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lesfeldickbiblestudy · 2 years

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Through the Bible with Les Feldick LESSON 1 * PART 4 * BOOK 61 ISAIAH 42:8 – 45:3 - Part 2 You in the studio audience have had your coffee at the break. For those of you joining us out there on television, I know a lot of you do as we do here. You grab your cup of coffee and then you go sit down and watch the program. We hear that over and over and over. But, the main thing is that you get what the Book has to say. If the coffee helps, so be it. We’ve had many tell us that while studying with us they suddenly realize they had not previously believed in their heart that Jesus died for their sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, as Paul tells us to believe for salvation in I Corinthians 15:1-4. As a result of studying with us they have become true believers. So, praise the Lord for that. Again, I want to thank our television folks. My, I just can’t put it into words how that without ever using any gimmicks, without ever begging or pleading for money for the ministry, it just keeps coming in and always covers what we need. We don’t have any great big bank balance, but the Lord just supplies it as we need it, so thank you from the bottom of our heart. Okay, back into Isaiah chapter 44 where we were in the last lesson. I’m going to jump down to verse 24. We’ll skip a couple of verses here. But, remember now, that God is still pleading with Israel that He’s not going to give up on them. He’ll chastise them if He has to but He will never give up on them. Isaiah 44:24a "Thus saith the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb,…" In other words, Israel came about by God’s judicial decree when He called Abram out of the Ur of the Chaldees and gave him the Abrahamic Covenant. When He said in Genesis 12:1-3 "that I will make of thee a great (what?) nation." That was God’s idea. It didn’t just happen by accident. They were by design brought out of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and the Twelve Tribes. Isaiah 44:24b "…he formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that maketh all things; (He’s the Creator of everything.) that stretchest forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;" He didn’t need any help! He speaks the Word and it accomplishes. Isaiah 44:25 "That frustrateth the tokens of the liars and maketh diviners mad;…" (In other words, God can just totally foul up the works of Satan and his followers.) that turns wise men backward and makes their knowledge foolish;" My! Whenever I think of wise men made foolish, I have to think of the Apostle Paul when he confronted the intellectuals on Mars Hill and what’d they call him? The Babbler. But, you know, as I’ve said over and over, whenever you go to Mars Hill and I hope it’s still there, (it was when Iris and I were there years back) there was a plaque to only one great famous figure who spoke on Mars Hill. It wasn’t Archimedes; it wasn’t Galileo or any of the other great Greek intellectuals. Who was it? It was Saul of Tarsus, the Apostle Paul. So, the babbler was the only one that history really made an account of. But see, here it is again, God can frustrate the work of the so-called intellectual community, because He is God. Isaiah 44:26a "That confirmeth the word of his servant, (that is Israel) and performeth the counsel of his messengers;…" Now, there I have to think, what’s he referring to? The Word of God. This whole book comes from the pen of what people? Jews. Every one of them a Jew! Don’t ever buy the gimmick that Luke was a Gentile. He couldn’t have been. He had to be a Jew to be a writer of Scripture because it’s "God’s servant" that wrote the Word, as we see in Romans 3:1. Isaiah 44:26b "…that saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited;…" Now, here’s a reference to when He has emptied them out for those seventy years of captivity and Jerusalem is a shambles, it’s empty, it’s lying waste. He’s going to bring Israel back. Isaiah 44:26c-27 "…Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built, (after they come back) and I will raise up the decayed places thereof.

27. (I am the God. I’m putting that in now only for clarification.) That saith to the deep, be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers: " If God wants the Euphrates to be dry, He’ll dry it up. Isaiah 44:28a " (I am the God) That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure;…" Now, let’s stop a minute. From history, who was Cyrus? Well, he was the emperor of the Mede and Persian Empire that defeated the Babylonians. So, it was the Mede and Persian Empire that ruled the then known world, including Jerusalem. So, after the 70 years of captivity had run their course, the Medes and Persians was now the empire, it was no longer Babylon. God had decreed through one of the Jewish prophets over a hundred years before that this man Cyrus would be raised up to open the way for the Jew to come back. You know, I think I made mention of this. I had someone call one time and say, "Why are you so adamant that the Bible is the only true Word of God?" Because the Bible is the only Word that proves itself. I used this analogy right here. I said, "There’s not another religious book on this planet, not a one, that can name people 150 years before they’re born. King Josiah was named 300 years before he was born. Here we have Cyrus named 150 years before he was born. No other book can do that. No other book can decree that the Jew would be scattered into every nation under heaven and then one day come back. No other book can give three hundred and some distinct prophecies concerning Christ’s first coming and all be fulfilled. Not a one." So, we always have to be adamant and I am. There is no other Book besides this Book! It is the only Word of God. Everything else is counterfeit. Everything else is by Satan’s design, not God’s. They can counterfeit it, but they can’t take its place. So, I love this reference to Cyrus and I’m going to use it to the hilt because here is a king, an emperor by God’s design, in the right place at the right time because the seventy years of the captivity have run their course. Israel has now been out of the land for 70 years. It’s time for the Jews to go back and rebuild the city and the Temple and get everything in place for the coming of the Messiah, some five hundred years later? By the time the Temple is rebuilt we’re down to 400 BC. And 400 years later, Messiah comes. All right, so let’s just look at this a minute. Verse 28: Isaiah 44:28a "(I am the God) That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd,…" Now, this is unusual. No other Gentile is referred to as one of God’s shepherds. That’s amazing. But this man is. He is there by God’s design. Some commentaries will actually depict Cyrus as a "type" of Christ because Christ is the true Shepherd and Cyrus is merely a "type." Well, I can see where they’re coming from because, you see, what’s Cyrus going to do? Cyrus is going to set up the decree and make everything ready for the return of Israel to Jerusalem. Cyrus is going to be almost a Messiah of "type" because he’s making the way ready for Israel to return. All right, let’s go back and pick this man Cyrus up in Ezra chapter 1. Now, while you’re doing that I can go to my timeline. Here we come to 606 BC. Nebuchadnezzar overruns Jerusalem and destroys the city and the Temple. Israel is taken out to Babylon for 70 years. The nation is completely out of the land. There may be a few stragglers left, but for the most part the land has been empty. All right, now, we’re at the end of the 70 years, which takes us down to 546 BC or something like that. Under Ezra a small contingent of Jews, 44,000 really, just a small tiny percentage are going to come back, and they’re going to be rebuilding the Temple. Now, they have started rebuilding the Temple in about 546 BC. A hundred years later, about 446 BC or thereabouts, comes Nehemiah and Nehemiah’s instruction is under yet another Emperor called Artaxerxes the King, and we may look at that if we have time, who follows Cyrus, but he’s still an Emperor of the Medes and Persians.

So, Ezra comes back to rebuild the Temple which takes almost 50-60 years and they dedicate it just shortly before Nehemiah comes back to rebuild the wall and the gates and so forth. All right, so by the time we get to 400 BC everything is now getting ready for the nation of Israel to be repopulated. The Temple is operating. The priesthood is in place for the coming of the Messiah. Everything has to be rebuilt and ready. Now, we know that King Herod, in order to gain favor with the Jews, thought he could remodel and embellish the Temple that Ezra made because, after all, Ezra and his poor guys coming back from Babylon didn’t have a lot of expertise. So, it probably was not all that beautiful. So, King Herod thought, "Well, I’ll do a favor to the Jews," and Herod was a builder. There’s nothing that Herod was known for more than being a fantastic builder. So, King Herod decided that the Temple Mount wasn’t big enough for the Temple complex he wanted to build so what did he do? He enlarged it. All right, now when King Herod decided to enlarge the Temple mount, even today if you’re going to enlarge a hillside what are you going to do to hold the dirt in place? Well, you’re going to build a retaining wall. That’s what Herod did. Herod built that huge retaining wall so that he could fill it with dirt and so forth and have more room for the Temple Complex. Now, that retaining wall is what you see in the news every so often – It’s now called the Wailing Wall. That’s not part of the Temple itself. It’s simply Herod’s retaining wall to hold the fill dirt. Got it? Now then, with the Temple Mount enlarged, Herod could build a more beautiful, larger Temple Complex. That was the Temple that was in place when Jesus began His earthly ministry. That’s why the disciples were even proud of that beautiful Temple. They were almost braggadocio about it. Then, that’s why the Lord told them in Matthew 24, "See all these things, every stone will be thrown down one on top of the other," which, of course, the Romans did forty years later, in 70 AD. But, all right, Ezra chapter 1 verse 1, they’ve been gone now for 70 years and everything is a shambles. Ezra 1:1-2a "Now in the first year of Cyrus the King of Persia, (same guy.) that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD, (Now, always remember that LORD is Jehovah, it’s God the Son.) stirred up the spirit of Cyrus the King of Persia, (Now, remember, who was Persia in biblical times? Present day Iran. Same country. Same people) that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it in writing, saying, 2. Thus saith Cyrus the King of Persia, the LORD God of heaven..." From a pagan king! See? But, I think Cyrus may have been a believer. I don’t think I’m being too far a field by saying that. He may have been an exceptional Gentile who became a believer. Ezra 1:2b-3a "…The LORD God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; (the then-known world. Why did he succeed in every battle? Because God saw to it that he did.) and he hath charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. (Now, verse 3, so King Cyrus puts out the news to the whole Jewish community.) Who is there among you of all his people?..." Now, that’s Israel. He’s not asking the Persians, he’s asking Jews. Ezra 1:3-4 "Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the LORD, the God of Israel, he is the God which is in Jerusalem. 4. And whosoever remaineth in any place where he sojourneth, let the men of this place help him with silver, gold, goods, beasts beside the freewill offering for the house of God that is in Jerusalem." In other words, then, like now, if you’re going to go into a building project, what did it take? Money. It took money. It took goods. It took wherewithal. Things haven’t changed. It’s always been this way. Ezra 1:5 "Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and

Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites, with all of them whose spirit God had raised, to go up to build the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem." Now, here they prepare to go. Ezra 1:6-7 And all they that were about them strengthened their hand with vessels of silver, and gold and goods and beast, precious things, besides that which was willingly offered. 7. Also Cyrus (this Gentile king) the king brought forth the vessels of the house of the LORD, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put them in the house of his gods." You see why Nebuchadnezzar fell? He desecrated the Temple. He took all of the Godly things back to Babylon when he took Jerusalem and incorporated them into the pagan worship of the gods of Babylon. But Cyrus, you see, a servant of Jehovah, does just the opposite. He brings all of those things that were stolen from Jerusalem and takes them back to the building of the new Temple. Then, you get into chapter 2 and you have the number of people that will finally come forward and agree to go back to Jerusalem and start rebuilding the Temple. All right, now then let me, while we’re here, just go on through Ezra. Go on to Nehemiah a minute where we were in our first program and stop in Nehemiah chapter 2. Now, this is many years later after the Temple has now been pretty much built, almost a hundred years, and now Nehemiah is a servant of the next king of the Medes and the Persians. It’s no longer Cyrus, who has already died and passed off the scene. So, here we are almost 100 years later in chapter 2 of Nehemiah, verse 1: Nehemiah 2:1a "And it came to pass in the month Nisan, (that is in April) in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king,…" Now, we’ve got a different king. Still the same empire, but this is probably a grandson or something of Cyrus. Nehemiah 2:1b-3 "…that wine was before him: (he was serving wine before him) and I took up the wine, and gave it to the king. 2. Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is your countenance sad, seeing you are not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was sore afraid. 3. And I said to the king, Let the king live forever: why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, (Now, we’re not talking about the Temple, we’re talking about the city, the houses, the buildings, the wall for defense.) the place of my fathers sepulchers lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire?" A hundred and seventy years! Why didn’t the Arab world go in there and fix it all up and have it going like everything and claim it themselves. Have you ever thought of that? They could have. No, they couldn’t have. God wouldn’t have let them! But, nevertheless, when you hear the propaganda today that the Jews have no right to the land, that it’s the Arab’s homeland, it has always been their land, it’s always been a land of production, ignore it. No, it hasn’t! It was desolate! There was nobody building it up. The trash and the rubble the Babylonians had left 170 years earlier were still laying there. Amongst the trash they built the Temple up there on the mount, but the city itself is still in rubble. Now, reading on in verse 4. Nehemiah 2:4 "Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven." Now, he didn’t run to his closet. He didn’t run to someplace to get in private. Right before the king he prayed. Do you think he so much as moved his lips? Nope. How did he pray? Silently. He just prayed in thought. That’s what I always try to tell people. You don’t have to be in some special place to pray. You can pray anywhere. You don’t have to pray out loud. God reads your prayers. Nehemiah 2:5a "And I said to the king, If it please the king,…" And so on and so forth. Well, the same thing happens to Nehemiah as happened to Ezra. The king gives him letters to give him safe travel and to give him permission to use whatever he needed from the king’s forest to start rebuilding the city. All right, then you come

down to verse 10, and here again we want you to understand that instead of the Arabs having rebuilt everything, instead of everything all nice and ready for the Jews like the Canaanites had done hundreds of years earlier, they haven’t lifted a stone! They haven’t picked up a piece of wood. It’s rubble everywhere. Nehemiah 2:10 "So when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, (now what are those? Those are Arabs) heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel." Has anything changed? Nothing. Nehemiah 2:11 "So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days." All right, now for sake of time, I’m going to jump you all up to verse 17. Now, Nehemiah says: Nehemiah 2:17a "Then I said unto them, (that is to the Jews who are going to help build the city and the wall) You see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth (what?) waste…" , I’m going to make the point if nothing else by repetition, repetition, repetition. How many years has it been laying waste? A hundred and seventy or more! Now, look, read on, the language. Nehemiah 2:17b "…and the gates are burned with fire: (They’re not closable. There were no walls to protect even the builders of the Temple. So, Nehemiah says) come let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach." Now, I made the point somewhere when I was teaching that back in antiquity what was the first real line of defense for a city? The wall. That was the only thing they had. They didn’t have the technology that we’ve got today. The wall was their first line of defense. If you were a city without a wall, you were almost a reproach. So, that’s what Nehemiah has said, "We can’t be a reproach in the midst of these people. We have to get the wall built." So, they begin. Now, verse 18. Nehemiah 2:18 "Then I told them of the hand of my God (See His Sovereignty? Everything is accomplished because of the Sovereignty of Israel’s God.) who was good upon me; as also the king’s words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work." But, verse 19, here comes opposition from the Arabs again. Nehemiah 2:19 "But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah his servant the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, when they heard it, they laughed us to scorn, and despised us and they said, What is this thing that you do? Will you rebel against the king?" They didn’t know that the king was the one that brought it about. Nehemiah 2:20 "Then I answered and said unto them, The God of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build: but you have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem." That’s what the Word of God says. Yet, the world tonight can’t read can they? They just can’t put it together.

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seekfirst-community · 2 years

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Meditation: Do you seek God's way of peace and wisdom for your life? The prophets remind us that God's kingdom is available to those who are teachable and receptive to the word of God. Through their obedience to God's word and commandments, they receive not only wisdom and peace for themselves, but they, in turn become a blessing to their children and their offspring as well. Jesus warns the generation of his day to heed God's word before it is too late. He compares proud teachers and vain scholars with stubborn playmates who refuse to follow wise counsel and instruction.

Jesus parable about a group of disappointed musicians and their stubborn friends who refuse to sing or dance at the appropriate occasion challenge us to examine whether we are selective to only hear and do what we want to hear. The young music players in Jesus' parable react with great dismay because they cannot get anyone to follow their instruction. They complain that if they play their music at weddings, no one will join in their festive song and dance; and if they play mournful tunes and songs at funerals, no one will join in at all. This parable echoes the wisdom of Ecclesiastes 3:4 - "there is a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance." Are you in tune with the message of God's kingdom? And do you heed God's word of wisdom and truth as if your life depended on it?

Spiritual indifference and deaf ears can block God's word for us

Jesus' message of the kingdom of God is a proclamation of good news that produces great joy and hope for those who listen and obey - but it is also a warning of bad consequences and disaster for those who refuse to accept God's gracious invitation. Why did the message of John the Baptist and the message of Jesus meet with resistance and deaf ears? It was out of jealously and spiritual blindness that the scribes and Pharisees attributed John the Baptist's austerities to the devil and they attributed Jesus' table fellowship as evidence for pretending to be the Messiah. They succeeded in frustrating God's plan for their lives because they had closed their hearts to the message of John the Baptist and now they close their ears to Jesus, God's anointed Son sent to redeem us from bondage to sin and death.

What can make us spiritually dull and slow to hear God's voice? Like the generation of Jesus' time, our age is marked by indifference and contempt, especially in regards to the things of heaven. Indifference dulls our ears to God's voice and to the good news of the Gospel. Only the humble of heart can find joy and favor in God's sight. Is you life in tune with Jesus' message of hope and salvation? And do you know the joy and blessing of believing and obeying God's word?

"Lord Jesus, open my ears to hear the good news of your kingdom and set my heart free to love and serve you joyfully. May nothing keep me from following you wholeheartedly."

the star of obedience

“If you would hearken to My commandments, your prosperity would be like a river, and your vindication like the waves of the sea.” —Isaiah 48:18

Christmas, like life, is a matter of obedience. If we obey the Lord’s commands, we will become prosperous, vindicated, blessed, and assured this Christmas (Is 48:18-19). However, we are often like rebellious, disobedient children who want to give orders rather than take them (Mt 11:16-17). We must repent of this self-willed, disobedient attitude or we will deprive ourselves of Christmas and even of Christ.

At the first Christmas, the Lord gave His commands to Mary and Joseph through His angel (Lk 1:28; Mt 1:20) and the government (Lk 2:1). He commanded the wise men through a star and the Scriptures (Mt 2:2-6). He commanded the shepherds through a choir of angels (Lk 2:11-12). The few who obeyed were present at the first Christmas. Yet a world of innkeepers had no room in their hearts even for the Messiah (Lk 2:7).

It is the same today. The real Christmas, the personal encounter with Christ, is for those who believe in the Lord enough to obey Him. Only those who follow the star of obedience will make their way to the manger and find the Christ-Child.

Prayer: Lord, if I don’t die to self, I’ll miss out on Christmas again and I’ll never love You. I repent.

Promise: “I, the Lord, your God, teach you what is for your good, and lead you on the way you should go.” —Is 48:17

Praise: It is easy to forget St. Juan Diego was born an Aztec peasant. He later converted to Catholicism. Providentially, the Lord often chooses the lowly to spread His message.

Reference: (For a related teaching on Obedience School, view, download or order our leaflet or listen to, download or order Obeying God on our CD 62-3 or DVD 63 on our website.)

Rescript: "In accord with the Code of Canon Law, I hereby grant the Nihil Obstat for the publication One Bread, One Body covering the time period from December 1,2022 through January 31,2023. Reverend Steve J. Angi, Chancellor, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio April 12, 2022"

The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements

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steveezekiel · 2 years

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AGENTS OF DARKNESS AND THEIR OPERATIONS 1

"FOR WE DO NOT WRESTLE AGAINST FLESH AND BLOOD, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places."

Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV)

• Everything about Satan is a deception because Satan has nothing good to offer anyone who is following him.

THE Bible CALLS him a deceiver and the accuser of the people of God (Revelation 12:9-11).

• Also, Satan is not a God, he is a created being not the Creator (2 Thessalonians 3:3,4).

READ: Isaiah 14:12-15; Ezekiel 28:11-19; Revelation 20:1-3,10 in order to know more about how Satan came to be, his falling, and how his end would be.

- The fact that the devil is not a God but a created being shows that he is not omnipresent, he cannot be everywhere at a time, although he is a spirit being, that is, a supernatural being.

- Another important thing to Note is, he, the devil, is diversified in his operations, he has human beings who have sold their hearts to him and they operate as his agents.

- These AGENTS of dark kingdom, satan’s kingdom, are human beings WHO have agreed with the devil to propagate his work and kingdom.

- They are witches, wizards Or sorcerers, marine kingdom agents, those with familiar spirit, voodoo priests, herbalists, witch doctors, and others.

- For the reason that Satan has those who are loyal to him, his presence is noted everywhere: some of the people in the neighborhood where you live may be among those who are loyal to him, some where you are working, Or in your school, and some are even in the church as mixed multitude.

THEY propagate the work of the devil and use the power he gave TO them to launch the attacks against believers, those who are loyal to God (Revelation 12:17).

THEY use the power with which they are empowered by the devil to counter and frustrate the efforts of the believers Who propagate the gospel and the kingdom of God.

6. "Now when they [Barnabas, Paul, and others] had gone through the island to Paphos, THEY FOUND A CERTAIN SORCERER, A FALSE PROPHET, a Jew whose name was Bar-Jesus,

7. who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man called for Barnabas and Saul [Paul] and sought to hear the word of God.

8. BUT ELYMAS THE SORCERER (for so his name is translated) WITHSTOOD [opposed] THEM, SEEKING TO TURN THE PROCONSUL AWAY FROM THE FAITH.

9. Then Saul, who is also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him

10. and said, "O full of all deceit and all fraud, YOU SON OF THE DEVIL, YOU ENEMY OF ALL RIGHTEOUSNESS, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?

11. "And now, indeed, the hand of the Lord is upon you, AND YOU SHALL BE BLIND, NOT SEEING THE SUN FOR A TIME." And immediately a dark mist fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand."

Acts 13:6-11 (NKJV)

- These agents of DARKNESS attack ministers, their works, and their homes. They incite other people to rebel against the authority of the ministers of God (Numbers 16:1-3).

PAUL in his work at Ephesus had someone who stood against him and his work: "ALEXANDER THE COPPERSMITH DID ME MUCH HARM. May the Lord repay him according to his works. You [Timothy] also must beware of him, FOR HE HAS GREATLY RESISTED OUR WORDS" (2 Timothy 4:14).

• Take note: in your personal Life

- Whoever comes with an open confrontation after a successful meeting, ministration, or a great exploits in the ministry, is an agent of the devil.

- Someone whom you see and your heart cuts.

SOMEONE who appears to you in the dream, either to attack or confront you, is an agent of the devil.

- Someone who uses what he or she has to oppress you.

WHOEVER takes an advantage of a need in your life to oppress you, threaten you, or hold you to ransom.

PERHAPS such did THAT because of the assistance he or she rendered, Or had offered you.

- If you noticed this in your relationship with someone, it shows the person has a strange spirit, witchcraft spirit—control manipulation.

• How to handle it:

- Deal with such in prayer.

- Do not confront such physically: strenuously avoid any open or physical confrontation, that is, do not allow any strife.

- If you do confront physically, you may lose the battle.

- If there is a need to appeal to the person physically for peace to reign, do not hesitate to do that, but do not stop dealing with such spiritually in prayer.

- Avoid completely anything that will lure you into physical battle:

“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal [not of the flesh] but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds” (2 Corinthians 10:4).

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places."

Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV)

NOTE: When God started dealing with such, do not start to dance and rejoice about it.

17. "DO NOT REJOICE WHEN YOUR ENEMY FALLS, and do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles;

18. LEST THE LORD SEE IT, AND IT DISPLEASE HIM, and He turn away His wrath from him."

Proverbs 24:17,18 (NKJV)

- Just continue with your work and let God do as He pleases with the person or people.

- Take note: when you go about rejoicing and telling other people about what befalls the person, God may stop dealing with such.

- Keep the battle on, do not stop, and do not get discouraged or wearied.

- You need to know the person or the people in question are not your enemies, but they did yield to the devil: they have been taken captive by him to be used as instruments against you and the work you are doing (2 Timothy 2:26).

• You will not fail in Jesus' name.

Peace!

TO BE CONTINUED

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frmartinshomiliesandreflections · 4 years

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9th December >> Fr. Martin’s Gospel Reflections / Homilies on Matthew 11:28-30 for Wednesday, Second Week of Advent: ‘I will give you rest’.

Wednesday, Second Week of Advent

Gospel (Except USA)

Matthew 11:28-30

My yoke is easy and my burden light

Jesus said, ‘Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light.’

Gospel (USA)

Matthew 11:28-30

Come to me, all you who labor.

Jesus said to the crowds: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

Reflections (5)

(i) Wednesday, Second Week of Advent

We are in the season of Advent and the prayer we often pray in Advent is, ‘Come, Lord Jesus’. Advent is a season when we try to open our lives more fully to the coming of the Lord. We call on him to ‘come’ into our hearts, minds and lives. In today’s gospel reading, however, it is Jesus who calls on us to come to him, ‘Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest’. There are always those two movements in the lives of people of faith. We invite the Lord to come to us and we try to respond to the Lord’s call to come to him. The primary element in that two fold movement is the Lord’s call to us to come. He calls us to come before we call on him to come. He has loved us before we have loved him. The call of Jesus in today’s gospel reading is a very personal call, ‘Come to me’. He doesn’t say come to my teaching or come to my followers, but, ‘come to me’. That personal call of the Lord is addressed to each one of us without exception. Jesus also makes a promise to those who respond to his call to come to him, ‘I will give you rest’. What is Jesus promising there? We sometimes think of rest as the absence of activity. However, in the bible, ‘rest’ suggests the refreshing break that travellers in a barren desert would find in some oasis they come across. In that sense, ‘rest’ is a revival or renewal of our body and spirit. ‘Rest’ in that sense is more akin to ‘strength’. In the first reading, the prophet says that the Lord ‘gives strength to the wearied’. We can all become wearied in body, mind and spirit, especially in these Covid times. In the gospel reading Jesus promises restful strength to those who come to him. In the lovely image of the first reading, ‘those who hope in the Lord renew their strength, they put wings like the eagles’. This Advent we ask the Lord for such wings!

And/Or

(ii) Wednesday, Second Week of Advent

We often associate weariness with advancing years. However, the first reading this morning declares that ‘young men may grow tired and weary’. Even those in their prime may grow tired and weary. What is true for those in their prime is certainly true for the rest of us. We can all grow tired and weary for various reasons. Physical weariness is the easiest to deal with. Very often a good night’s sleep will deal with that kind of tiredness. Weariness of heart and of spirit can be more difficult to deal with. A good night’s sleep will not necessarily deal with emotional or spiritual weariness. This is the kind of weariness which leaves us lacking in any kind of hopeful energy. It can be brought on by many things, such as persistent criticism, failure, be it personal or communal, a negativity that prevails about church and state, putting effort into something that seems to lead nowhere. The first reading also declares that even though young men may grow tired and weary, the Lord does not grow tired or weary. The Lord remains full of life, because he is life itself. Our communion with the Lord of life can bring life to our declining spirits and strength to our weariness. That is why, in the gospel reading, Jesus calls on those who labour and are overburdened to come to him and promises them rest for their souls and spirits. In Advent we call on Jesus to come to us, ‘Maranatha, Come Lord’. Today’s readings remind us that the Lord also calls on us to come to him, so as to draw strength from his strength and life from his life.

And/Or

(iii) Wednesday, Second Week of Advent

There is a close correspondence between the image of God in the first reading and the image of Jesus in the gospel reading. In the first reading God speaks of himself as someone who never grows tired or weary and, because of that, can give strength to the wearied and strengthen the powerless. In the gospel reading Jesus speaks of himself as someone who gives rest to those who labour and are overburdened. As a result, he calls on all those who labour and are overburdened to come to him. The message of both readings is that the Lord has a special ministry to those who are tired and weary, to those who are labouring and weighed down by burdens of one kind or another. The end of that first reading says, ‘Young men may grow tired and weary; youths may stumble’. How much more is that the case with those of us who no longer quite qualify as young men or women. We can easily grow tired and weary, including growing tired and weary of serving others. The reading declares that ‘those who hope in the Lord renew their strength, they put our wings like eagles’. We need to keep drawing on the Lord’s strength if we are to give his strength to others. At the heart of our relationship with those you serve is our own relationship with the Lord. Advent is a good season to come before the Lord in our weakness, perhaps in our tiredness, and to ask him to fill us with his strength, so that we can be channels of his life-giving strength to others, especially to those who are overburdened.

