Psalms 16, 17 * 22; Ecclesiasticus 1:1-10,18-27; Acts 28:1-16; Luke 9:28-36....anger tips the scale to one's ruin. Those who are patient stay calm until the right moment, and then cheerfulness comes back to them.
There is such clear and simple wisdom in these lines of Ecclesiasticus. When combined with the account of Jesus' Transfiguration, these verses about patience take on a different tone and tenor. On the one hand it is easy to take these verses of wisdom and apply them to our every day lives and interactions with the world. On the other hand, they can take on a deep spiritual meaning when we apply them to our faith lives, to our life as Christians, to our ongoing relationship with God.
God is an easy target for our anger. God is an easy target for our impatience. Staying calm and faithful leads to flashes, to moments of clarity where we see God's hand at work in the world. That is a magnificent thing to behold, much like the Transfiguration must have been for Peter, James and John. Momentary flashes can be enough, have to be enough to get us through the rest we must face.
jfd+
Copyright 2008, John F. Dwyer. All Rights Reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment