The darkest moment in history.
The gateway to hope.
The silence of deepest sorrow.
The prelude to perfect joy.
Good Friday- the day of extremes.
Now we grieve- but Resurrection is just round the corner.
Day of Darkness
Gethsemane. Look, See, Pray
Gethsemane. That’s a name forever etched in my memory. It’s been a favourite spot to pray, sitting in the olive trees in the blessed shade.
Now it’s getting dark. Something bad is happening, I know it. Judas is up to mischief, I think. He looked so small and uncomfortable when Jesus spoke to him at supper- he slunk off looking embarrassed and angry. Perhaps he had forgotten to do some errand. But it seemed to make Jesus sad to watch him go. I’ll ask him about it when I have a moment.
Those words about the bread, and the wine cup, they are ringing on in my head and I don’t know why. I must remember to write them down, they feel important.
You could cut the atmosphere with knife today. The whole city seems on edge, and the mood was nasty out there. Jesus has been speaking strangely again…
View original post 269 more words
Precious Silence- Look, See, Pray
Holy Week is generally full of the hustle of frenetic activity. Jesus entered Jerusalem to be acclaimed as a King. He stirred up a load of trouble when He cracked the whip to drive out the cheats and exploiters from the Temple: “This should be a House of Prayer!”
The end of the week is full of betrayal, heart-breaking prayer, injustice and a Cross.
Squeezed in the gap is the one day where it seems silence reigned. The Gospels don’t say anything much about this one day. As far as we know, it was a day of quiet for Jesus.
Silence and growth go together. The glorious tulips bloom without fanfare. New leaves break out of tight buds. In silence.
A world full of noise and words need to draw breath.
Silence is an invitation to listen for the Presence of God. In the rush of Holy Week, Jesus has moments of quiet reflection and prayer- he prepares himself for what must happen.
Others use the silence to conspire and prepare trouble. Who knows what was going through the mind of Judas? Pilate? Caiaphas? Herod?
“We need silence to be able to touch souls” said Mother Teresa as she served the poorest and most abandoned people on the streets. Actions speak louder than words when we share love with the helpless.
Will this silence touch MY soul? Will silence prepare me to love with compassion? When all the drama ends in the silence of an empty tomb, will I be more or less in the Presence and Awareness of God? When my lips convey the message of hope- He is Risen! – will my soul- and yours– have been in that quiet still place where silence has proclaimed Truth?
For we speak of Christ crucified, and shown to be Saviour and Lord, through His death and resurrection. For the sake of our souls, let us grasp silence and learn to grow. Amen.
“My Diary” by Thomas the Twin
Really, what could go wrong? Off to Jerusalem in the morning, going up to the city for the festival. Jesus is going to ride a donkey. I expect some will mock the “Teacher from Galilee” but that’s nothing new.
Jesus insisted, he said it was important to go this way.
If you ask me, we should have gone home instead. There’s trouble brewing, you mark my words. Perhaps if we can keep Jesus out of the crowds all the fuss will die down.
Somehow I don’t think that’s the plan. Jesus had a glint in his eye, and he’ll probably preach, so that will upset Caiaphas and the Temple crew. I don’t think Jesus minds stirring people up a bit. He tells some pretty pointed stories – and some folks even started saying “Messiah?” when they heard him.
It will be alright as long as the “Blessed is the King” song doesn’t catch on. That would really be the end.
I wish I hadn’t said that thing about going and dying with him…
Extract from the diary of Thomas, a friend of Jesus and a man of great faith… some of the time…
(Words & photo Copyright 2019 by Richard Starling)
Promise Kept- Look, See, Pray
Bluebells beginning to fill the woods- it’s a wonderful point in Spring. Shortly there will be carpets of blue haze gracing the ground, and delicate perfume graces the nose.
Until very recently there was nothing to show that glory was rising. Now the evidence is… well, self-evident.
God created a wonderful universe. Every flower, every crop, is a symbol of a promise kept.
On the brink of Holy Week, it’s good to remember that Jesus made a promise. He spoke of his own death, and promised that His suffering would bring a new beginning. Jesus accepted His death as the fulfilment of covenant promises made through the ancient Law and Prophets of Israel- and He hinted at more than His friends could yet understand.
On the third day after His crucifixion and burial, the Great Promises were kept. On that Resurrection Day, Jesus proved that Love cannot be buried forever…
View original post 67 more words
Life is but a moment in the morning of my day – Look, See, Pray
Listening to the news media is quite troubling. So many hot topics are controversial. Opinions get polarised and then debate is degraded into hostility. Where are the level heads and honest counsellors?
I listened to a CD track, “Sweet Emily” by Randy Stonehill, and one line caught my attention. It’s a song about the loss of a sister, and the sure hope of faith. “This life is but a moment in the morning of my day.”
God of Peace, you have made a world with purpose.
Our lives are precious, and each person matters.
