12.03.2006

Levitical Truths.

"Christians have no equivalent to [the Feast of Unleavened Bread], but it serves as a reminder of at least four important 'oughts' of the Christian life. First, Christians ought to be in haste to obey God's will. Secondly, Christians ought to be a pilgrim people, always making spiritual progress and never settling into a state of smug spiritual complacency. Thirdly, Christians ought regularly to examine their lives and throw out the corrupting influences of sin. Finally, Christians ought to feast themselves on the nutritious food of truth instead of on the seductive junk food of compromise that is often mistaken for it." -Derek Tidball, The Message of Leviticus

"How good is the God we adore,
Our faithful, unchangeable Friend!
His love is great as his power,
And knows neither measure nor end!

'Tis Jesus, the first and the last,
Whose Spirit shall guide us safe home;
We'll praise him for all this past,
And trust him for all that's to come."
-Joseph Hart (qtd. in The Message of Leviticus)

"The truth is that many of us get worn down by the endless round of tedious tasks and do not find ourselves being brought nearer to God through them. When this happens we need to look to Jesus. A prayer by Ruth Etchells puts it brilliantly. Having complained about discouragement and 'the weariness of grinding routine', she continues:
And then I turn my eyes to you, Lord Christ:

You gave up the infinite space of eternity,
The shining serenity of heaven;
Surrendered your power, honour and rightful glory
To the crushing finitude of our human life.

O my Lord Christ, for what? for whom?
Yes, Lord, I hear you. For us. For me.

You gave up the lovely companionships of eternity,
The totally trusting, totally trustworthy loves of heaven;
Were subject to pettiness, scorn, misunderstanding,
And the limited love your friends could give you
And the humiliations and death your enemies planned for you.

Yes, Lord, I hear you. For us. For me.

O my Lord, forgive me. For you took to yourself the tedium and frustration of this ordinary human life of mine, and so lived it that it gave glimpses of the glory and the richness of the life within it of heaven, for which we were created and for which I long. You showed how the life of heaven was present to be live here and now; and you opened up for us the way to do it.
O Lord, help me to grasp hold of that truth today, so that the ordinary things I do and my every encounter, reflect, however dimly, the lambency of heaven. To which heaven bring me in fullness, my dear Lord Christ, one day.

Amen."
-Tidball, The Message of Leviticus


2 comments:

  1. Great stuff Jess

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  2. Hey I like you. Thanks for going through Pent with me.

    ReplyDelete