Happy Holy Week, everyone.
I hope your week leading up to Easter has been a good one. I hope you’ve been made aware of our Father’s presence in your life. Here are 10 thoughts from the past week.
1. Quote of the Week
The Jewish discovery that God is not a god but Creator is the discovery of absolute Mystery behind an underpinning reality. Those who share it (either in its Judaic or its Christian form) are not monotheists who have reduced the number of gods to one. They, we, have abolished the gods; there is only the Mystery sustaining all that is. The Mystery is unfathomable, but it is not remote as the gods are remote. The gods live somewhere else, on Olympus or above the starry sky. The Mystery is everywhere and always, in every grain of sand and every flash of colour, every hint of flavour in a wine, keeping all these things in existence every microsecond. We could not literally approach God or get nearer to God for God is already nearer to us than we are to ourselves. God is at the ultimate depth of our beings making us to be ourselves.
— Fr. Herbert McCabe
2. The Next Great Revolution
The next great revolution that will change the world will be a rediscovery of the worth and value of human beings that comes from a knowledge of God. This is why pastoral work is absolutely essential!
3. Speaking of Amazing Humans
This past week my son Eli had his first middle school track meet. I’m not going to complain about the fact that the meet was 4+ hours long, while the total time of his events were less than 1 minute. Instead, check out this video of his leg of the 4x100 relay.
They came in 3rd!
4. Conversations with Gabriel
While waiting at the Track meet I got to talk to my other son, Gabriel. Gabriel asks a lot of questions! I mean, A LOT! Curiosity is an amazing gift… I’ll leave it at that. One of his questions led to a conversation about limitations. He wanted to know why he can’t do 7th-grade math now (he is in 5th-grade). I explained the whole curriculum thing to him, but then I told him that it doesn’t mean he cannot advance in math outside of the classroom.
We ended up talking about all the limitations the world places on us. He was shocked to learn that some kids have graduated from high school early, that others have succeeded without going to college, and that there are kids his age who own businesses.
Of course, the limitations built into society are not intended to hold people back, but sometimes they keep us from thinking beyond them. They cause us to wait in line unnecessarily. While at the track meet Gabe immediately began working on more difficult math problems.
5. Best Book on the Cross
Today is Good Friday, the day we remember the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the victor! I cannot let this day pass without sharing the best book I’ve ever read on the subject. The Crucifixion by Fleming Rutledge1. It’s a heavy read, but it is very accessible to most readers. Take up and read.
We had the privilege of having Fleming preach at my old church, here is a picture from her visit.
6. Dreams of Adventure
I’ve been having a lot of dreams (some while asleep) of a great adventure. May they come true… and may your best dreams, too!
7. Living for One
The quote from #1 has been on my mind all week. As CS Lewis wrote, our relation to God is like the relation of an author to a character in his story. Except, we have the opportunity to live out our author’s best hopes for us. This thought reminded me that the supreme goal in life is to live for the only one whose applause matters.
8. Another Book
I read Experiencing the Depths of Christ by Madame Guyon2 quite some time ago. This week I began rereading it. It’s so good that I’m planning on leading a group through it sometime in the Summer or Fall. If you desire a deeper relationship with Jesus, I highly recommend it to you.
9. Who Cares About March Madness!?
I don’t! 😢
10. Happy Easter
May the Resurrected Lord fill your life with joy, peace, and the kind of abundance that is characteristic of his Kingdom. Happy Easter!
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Note: This is an affiliate link and I may receive compensation for purchases made.
Congratulations Eli! ……and a blessed Easter to you all!