And/Or

(iv) Wednesday, Second Week of Advent

The first reading declares that ‘young men may grow tired and weary’. We know from experience that it is not only young men who can grow tired and weary. We can all grow tired and weary. Tiredness and weariness comes to us all from time to time. Indeed, in the words of the gospel reading, we can find ourselves labouring and feeling overburdened. The run-up to Christmas can have that effect on people. Other, more traumatic experiences in life can leave us feeling tired and weary, labouring and overburdened. That first reading also declares that the Lord ‘does not grow tired or weary’. Because he does not grow tired or weary, he calls out to those who are tired and weary, inviting them to come to him, and promising them rest. The Lord can be our strength when we are weak, our rest when we are tired, our support when we are burdened. The great Advent prayer is our invitation, ‘Come, Lord, Jesus’. However, in the gospel reading, it is the Lord who invites us to come. His call to us is prior to our prayer to him. When in responding to that call of the Lord we experience him as our strength, our rest, our support, we, in turn, can be a source of strength, rest and support to each other. The strength we receive from the Lord is for others as well as for ourselves.

And/Or

(v) Wednesday, Second Week of Advent

We tend to associate advancing years with declining energy. As we get older, we don’t always have the energy we once had, and this can a source of frustration for us. Yet, today’s first reading from Isaiah acknowledges that even ‘young men may grow tired and weary’, and that even ‘youths may stumble’. There is such a thing as a weariness of the spirit, which can affect people at any age. Some young people can seem listless, whereas some older people can be full of vitality. Isaiah declares in that reading that the Lord is the one who alone can address and deal with this kind of weariness of spirit. ‘He gives strength to the wearied, he strengthens the powerless’. The Lord does not grow tired or weary. He is the Lord of life who remains vibrant at all times. By turning towards him in our weakness and weariness we can imbibe some of his perennial strength and vitality. In the words of Isaiah, ‘those who hope in the Lord renew their strength’. This is the promise that Jesus makes in the gospel reading, ‘Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest’. There is much in life that can deaden our spirit, at any age. It is the Lord, and our relationship with him, that can keep us young and vital even in old age. The Lord comes to us as strength in our weakness, as vitality in our weariness, as hope in our despondency. What is asked of us is that we welcome his coming and be attentive to his presence to us.

Fr. Martin Hogan.

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michellewyatt · 4 years

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Getting the Squeeze

We don’t mean to word vomit all over our friends and overshare with all we are going through, but it’s what we do. Pace yourself though or you will run out of friends if that is all you do! A couple of weeks ago, a friend called to go to dinner. We haven’t seen each other in a while so before arriving at the restaurant I told myself to keep everything simple, stay strong, and don’t be needy. Welp, that didn’t happen… We started talking and l completely forgot about the instructions I gave myself. She got a mouthful of everything going on in my life. It wasn’t all about me, she shared what was going on in her life as well. It couldn’t have been more of what I needed if I had planned it myself. Maybe God knew what He was doing. She said something that forever changed me… not everything you are going through is an attack… sometimes it’s God squeezing you. Have you felt maxed out beyond your capacity to handle, stretched beyond what you feel able to endure any longer? Me too! It’s easy to blame my behavior and my heart’s responses on the tough circumstances I find myself in.

Let’s discuss the squeezing process. I’m not talking about the squeeze of an affectionate hug but instead, let’s think about what happens to an orange when it is squeezed to make orange juice. First, you roll the orange around on a counter while pressing on it to get the juices flowing. Then you cut the orange in half. The last step is to place the orange on the juicer while pressing down with all your might and twisting the orange until all the juice is out. Then yummy orange juice to drink! That’s quite a process to go through. Can you imagine what it takes for God to squeeze us into the person He is calling us to be? The pressing, the squeezing, maybe even in the cut down the middle?! Sounds painful, doesn’t it? This is why we immediately say “it’s an attack of the enemy”.

God has been showing me how the squeezing is molding me and making me into His masterpiece. It removes things that have been locked inside me for a long time. This doesn’t mean these things are wrong or sinful (but could be), but things that will hold me back from growing the seeds of greatness He planted inside me. It means that I have become apathetic or comfortable where I am. It means that I am too concerned with what others think and continually compare myself without considering what He says about me. I am going through a lot of transition in my life. This is a new season for me again! Could it please just stop changing already? Nope. Because I won’t be that person if it does.

What came out of my heart? Insecurity in certain friendships, anxiety as I engage the reality of working for hubby and building a business as well as a ministry together, and doubts about whether God will provide for me even though He always has. Oh, and that’s not all! I’ve also felt frustration because if I’m honest, it would be nice if it was an easier road to walk than the one God has chosen for me. At times, all of this squeezing has led to feeling completely overwhelmed. Although my circumstances may be different than yours, when we get down to heart issues, we are more alike than different.

What I am learning is that if I am to expand my faith, I must be willing to be squeezed to get the juices flowing from the pressure. Once I allow the juices to flow, He can use me in ways I never realized. This entire squeezing process is to get Him to flow through me to help others.

When you feel squeezed with fearful thoughts threatening to paralyze you it’s not from God. Maybe you’re feeling like Moses in Exodus 4:13 when he asked God to please send someone else to do the job. Or perhaps you’re like Jonah, and you want to run away from what God’s called you to do. These things can be painful beyond words, but the truth is, being squeezed by life can humble us in Him. God builds a redemptive bridge into the lives of others from our challenging circumstances.

You need to hear this: being squeezed isn’t an indication that God is rejecting or abandoning you. In His sovereignty and love, God is refining us. And the beauty is that in the middle of this refining squeeze, God is tender and gentle to us, even though it may not feel like it. Isaiah 42:3 says, “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.” He loves us enough to allow hard circumstances to sanctify us and make us more like Jesus. But as he does so, he brings comfort and encouragement to our weak and oppressed hearts.

Many things in our lives are out of our control, however, we can control how we respond to them. We are responsible for what we allow in our lives through television, radio, friends, etc. Are we allowing circumstances to control us or are we turning to Him through the process to see where we can be more like Him? It has given me such a peace knowing that so much of what I was going through was not from Him or the enemy but just life. It was God letting me know it is time to move on to the next chapter and with His squeezing, the juice will flow.

#squeeze #family #God #orange juice #relationship #love

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pamphletstoinspire · 5 years

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Why Pagan Pilate Is Found in the Creed

When Pontius Pilate accepted the post of Governor of Judaea, he never could have imagined that he’d cross paths with God Incarnate, or that his name would end up in the creed recited by millions of Christians every Sunday.

And yet Pontius Pilate is in both of the main Christian creeds, the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed (see here for a side-by-side comparison).

Both creeds assign a similar role to Pilate. Here’s what the Nicene version says:

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered died and was buried.

The Apostles Creed is comparable:

He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell.

As Catholics, we recite the Nicene Creed every Sunday without giving much thought to the pagan in the creed. Pilate is, after all, an integral part of the story of Jesus. Nevertheless, his place in the creed is curious. Everything else in the two creeds is a person, object, or belief of the faith. As far as we know, Pilate never came to the faith and, even if he did, that’s not why he’s in the creed.

We simply cannot accept the explanation that he was casually thrown in. Remember, the early Christians fiercely debated the truths of the faith down to the very letter. At one point, the division between Arians and orthodox Christians hinged on whether the letter “i” should be added to the Greek word homoousious. Without the additional letter, the word declared that Jesus was the ‘same in being’ or ‘consubstantial’ with the Father. The change in spelling, however, would have changed its meaning to say that Christ was only ‘alike’ in being to the Father.

So no, Pilate is not in the creed by accident.

History

First, Pilate’s existence reinforces the historicity of the Incarnation. His reference confirms that Jesus walked this earth and died on it at a specific time and place. The story of Jesus is anchored in concrete events. God entered history itself and Pilate’s presence in the drama reminds us of this. (This is the explanation preferred by patristic commentator Rufinus, who says of the framers of the creed, “They who have handed down the Creed to us have with much forethought specified the time when these things were done.”)

Witness to Innocence of Jesus

Second, Pilate stands as a witness to Jesus’ innocence. In the gospel accounts, Pilate is the closest thing to an impartial judge Jesus was going to get. He examines Jesus and acquits Him of the charges. Luke 23:14-15 recounts his words this way:

You brought this man to me and accused him of inciting the people to revolt. I have conducted my investigation in your presence and have not found this man guilty of the charges you have brought against him, nor did Herod, for he sent him back to us. So no capital crime has been committed by him.

This is a crucial aspect of Jesus’ atoning sacrifice on our behalf: He was innocent. He was the ‘the sinless, spotless Lamb of God’ offered for our sake (1 Peter 1:19).

