Good morning. I hope that all of you are safe and warm on
this hopefully final bit of bluster from winter.
Part of today’s lectionary readings
includes a passage from the book of Daniel.
Daniel is a difficult book for us to understand in part because there
are so many possible choices, so many avenues to wander down. The interpretation of dreams for which Daniel
was made known reminds me of the ways in which we seek to interpret God’s
presence in our lives.
That thought led me back to a poem
about our own search for God and the freedom we all have either to get it right
or not. The poem is called “The
Testing,” and it was written by Edwin Markham (1852-1940).
When in the dim beginning of the years,
God mixed in man the raptures and the
tears
And scattered through his brain the
starry stuff,
He said, “Behold! Yet this is not
enough,
For I must test his spirit to make sure
That he can dare the Vision and endure.
“I will withdraw my Face,
Vail me in shadow for a certain space,
Leaving behind ME only a broken clue –
A crevice where the glory glimmers
through,
Some whisper from the sky,
Some footprint in the road to track Me
by.
“I will leave man to make the fateful
guess,
Will leave him torn between No and Yes,
Leave him unresting till he rests in
Me,
Drawn upward by the choice that makes
him free –
Leave him in tragic loneliness to
choose,
With all in life to win or all to lose.”
Our God ceased to be withdrawn and sent
the presence of His Son to clarify our choices and give us a clear path to
winning “all in life.” In Christ we have
seen the face of God and the choices He wants us to choose. But still we must choose: “With all in life to win or all to lose.”
Let us pray: Almighty God, creator of all that we know to
be and more than we can ever comprehend, thank you for the gift of Jesus. In Him You have given us the clear choice, the
clearly lit path, the way to bring us again into Your presence. And in Your presence, in Your reign, we shall
find all the joy that You have intended for our lives and Your glory. In Jesus’ name we pray.
Amen.
Today’s readings are: Daniel 2:31-49; 1
John 2:18-29; Luke 3:1-14; Psalm 18
Blessings.
Pastor Jim
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