Thank you for assurance
that circumstances are not permanent-
You are reconciling the world to Yourself through Christ.
With that hope in our souls, we remember
today is not the last word in politics.
Our experience now is but a small part
of the glory that awaits in eternal day.
Help us pray with wisdom and compassion
for all who hold authority and influence,
that they may be guided in Your ways.
Lord, we do not have all knowledge or insight.
So we ask that Your vision of justice and mercy
will reign sovereign over the affairs of Mankind.
Today is but a moment- may the True Day,
the Eternal Good, be the perspective through which we view the whole of history, the present moment,
and the future that is yet to be.
May this moment be a gateway to the Perfect morning
when Christ is crowned as King of Kings, Lord of Lords,
and Master of human destiny. Lord have mercy on us.
Amen.
Photograph taken at dawn approaching the coast of Italy, near Florence. Copyright Richard Starling, 2018
Trusting in princes? Look, See, Pray
Who’s in charge? Take me to your leader!
It is both humbling and sad to see the state of the “Mother of Parliaments.” Who leads? A good question! Does a job title mean more than a label? Passionate disagreements have split friendships, alliances, and public opinion. Personal ambition and hidden agendas lurk in the dark corners. Who can we trust? Where should we turn?
There is nothing new under the Sun and stars. History is littered with the relics of ideas and ambitions. Some conquer by brute force- but fade away. Some float lofty ideals and aspirations- and are brought back to earth. Playing “piggy in the middle” are the ordinary people caught up in struggles beyond our ability to influence very much.
Relying on human authorities is unwise. Praying for those in positions of authority is required of Christians because there IS a Higher Authority. In Psalm 146 we can read a lovely and realistic expression of a Hope that will not fade. “Don’t put your trust in princes! Put your trust in the Lord your God… Look at what God WILL do…” He reigns as the True Sovereign over heaven and Earth.
Pray today. Pray now. Pray that God will somehow guide and direct so that righteousness, mercy, and justice are the benchmarks of our society: that extremism on all sides will be tempered by calm thinking and peacemaking. Pray that God may do what only He CAN do. Pray for the peace and security of our richly diverse society so that all are valued by the worth God places on them- God who loves the world SO MUCH that He sent Jesus, the Christ, to rescue and redeem us. Pray NOT that God be on “our side” – rather pray that WE might be on God’s side, so that we may be peace makers and peace bringers. Joyful are those who have God as their helper.
Praise the LORD ! Let all that I am praise the LORD. I will praise the LORD as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath.
Don’t put your confidence in powerful people; there is no help for you there. When they breathe their last, they return to the earth, and all their plans die with them. But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper, whose hope is in the LORD their God. He made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. He keeps every promise forever.
He gives justice to the oppressed and food to the hungry. The LORD frees the prisoners. The LORD opens the eyes of the blind. The LORD lifts up those who are weighed down. The LORD loves the godly. The LORD protects the foreigners among us. He cares for the orphans and widows, but he frustrates the plans of the wicked. The LORD will reign forever. He will be your God, O Jerusalem, throughout the generations. Praise the LORD !
Psalm 146
Celtic Summer School, August 2019
I am delighted to recommend this Celtic Summer School in Durham, 7-14 August 2019. We can learn a great deal from our Celtic predecessors in terms of their faith, attitudes, and spirituality.
For information, tickets/cost please follow the link below.
Being patient- Look, See, Pray
Patience is a virtue, they say. Mine is being tested- I am in danger of failing.
Politics is driving me barking. Rudeness and misrepresentation is bringing the political office into sore disrepute. Fancy this- some people disagree with me! How daft can you get. Of course I’m right. I cannot understand why some apparently bright folks are saying and doing crazy things in peculiar ways. I am gradually gaining insight… “Hot tempers cause arguments, but patience brings peace.” (Proverbs 15:18)
But it is enough to test the patience of a saint.
Note that I am not identifying my preferences or the misled opponents of common sense: that is not my place or purpose. I hope to encourage the ones I agree with and the ones I don’t agree with to join in two things. First, to work at becoming patient; and secondly to share in the most sensible thing we can…
View original post 424 more words
Frozen Time- Look, See, Pray
Tragedy hits. Time seems to stand still. Details of the moment and place are etched on the mind. I vividly remember where I was on 9-11. On the day I heard my Dad had died. We all have personal recollections like that.
I photographed these waves this week as a severe storm lashed parts of the U.K. Here, on the Channel coast, we were fairly sheltered but the waves came in fast and furious. Using a fast shutter speed, I “froze” the action – and shapes, colours and details were recorded. Looking at them afterwards, I saw much more detail than I had noticed in “real time.”
Energy stored in the waves exploded against shore defences and piles of shingle. It was noisy and relentless. Stones picked up in the fury were thrown up the beach and ricocheted through the air.
It was almost hypnotic – it took a conscious effort…
View original post 155 more words
Look, See, Pray 