Pilate’s overall significance extends beyond the two reasons outlined above. In bringing him to mind, the creed beckons us to look closer into the role he plays in the gospel story.

Witness to the Emptiness of the World

We can begin by noting that Pilate marks an interesting contrast with the Jewish opponents of Jesus. Both parties represent opposite approaches to worldly government. If the Jewish leaders in the story were overly zealous for the reconstitution of an earthly Jewish state, Pilate was completely dispassionate and indifferent. He is the personification of the bored bureaucrat who can’t be bothered to take a position on right and wrong. All four gospel account portray his decision to execute Jesus as an act meant to mollify angry crowds (see Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and John 18). In Matthew, Pilate even washes his hands in front of the crowd in any effort to shirk any responsibility.

The World’s Rejection of Jesus

It seems necessary that Jesus’ rejection be as complete as possible. His people—at least a sizable portion of them—had rejected Him. Pilate’s sentence thus represents the rejection of the world. Ironically, in a way, this paves the way for all future believers to accept Jesus. Although the next two thousand years would contain many instances of powerful Christian states and Church institutions, at its heart, the story of Jesus is of a God who assumed our humanity in radical humility, asking us to ‘believe also in me’ (John 14:1). The redemptive work of Jesus would not have been possibly had he been the worldly savior so many Jews of the time wanted. Likewise, had a pious Pilate saved Him there would have been no suffering, no death, and no resurrection.

An Admonition to Believe

In the account of John, Pilate doesn’t seem to know what to make of Jesus:

Jesus answered, “My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here.” So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate said to him, “What is truth?” (John 18:36-38)

What must it have been like for this Roman figurehead to breathe the same air as God-made-man? What did He see when He looked into Christ’s eyes? Did He sense he was in the presence of something and Someone far greater than what he could comprehend? Pilate certainly seems curious. In the above dialogue, he is clearly feeling Jesus out, trying to get to the bottom of things.

His final question has lent itself to many interpretations. On its face, it looks like the ultimate statement of relativism. Others have seen it as sarcasm or an expression of frustration. There is yet another interpretation, according to Matthew Henry, a seventeenth century Presbyterian commentator:

Pilate put a good question, he said, What is truth? When we search the Scriptures, and attend the ministry of the word, it must be with this inquiry, What is truth? and with this prayer, Lead me in thy truth; into all truth. But many put this question, who have not patience to preserve in their search after truth; or not humility enough to receive it.

Pilate stands as both a cautionary tale and a call to faith. He shows the perils of not pursuing the truth. And, in so doing, he calls us to respond differently. When we seek the truth. When we ask the truth we must wait for Jesus to answer us.

The Mystical Theological Reason

Finally, there is a mystical theological reason for Pilate’s encounter with Christ. It was necessary for the Good News to be announced throughout the world. Jesus preached, of course, to his fellow Jews. But the Word also needed to reach the Gentiles. Of course, the apostles later would spread the Gospel, but it was fitting for the Word Incarnate to do so Himself. Pilate stands in for all the future Gentiles who would hear it.

Jesus’ mission had to be complete. Isaiah 55 describes God’s Word as if it was journeying throughout the world. 1 Peter 3:19 says He even preached to the ‘spirts in prison’—that is, those in hell, announcing to them the Good News they had forfeited. Indeed, in On the Incarnation of the Word, St. Athanasius says Jesus ‘filled’ the whole world with His teaching.

Many before Him have been kings and tyrants of the earth, history tells also of many among the Chaldeans and Egyptians and Indians who were wise men and magicians. But which of those, I do not say after his death, but while yet in this life, was ever able so far to prevail as to fill the whole world with his teaching and retrieve so great a multitude from the craven fear of idols, as our Savior has won over from idols to Himself?

Jesus continues to fill the world with His teaching today through the Church. Thanks to His enduring Presence among us we can be confident we still hear His voice speaking to us from the gospel accounts. And, while His words to Pilate may have fallen on deaf ears, may the opposite be the case with us.

BY: STEPHEN BEALE

From: https://www.pamphletstoinspire.com/

#why pontius pilate is found in the creed

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thehauntrpg-blog · 6 years

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Name: Reilly Joseph Carmody Age Range: 32 Gender: Male Pronouns: He/Him Occupation: Priest at the Church of St. Anthony of Padua Status: TAKEN by jules

You are a Shepherd of God’s flock, and you lead yours lovingly, no matter how small your flock may be, no matter how far they stray. Sallybrook is a town further from God’s light than you had ever thought possible, but nevertheless, you persist. You always thought your faith unshakeable, a concrete foundation built on the skeletons you hide, protecting you from the world — God’s light keeps you pure. Following the Godly path was the less frightening of two evils, and you’ve always been more petrified of telling the truth than preaching it. You wrapped yourself in a clerical collar and locked out any truths you couldn’t bear to face. Maybe that makes you a hypocrite, but you’re still doing good work, God’s work. You want to save souls, but this place… this place is wicked, wickeder than you’d ever imagine, and when tragedy strikes, a tragedy that, for a town like this, is as inevitable as the sunrise, you start to wonder if there are shadows even He cannot reach.

Isaiah: You hate to think of anyone as a “black sheep”. No one is truly lost, just… led astray. And to you, they’re a member of your flock that’s wandered, that’s gotten lost, that needs love and guidance and faith to come back to Him. You’ve got a little collection of stray sheep, and it started with them. Your door is always open, and they’ve crossed that threshold several times, looking for spiritual guidance, spiritual conversation… solidarity. You can’t offer them as much as they need. You can’t offer them everything you have, and that makes you feel guilty — and you think, maybe they can see through you. Not clearly. You’ve learned how to keep different things close to chest, smothered under your clerical collar, but you think they’ve spotted some of your hypocrisy. If you want to serve Him, you have to bring them back to God, but you don’t think you can bring them back to God without betraying Him, and that’s an impossible choice to make.

Alice: They welcomed you to Sallybrook with open arms, making you feel at home in one of the most alienating places you’ve ever been. You held their hand while they held his, and handed them the paper that would make him theirs; you also held their hand as they waited for him to return, letting their nails dig into your skin when he didn’t. They’re devout, and that draws them to you, but you’re the same and worlds apart all at once. They shook your faith, and now, you can’t preach honestly. You've never hesitated in telling your flock that God is Good, God is Kind, God is Gracious — but how can you look them in the eye and say that when you know, firsthand, that what they've experienced is a Godless act?

tw: Internalized homophobia, religious homophobia, religious conflict.

You were the fourth of seven children — “Seven’s a lucky number, you know,” is what your father said when someone commented on his brood. Seven might’ve been lucky, sure, but it was an odd number, and you were the odd one out as long as you can remember. Your eldest siblings, Kiara and Dylan, the twins, were closer than close. Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, your mother would tease affectionately. You remember hours of car rides spent listening to them bicker about which one Dum was. Your older brother Jamie was always popular, well-loved and athletic, playing hockey and football as soon as he could walk. Your little brother Conor was quiet but intense, as good a hockey player as Jamie, and took to mechanics even better than your dad. And then your two little sisters, Catherine and Chloe, close in age and in general, were too young for you to really relate to, and even if you tried, they seemed to speak their own language. So you stood alone.

Growing up, you weren’t… good at making friends. Not with other kids, at least. You were too sensitive and too independent for your own good — you sat inside with your Sunday school teacher, doing advanced bible study by yourself, while the other kids played outside, laughing and screaming so loud you thought it’d make your head explode. You always got along with older people, though. Your Sunday school teacher, your reverend, your regular teachers and your boy scout leader — they all adored you. But other children thought you were strange. When you were seven, your father told you why, and you’d never forget what he’d said: “You’re too soft. You’re too sensitive. You’re too… you. Be a little more like the rest of them, think a little more like the rest of them, that’s how you’ll get on.” He was right.

You were too sensitive when you were little, but you were smart enough to learn how to use it. Feeling for others was overwhelming, until you turned the dimmer down on your feelings; you built up a dam to stop it from flooding you. You quickly discovered that there was a power in knowing how others felt without feeling it yourself. You learned how to blend, how to act like they did, smother your own impulses and desires to follow the crowd, and combined with your quick mind and quirky charm, you started to lead the pack. You were never good at sports, but you were good at other things, and got as much as you could out of that — your magnetism and wit made you an ideal class president, and you were, six years running, all through middle and high school. You lead the school’s bible study, and was the go-to tutor for Religion class, your own devout nature making you a walking encyclopedia when it came to Biblical questions.

Devout was both an understatement and an overstatement, a duality that’s split you open your whole life. You were, unquestionably, a Catholic family growing up. Big, Irish, Godly. Church every Sunday, Confession like clockwork. You always had your shoes shined the shiniest, your hair the neatest, your smile the brightest of all your siblings, and your parents loved you for it. As far you fell short of their expectations, you were always their most faithful son. You’d never tried to miss Church, and you were always more than happy to participate, going from altar boy to leading the youth ministry. And you were a believer — how could you not be? You were raised to. God was in everything; He was ingrained in the fabric of your world. You truly believed, and you wanted others to feel as strongly as you did. But — you were also good at it.

