- Wisdom 6: 12-16
- Psalm 62: 2, 3-4, 5-6,7-8
- Thessalonians 4: 13-18
- Matthew 25: 1-13
- Free from care
- Jesus tells His disciples to fear not. I'd have a lot easier time taking Him at his word if I knew that he has ever had to pay a mortgage, or worry about outliving his money in retirement.
- Do you think that a person who is wise worries more, or less, then a person who is not wise?
- Do you think that the wise person does not worry because:
- They trust God to meet all of their needs
- That they know that, no matter how bad it gets, God will always be with them
- They know that none of this really matters in the long run
- Some of the above?
- All of the above?
- If you knew that you could cast all of your cares aside if only you had sufficient wisdom, would you seek out wisdom?
- What's stopping you?
- Spiritual dehydration
- As a Boy Scout I heard about the dangers of dehydration. Once your body gets past a certain point, you no longer feel thirsty, a pervasive fatigue sets in as your brain starts shutting down for lack of water. To give in to sleep at this point often leads to death. I believe that your spirits can become parched to the point that we no longer feel it anymore.
- What do you do on a regular basis to replenish your soul's reserves?
- How did you come to that practice in your spiritual life?
- How is that working for you?
- How do you respond when times are especially stressful for you? Do you spiritual practices grow stronger or weaker?
- Dead in Christ
- When I was in aerospace, one thing that I prayed for was accountability. I longed to see the consequences of decisions made in haste, decisions made out of convenience or cowardice would come home to roost so that those who made those decisions would finally know the true consequences of their actions. Of course, because I was always above reproach, I would have nothing to fear from accountability. I wish.
- When we all meet each other as one vast assembly, do you think there will be awkward moments?
- What of injuries that we've dealt to others, and never asked pardon for?
- What of damaged legacies that we've left to those who came after us?
- What would be the best way to prepare for that great gathering today?
- Survivalist
- These are the folks who know that armageddon is immanent, and the only ones who are going to come out the other side of that are those who are prepared. The spiritual life is somewhat like that, just a little less whacked out. We're not engaged in a sprint, but a marathon. Perseverance, patience, endurance, none of these are splashy virtues. But they are what the coming days, months, and years call for.
- What are you enduring lately in your life?
- Do you know when that challenge is going to end?
- How are meeting that challenge in your daily life?
- Are you sure that you are prepared for that challenge to endure a good while longer?
- How are you praying about that challenge?
- How can you flourish now, today, because of, not in spite of, that challenge?
- Preparation for Reconciliation
- Where is God calling me to greater wisdom and less care?
- How can I be better at caring for the Spirit within me?
- Where is God calling me to be healing on this side of Eternity?
- Where is God calling me to flourish that surprises me?
It all Turns to Dust In Time
Sooner or later, that flat screen TV that you always wanted
Will first become obsolete, then needing repair, and finally -
Just one more piece of junk to safely dispose of and recycle.
Even the beloved sports teams that you watched will get sold to another franchise.
That coveted honor bestowed on you by your boss last year -
Will soon be forgotten by the colleagues who watched you receive it.
Later yet, the organization that you were in at the time will be disbanded.
Later yet, the company that you were with will outsource to India.
The profound insights that came to you, unbidden, along your life -
That showed you to be a person of intellect, judgement, and intelligence -
Are very likely going to seep out of your conscious memory.
Leaving you with nothing but a memory of a memory to haunt you.
Yet we all hope that somehow, we will be immortal.
That there is some essence of our lives that will endure,
Be a benefit to those coming after us, our legacy.
So that there will, in the end, be some meaning to all of this.
All of the heartache over those close to us,
All of the long lonely nights agonizing over life decisions -
Trying to discern where, how, when to give yourself away -
And in so doing be a living sacrament, a sacred vessel.
Wisdom is not knowing how to advise someone in a jam.
It is the patience to listen for that still small voice -
Gently showing you the way that God has set before you.
Wisdom is simple, and it is simply this:
What we receive, no matter how wonderful, joyous, and blessed -
None of that endures.
What we give away, freely, without measure or accounting -
That, that brightens the skies of Eternity.
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