology.

Jessica Powers

Powers, an Irish-American poet of some 400 poems, reminds us to raise our eyes—to see the One who is above the frenzy and give praise—which centers and calms the weary heart.

In spite of it all

Posted on December 15, 2009 by Alan

Madeleine L’Engle avers, “During my journey through life I have moved in and out of agnosticism and even atheism, as I become bewildered by what mankind has done to God; and so, too often, I see God in man’s image, rather than the other way around. But I cannot live for long in this dead-end world, but return to the more open places of my child’s intuitive love of God, where I know that all creatures are the concern of the God who created the galaxies, and who nevertheless notes the fall of each sparrow. And from the darkness I cry out: God!”

In spite of it all: God! In spite of it all: God! In spite of it all: God!

Claiming True Peace

Posted on December 11, 2009 by Alan

Keep your eyes on the prince of peace, the one who doesn’t cling to his divine power; the one who refuses to turn stones into bread, jump from great heights, and rule with great power…; the one who touches the lame, the crippled, and the blind, the one who speaks words of forgiveness and encouragement….Keep your eyes on him who becomes poor with the poor, weak with the weak. He is the source of all peace.

Advent and Christmas Wisdom, Henri Nouwen

Namesake

Posted on December 10, 2009 by Alan

My inspiration for ‘theslantwise’ emerged out of this poem by Emily Dickinson.

Tell all the Truth but tell it slant

Success in Circuit lies

Too bright for our infirm Delight

The Truth’s superb surprise

As Lightening to the Children eased

With explanation kind

The Truth must dazzle gradually

Or every man be blind—

Emily Dickinson