You liked reading the Bible growing up. Your father’s den had a massive bible on this ornate golden stand, one you’re certain he rarely read, but one you spent countless hours flipping through. You liked hearing about Jesus’s teaching, liked reading the stories and learning the lessons. More than that, though, you liked the rules. You were the boy who always read the instructions booklet before starting a board game, who read the whole manual before daring to take a new toy out of its box — you liked to know. You liked boundaries, you liked guidelines, you liked how every piece of life could be codified, an answer to (almost) every question — it made sense, and it made a complicated, frustrating world make sense.

You were good at it, and you liked it, too. The pews of your church was more home to you than your living room couch. You never truly felt like you were part of your family — your father and siblings made sure of that. You were close with your mother, but she was exhausted, raising seven children, and only had so much time. But you were the only child who showed up early to Mass and returned late, just because you wanted to talk to the reverend for a little while longer. The parish staff became a second family; Mrs. Byrne taught you how to play the piano like she did for each hymn, and you would talk through lunch and halfway to dinner with Father Murray, asking question after question about anything you could think of. They paid attention to you. You realized you could find love, family, acceptance through the Church.

It was hardly a surprise when, at only fourteen, you first brought up entering the priesthood. It was a big decision, but it seemed almost natural for you, a born Biblical scholar. Your parents were encouraging, though your mother hesitated before embracing the idea fully. She, more than your father, asked you to consider your options carefully; to become a priest was not a decision to be taken lightly, it wasn’t just some job. She told you not to make any choices until after high school at least, though urged you to wait until you finished college before committing fully. You took her concerns to heart, and spent most of your four years of high school trying to make up your mind.

The final push came when your childhood best friend came out as gay. There’d always been something between the two of you — you had few friends, but he was your first, if only because of proximity. It started as the inevitable friendship of same-age next-door neighbours, but blossomed into something more; a meeting of kindred spirits, maybe. He was bookish and smart like you, but sweet, more easygoing than you’d ever been. You complimented one another, and that’s what made your friendship good. You first kissed at fifteen, tearful and afraid on the floor of his bedroom, door blocked by a chair. It was grazing touches, close-lipped kisses, so innocent it made you feel perverse. You couldn’t handle it. You couldn’t handle him telling people about him, because it could trigger assumptions about you — and if that happened, everything would come crashing down. The framework of your world, the rules you organized yourself around, would fall to pieces. For years, you kept the part of you that loved him and the part of you that loved Him completely separate, but when he came out, you had to give one up. You sacrificed him to stay in God’s light.

You’ve only acknowledged yourself as gay once. It was in your last year at Brown, applying to Harvard Divinity School. You were both an obvious Ivy Leaguer and absolutely not made for it at all. Your classic, Christian, all-American look and solemn, bookish nature masked the desperation you suspect lived in all of your classmates, the need for acceptance and prestige and recognition. You needed to go to HDS. You needed to become a priest. It was a key part of maintaining the elaborate net that was your life — if any strand broke, it would send you plummeting. You put a pen to paper, and for the first and only time in your life, you wrote: “I’m gay.” Maybe it was bullshit, pulling out your sob story, trying to use it to maneuver yourself to where you wanted to be, but that’s how you operated, and it worked. It worked, because you built from a kernel of truth. You did want to know how to balance your Catholic faith and your gay identity, you wanted to know how you could love God and He could love you when you also loved other men, you wanted to ask if there was a place for gay men in the Church, in the ministry, in the pews or in front of the parish. You wanted to know if there was any way for you not to hate yourself without losing your faith.

You wanted to know all of it, and that, you think, is why they let you in, but you weren’t brave enough to be the one to ask those questions.

Still, you excelled, and once you graduated with your MDiv, you started working in congregations around Massachusetts. Your first was in Cambridge, as a youth minister in one of the churches you did your practicums in; they loved you so much they demanded you do your practical training there. You excelled, your focus being reaching out to at-risk youth, providing programming, support and resources. From there, you moved to a congregation in Boston, and started an at-risk youth program that provided housing, food and educational supports in a faith-based environment. Your interest in social justice and social work made you a natural fit for that kind of environment, and you led with grace. Your superiors recognized your natural aptitude for working in difficult environments, and commended you for letting your faith lead you to those who needed you most. The first time you led a sermon on your own, your entire family drove all the way to Boston to see you, to pray with you, and you’d never seen your father so proud. It filled you, reinforced the feeling that you were doing the right thing. You saw your parents, your brothers and sisters, your nieces and nephews, all sitting in the pews, looking up at you with so much pride, and you realized this was the only path you could’ve taken. There never was any other option.

You spent six years in Boston, and whenever you came home to visit, you were your family’s pride. After all, there was no greater joy in a Catholic family than to have a priest for a son. You devoted your life to fulfilling a Godly path — and it wasn’t like your parents ever had to worry about grandkids, your siblings more than happy to take that on. The heat was off of you. As long as you kept the collar on, you would be the best son they could ask for.

Last year, your Bishop pulled you aside to speak privately. You felt a rush of panic when he asked to speak to you in confidence; while you’d gained the attention of your superiors within your church, you’d never been singled out by someone so powerful in that way, and for just a brief moment, you were afraid. You were afraid they found out… what? You were afraid they found something, anything, that could bring it all down — but it was just the opposite. Despite your youth, they wanted you to lead your own parish. The reverend of the congregation in question had just retired unexpectedly, and this church was… a special case. It required a delicate hand. Terrible things happened in this town, ungodly things. Witchcraft and devilry abound. You were surprised; you didn’t think this could possibly still be an issue anywhere in America, but he was gravely insistent when he asked you to take it seriously, and consider whether you were spiritually prepared to take on such a difficult task. You’d seen fifteen-year-olds come to you overdosing, helped countless homeless kids, watched your flock disappear to the streets or worse. You’d seen some terrible things, and you were still stronger in your faith than anyone thought possible. You were the only one they could think of to take on the Church in Sallybrook, and you agreed.

When you moved to Sallybrook, you weren’t expecting it to be… what it was. It was a normal town, sleepy, picturesque. But you knew what they meant. This place was out of God’s light. You felt a darkness as soon as you stepped foot in your new parish. But a woman greeted you, introducing herself as Alice, telling you she’d be your guide. She was your first friend, and helped you fall in step with this little town. You got to know your congregation quickly, and realized that it was an uphill battle you had to fight. People were afraid, they were grieving, they were hurting, and you didn’t understand any of it. You weren’t privy to a full understanding of the Haunt until it happened. By then, it was too late. You’d become entangled in Sallybrook’s weeds, and you couldn’t leave. Not after he disappeared.

Sam Davis was a sweet boy, one you saw often in Mass, heard running around the school. He’d grown close with Alice, and because of that, you got to know him too. He was part of the Church’s foster program, and it was your approval (in a committee, of course) that allowed Alice to adopt him properly. You handed her the papers yourself. And then, he disappeared. Whisked away, vanished without a trace. Gone, like he’d never been here in the first place. You stared at his empty seat in the first row of pews, the first Sunday mass after he went missing, and your voice shook. You spoke about God’s strength, His love, His plan — but for the first time in a long time, you questioned your faith.

It took you the year to build yourself up again, but now, you feel the same creeping fear as the rest of Sallybrook. You might not know quite what it is, or believe in the stories surrounding it, but you know it’s getting closer, and it’s going to take another child, ruin another family, whittle away at the hope and faith of this town. You’ve never known loss like this, and you can hardly bear being embroiled in it. You don’t want another one of your flock picked off. You don’t want to lose them. But you don’t know if you’re strong enough to lead.

#lsrpg #rpg #horror rp #town rp #skeleton rp #reilly

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romancatholicreflections · 6 years

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25th December >> Daily Reflection on Today’s Mass Readings for Roman Catholics on The Nativity of the Lord (Christmas) Any of the readings for Christmas may be used at any Mass celebrated Christmas Eve or Christmas Morning.

The readings for Midnight Mass are the traditional Christmas readings.

Celebrating Christmas

Christmas Desires Page

A Reflection on the Manger

Christmas Prayers

Weekly Guide for Daily Prayer

Pope Francis' Christmas Homilies:

2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013

The good news came first to shepherds. They didn’t live in town but slept side by side with their sheep, carrying the smell of the animals with them always. They would have been less than welcomed in the market stalls in town with their dirt and smell and matted hair. Yet it is these people, living on the margins, who first hear of the birth of the savior. Not only were the terrified shepherds reassured, “Be not afraid,” but they were invited to seek out the baby and to be the first to meet this savior face to face.

The shepherds, and all of Israel, had been waiting for centuries for the Messiah who would save them from this very hard life. In today’s first reading, Isaiah writes of a “people who walk in darkness” and a “land of gloom.” The people in Isaiah’s time, in Jesus’ time, and in our own, faced wars, brutal governments, constant battles and a wondering if they would ever be safe. Yet Isaiah promises them – and us – hope. Into that darkness, a light has shown. Our burdens will be lifted and rejoicing will be ours.

Luke’s gospel describes how the oppressive Roman government who now ruled their land, wanted a census of all of those who lived there. So Joseph and Mary had to travel to Bethlehem, an arduous journey for a woman fully pregnant. They left home, family and friends to comply with the Roman order. Adding hardship to their trip, crowds in the city meant they had to stay in a stable, where an exhausted Mary finally gave birth. Into that stable, the dirty shepherds straggled in, sleepless, wide-eyed and as humble as anyone can imagine.

We might not always think “Humble,” when we think of our Christmas celebrations today. We spend extra effort for special occasions and might splurge a little in spending or time to make it exceptional. But as we celebrate this day, we will find our true “peace on earth” and the Light shining into our lives if we embrace humility in the midst of today’s joy. We have to remember that it is not about us.

If my Christmas celebration is not “perfect” or all of my hard work seems under-appreciated, I can draw on the humility of the shepherds, remember that Jesus is with me in every moment of this day, and whisper to myself, “A light has shown.”

When family tensions rise at the dinner table or yet another toddler falls apart in furious wails at the celebration, instead of snapping impatiently, I can ask for humility and serenity and silently pray, “On earth, Peace.”

Too often I might be stretched and frazzled by the time people gather and I’m not in the mood to ask for patience. It is into this very moment that Jesus can enter my life so deeply. Jesus has come into my life for the challenging moments as well as the wonderful ones and I am often more aware of my own need for a savior when I am not at my best. When I am disappointed or angry or frustrated at those around me, that is when I can pause and remember how much Jesus longs to hold me close and enfold me with his love. He isn’t waiting for me to behave better to love me, he is loving me right now. And that is a deeply comforting thought.

On this Christmas Day, when everything glitters, we can take a moment to imagine ourselves in the midst of the smell and noise of the stable and the shepherds. Like them, we are being called to meet our Savior and to rejoice.

by Maureen McCann Waldron

Creighton University's Collaborative Ministry Office, retired

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pastorcowboy · 6 years

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Scattering the seeds of the Christ

Matthew series: Ministry of Jesus

Matthew 13 The religious atmosphere part 3

I’m going to call this chapter the scattered seed chapter. To this point, we have instruction, prophecy, and revelation. All three of these things are wrapped together in the Christ. Who is he? The Old testament talks of this man but the Israelite nation did not know for sure what this Christ would look like. What would he do? Where would he come from? If you re-read Matthews first 12 chapters we see the authorities confused over where this Christ should come from. From Harrod to the Magi they all were searching, dissecting, and interpreting the scriptures, traditions, and rumors. The scattered seeds are all these hints of Jesus first coming. What have you heard in the past about Jesus?

Matthew 13:9 “Whoever has ears, let them hear.”

Matthew 11:9 “Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.”

I wondered if I should call this lesson the religious atmosphere. This is about kingdom talk, parables, and sowing seed. Yet, that is the atmosphere of the day. The people meant to read this book were Jewish. They knew the Old Testament well. Possibly too well. It had become bla bla to them because of poor religious observance and teaching. It is by no mistake that Matthew quotes Isaiah, Daniel, Jerimiah, and others. They were all warning of the same thing. They see but don’t see. They hear but don’t hear. Matthew 13 is a final warning to the readers. Listen or perish. I think why Matthew quotes so many prophets is to prove they did not listen to these men they idolized. I am sure you have heard good phrases or words in the past. Did you listen to them?

Matthew 13:14 “In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.”

Jerimiah 5:21 “Hear this, you foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear.”

This whole chapter is about listening. It’s about believing. Matthew wants people to believe in Jesus. Yet, he knows the religious climate. They were blind and tone deaf. The wheat, weeds, and seed represent the words of God spoken through the prophets of old. This word was scattered all over Israel. Yet, the fruit, crops, and harvest of this seed was minimal. In many ways the bad religion was the weeds and thorns choking the harvest. Also, the hearts of the people had gone hard. I wonder if the occupation of Babylonia and then Rome had crushed the hearts of the nation. They were captives. God said he would be their God. Where was God? I think Jesus came at exactly the right time. People needed hope, faith, and renewed belief in their God. I think that’s exactly why Jesus made the illustration of the mustard seed. Israel was small, but meant for greater things. Jesus came to till the soil and shake the leaves. It was time for the return of the Kingdom.

Matthew 13:24 “Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.”

Deuteronomy 32:9 “For the LORD's portion is his people, Jacob his allotted inheritance.”

Read Matthew 13. Check out Matthew 4. Jesus is tempted with food, power, and safety. Matthew quotes another piece of Isaiah in verse 16. In some ways Matthew 13 takes chapter 4 farther. Extra reading, try Isaiah 19, Deuteronomy 29:4, Ezekiel 17:23, and Dan 4:12

1. (Matthew 13:1-17) Revelation 3:6 says “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” Throughout the Last book of the Bible is this statement. Theoretically the writer of that book had not read Matthew. Matthew at that time was a group of stories. Matthew supposedly pulled these stories together to tell his version of the Jesus story. Yet, this saying must mean something. In the Old Testament it is said several times in Isaiah, Deuteronomy, Jerimiah, and more.

Matthew uses this chapter as a gateway to the rest of the book. It says that the disciples could see and hear what Jesus was saying. Paul, a writer of other Bible books talked about a mystery to be revealed. The Greek word for mystery can be parable. Hard understandings. What is the mystery? Paul explains it is the revealing of the Christ. Matthew has been meticulously revealing the Christ from page one.

Matthew 13:10 “Then the disciples came and asked him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?”

Exodus 3:14 “od said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.'"

2. (Matthew 13:18-43) This is the theme of the farm. On a farm are the worker, harvester, sower of seed, and others. Also on a farm are crops and weeds. Verse 30 is controversial to me. Jesus says let the weeds and wheat grow together. I preached at a church where a man told us that we should avoid the weeds. I believe Jesus. Yet, it makes no sense to live with the dregs of this world. They presumably hate God. I can see Jesus is more concerned about the good soil, the good crops, and good intentions of his workers on the farm. I don’t think Jesus is weary of the weeds.

Don’t you find it interesting that Jesus is talking about the kingdom and not the earth. Jesus focus is on what will be rather than what is. Again, Jesus is asked after all his teaching to explain himself. Again, he uses the verses pertaining to let the people see and hear. I think this is the frustrated God and Jesus. The word was given in the Old testament. The way to heaven was there. Yet, clearly, the people were not getting it. Their soil was hard. They were blind, deaf, and hard in heart. It’s the same message spoken to Pharaoh as it was to the religious of Jesus day. Those who could hear (wheat) and those how could not (weeds).

Matthew 13:30 “Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’”

Exodus 11:9 “The LORD had said to Moses, "Pharaoh will refuse to listen to you--so that my wonders may be multiplied in Egypt."

3. (Matthew 13:44-58) The last verse ends with “because of their unbelief.” In the churches, towns, cities, countryside, and even Jesus own home town there was unbelief. After all the Israelites had been through over thousands of years, they never grew. Their ground was still hard and un-tilled. Jesus goes into a set of small explanations describing the kingdom. They are not even deep parables. They are more like analogies. The Kingdom is… It’s should have been so easy to recognize the treasure and keep it. Gather the fish and throw out the bad. Later on, a man refuses to see his treasure to gain heaven (Matthew 19). A woman talks about scattering pearls to pigs (Matthew 7). Judas receives money to betray Jesus. The rulers take the coins and buy a field of blood (Matthew 27). Matthew is a smart writer. I believe he saw Jesus in the words and actions. He could see and hear. Again, this is Matthew asking the people to see and hear what they missed the first time. The kingdom is heard in Jesus the Christ.

Matthew 13: 58 “And he did not do many deeds of power there, because of their unbelief.”

Zephaniah 3:8 “"Therefore wait for Me," declares the LORD, "For the day when I rise up as a witness Indeed, my decision is to gather nations, to assemble kingdoms, to pour out on them My indignation, All My burning anger; For all the earth will be devoured by the fire of My zeal.”

4. (Matthew 13) I have always lived by a saying that “work is the sustainer for what we were really meant to do.” You could alter that and substitute God for work. Look at Matthew 13 closely. It’s about crops. It’s about kingdom. It’s about community, understanding, and the truth. All these things have been the fabric of the lives we lead. We were born in community. We are given food, shelter, and work to do. Nothing has changed for thousands of years. People today say God is dead. That has been said many times before. If Jesus was God, then he died on a cross.

If he is resurrected then that changes everything. The kingdom just might still be heard. The word just might still mean something. They knew verses like Zechariah 7:8-14. Those verses plead with the people to listen before it’s too late. Matthew 13 talks at great length about two scenarios. One is collecting treasure. That treasure could be God’s word, blessings, or people. The other side is pulling up weeds, ignoring warnings (God’s word), and casting people aside. Jesus hometown ignored 30 years of God growing up among them. Surely Jesus gave hints from time to time. Mary hinted of that at Jesus first miracle. What is scary is those closest to God not believing. How tragic is that.

Matthew 13:42-43 “and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!”

Jerimiah 6:10 “To whom shall I speak and give warning That they may hear? Behold, their ears are closed and they cannot listen Behold, the word of the LORD has become a reproach to them; They have no delight in it.”

What it all means?

If I met you on the street and told you about a complete stranger, you should understand perfectly without even meeting him, right? Of course not, that is pure nonsense. Christians for two thousand years have been telling people to trust, obey, and follow a man named Jesus without even meeting him. In the Gospels we have story after story of someone telling others about Jesus. Several times Jesus himself tells people not to talk about him. Why? It’s because what the Christ does in a heart will tell way more.

I know of many people who saw the good actions of Jesus followers and wanted to join. Unbelief is changed because a heart is changed. Matthew also repeats many times that people were surprised or impressed with what they heard about Jesus. To be a real Christian is to do rather than open our mouths. It’s not that we can’t explain or tell the truth about Jesus. It’s just that seeing is believing. Seeing a life changed is powerful.

What Matthew 13 means is that we are to go and tell. We are to go and preform good deeds. The same way Jesus did for us. We are to tell the stories of Gods good news. That the kingdom is near. Those that experienced Jesus told about Jesus. They did things that God would want done. People see that. They are curious. The wheat and weeds are a final warning. What will you be in religion. What will your knowledge of Christianity look like to others. Will you just boast about a man they do not know? Will you boast about a man you experienced? Jesus sells himself. Sell to others that we have been sold for a price on a cross. Let them see the hands and feet of Jesus in your life.

Matthew 13:54 “Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked.”

Exodus 14:31 “And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.”

#scatter #christ #jesus #bible #matthew

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wolint · 2 years

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WAIT ON YOUR GOD CONTINUALLY

Hosea 12:6 ASV Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep kindness and justice, and wait for thy God continually.

You may have read yesterday’s waiting on God patiently but how long are you willing to wait? What are you waiting for? Is whatever you’re waiting for worth the waiting continually on the Lord? How long can you wait? They say that patience, also a fruit of the spirit, is a virtue that so many people either don’t cultivate or want. I am one of them. Waiting is something that we’ve all had to do and are all frustrated by. To wait on God continually is to do so without cessation; unceasingly; continuously. Waiting on God continually is impossible if we do so in the flesh but according to Isaiah 40:27-31, the strength of the Lord sustains us in our waiting for as long as we need to wait. Some situations will test our patience and perseverance, to prevail, we must trust God and wait on Him as the only one who doesn’t change. There is a sense of dedication and determination to wait continually for the Lord, even when temptation looms that might want us to give up on God as seen in Acts 2:1. Continuity is one of the essential elements of life. When we interrupt it for a single hour it becomes lost. Continually waiting, when unbroken and ceaseless, is essential to a healthy Christian life. If waiting on God is the essence of true faith, it must be maintained by the spirit of God. Impatience gets us in a lot of trouble, we dive headlong into “solutions” we think are needed, only to find ourselves back in square one. Patience is a huge challenge for many of us. It was one of Habakkuk’s struggles as well. During his days, the Jews increased in sin and idolatry. Confronted by this wickedness, Habakkuk called out to God for answers in Habakkuk 1:1-19. How often do we cry out for answers, impatiently looking for God to work fast? We pray, as the story goes, give me patience, but when the challenges that will teach us patience come, we cry for speedy relief, but we must learn to wait on God continually. Our continual waiting will be rewarded by God working continually to manifest His glory. God works continually, but our unbelief may hinder the experience and the blessings of waiting. God by His Spirit teaches us to wait continually and will help us experience and understand that as the Everlasting One, His work never ceases. What do you do when you are waiting on God like that? We’ve all had seasons of waiting for God and waiting on God always has a goal, a firm sense of direction and purpose. Waiting is required for every goal in life to be achieved. We mustn’t limit God with our impatience, or we may not experience or benefit from the set plans of God. Wait thou only upon God says Psalm 62:5; God alone in whom we trust will help us should we turn to Him, surrender our challenges, and be silent before him as we wait for the manifestation of His words. Take courage and wait continually until the vision of God working continually in you and for you, without a moment's interruption fills your being. Wait continually on God. Shalom Women of light international prayer ministries.

#devotional biblestudy christianpost women's ministry

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seekfirstme · 3 years

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Spiritual indifference and deaf ears can block God's word for us

"Lord Jesus, open my ears to hear the good news of your kingdom and set my heart free to love and serve you joyfully. May nothing keep me from following you wholeheartedly."

“prosper the work of our hands!” (ps 90:17)

“If you would hearken to My commandments, your prosperity would be like a river.” —Isaiah 48:18

Often the readings of Advent speak of an unimaginable richness and plenty. God is not a puny God; He is mighty and abundant. He is a God Who blesses and offers life to the full (Jn 10:10). God comes to give us freedom, love, the gifts of the Spirit, power, joy, and “every spiritual blessing in the heavens!” (Eph 1:3)

There is undoubtedly a daily cross and a share of suffering to bear in following the Lord Jesus Christ (Lk 9:23; 1 Pt 4:1). Yet the Advent readings, and particularly today’s readings, speak of prosperity as a blessing from God:

If you obey My commandments, your prosperity will flow like a river — constantly and free-flowing (Is 48:18).

If you meditate on God’s Word day and night, then whatever you do will prosper (Ps 1:2-3).

Despite suffering, persecution, and faith as small as a mustard seed, God promises that if we devote ourselves to the study of His Word and obey Him, we will prosper. Do you want your ministry, family, and parenting to prosper with the blessings of God? Obey Him and make your home in His Word.

Prayer: Father, may I obey You out of love, not simply to gain Your blessings. I do trust that You will bless and reward me in Your overflowing mercy (Heb 10:35; 11:6; 2 Jn 8).

Promise: “Time will prove where wisdom lies.” —Mt 11:19

Praise: Pope Francis established the feast of Our Lady of Loreto in 2019. The decree stated, “This celebration will help all people…to imitate the virtues of that perfect disciple of the Gospel, the Virgin Mother.”

Reference: (This teaching was submitted by a member of our editorial team.)

Rescript: "In accord with the Code of Canon Law, I hereby grant the Nihil Obstat for the publication One Bread, One Body covering the time period from December 01/2021 through January 31, 2022 Reverend Steve J. Angi, Chancellor, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio May 5, 2021"

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intothewideopenspaces · 6 years

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More Than We Can Imagine

"More than all we ask

Than all we seek

All our hopes and dreams

You are immeasurably more

Than we can know

Than we can pray

All our words can say

You are immeasurably more"

- Immeasurably More, Rend Collective

Yes, I am going to start every blog post with an excerpt of a song. Yes, it’s probably going to be Rend Collective most of the time - I warned you last week that they’re my favourite band. I might change it up every now and then though, so keep an eye out!

Immeasurably More is a song I have known for years, but over the last few months it has come to reference this upcoming time I am spending in Falmouth, with the Way2Community. Since reading about the community online, to first emailing the community warden to express my interest, to making the 16 hour round journey in February to come visit and interview, to now, moving in and having been living here for a week and a half - in so many ways, God's abundance has been more than I could imagine.

The fact that I have the opportunity to spend a year or two focusing on God's call; the space is provided to help me listen, experience, and discern. Over our weekly structure, we are given time to experience ministry in a range of contexts, to experience living together as interns in intentional community, to study theology and get a taster of that aspect of possible future ministry, and to pray regularly together.

So what has each of those things looked like so far?

I am placed in two parishes with a shared vicar, both of which are significantly smaller and more rural than my home church. I had been expecting to find this somewhat frustrating, having thought that bigger numbers probably meant better. But after my first Sunday, where I went to the church service at both churches, I was more than happy to find my viewpoint changed. A service of less than ten people is tiny, yes, but that size gives a level of informality and intimacy that can be lost with higher numbers. And a service double that size felt like a nice balance - and it certainly makes it easier for me to learn names! The welcome and support I have already received from these congregations is one way I feel God's abundance.

The other ministry context I will be placed at to begin with is a homeless society, which will begin in a few weeks. Before beginning that, my thoughts are that it may be challenging, as an introvert in a context which will be new to me, but that I hope to constantly reassess my opinions, reflections, and assumptions as I serve.

Despite having been somewhat nervous about the task of 'adulting' as I call it so often, living in community with others has gone well so far and has settled into a nice pattern. Sharing household and cooking duties has gone fine, and no one has died or got food poisoning from my cooking yet! And another way I have felt God's abundance is in the incredible level of supportiveness of my gender - from those within the community and those beyond it, from those who already knew what non-binary gender was and those who have never heard of it before. Everyone has been entirely open to it and more than willing to try their best to use the right language.

I have not quite begun the theological course I will be sitting in on, but I have made a start on the prereading for the first week's lecture, and have begun for myself a glossary of all the new words I am coming across, so that I can follow the lecture with hopefully less of the difficulty that always comes with beginning to study a new subject. As well as this course, I have begun a course training local worship leaders, which promises to be very helpful to build on the experience I have had so far of leading services. I feel God's abundance in the reassurance I have that these courses will be challenging but still understandable and helpful.

As a community, we say morning and evening prayer every day together, and in these past few days I took my first turns to lead. Having used the same liturgy for compline for the last few months, I wasn’t too nervous about leading where the words were given for me to say, but I was somewhat nervous about leading the intercessions, where I had to say my own words. I wrote them out beforehand, and though I will become more comfortable with leading them as I do it more often, it was an okay start.

We also spend Thursday mornings together as a community, beginning with morning prayer, then after breakfast experiencing different types of prayer, followed by Eucharist. This Thursday, we did Lectio Divinia together, looking at the start of Isaiah 55, which is itself titled 'An invitation to abundant life'. That time spent reflecting together, as well as the time last Thursday, has continued making me aware of God's abundance.

God does more than we could imagine, more than we could dream or ask. As Mr Beaver puts it in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, "Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He's the King, I tell you."

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steveezekiel · 2 years

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AGENTS OF DARKNESS AND THEIR OPERATIONS 1

Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV)