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 |    We live much of life amid unique choices. Joy is anchored in The One beyond our life. |
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“There are times when solitude is better than society, and silence is wiser than speech. We should be better Christians if we were more alone, waiting upon God, and gathering through meditation on His Word spiritual strength for labour in his service. We ought to muse upon the things of God, because we thus get the real nutriment out of them. . . . Why is it that some Christians, although they hear many sermons, make but slow advances in the divine life? Because they neglect their closets, and do not thoughtfully meditate on God's Word. They love the wheat, but they do not grind it; they would have the corn, but they will not go forth into the fields to gather it; the fruit hangs upon the tree, but they will not pluck it; the water flows at their feet, but they will not stoop to drink it. From such folly deliver us, O Lord. . . .” ― Charles Spurgeon “Our anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, but only empties today of its strengths.” ― C. H. Spurgeon “Hope itself is like a star- not to be seen in the sunshine of prosperity, and only to be discovered in the night of adversity.” ― Charles Haddon Spurgeon “If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay. If Hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for.” ― Charles Spurgeon “A Bible that’s falling apart usually belongs to someone who isn’t.” ― Charles Spurgeon “Visit many good books, but live in the Bible.” ― Charles Spurgeon “When your will is God's will, you will have your will.” ― Charles Spurgeon https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2876959.Charles_Haddon_Spurgeon (Philippians 2:13, KJV)    |
| Thank you, WDC, for the privilege of processing out loud as I think back over the past 40 or so days. I know this week's posts have heavily surrounded my beliefs, which may or may not be shared by other Writing.Com members, but as I wrote in the piece, "Perception is Reception," it is great to have a safe place to state what I think and to be myself, even if nobody else can relate to what I am thinking through and processing. First, I find it interesting that I got up at 6:20 this morning, meaning that for two days in a row I have been up before 6:30. This may not mean anything to folks, who have early morning start times at work, but for me, this is huge, since my years' worth of late nights have kept me from seeing the sunrise. However, I started Easter Sunday at a sunrise service, and I like that part of the day. So, I am willing to change to improve my health. Two days in a row is a big deal for me. "Baby steps, ba-by steps,..." as Bob Wiley said in the movie, What About Bob? I think this will be my last post on the debrief from Lent. I'm sure that more could be said, but since I'm still processing, I think I'll just keep it in my heart until I have more to say with a slightly more interesting presentation. The most basic aspect of Lent is the fact, that it is the period of forty days before Easter (aka The Day of Jesus' Resurrection from the dead.) Lent starts with Ash Wednesday when devotees walk silently out of a church with a cross of ashes marked on their foreheads and a commitment in their hearts to give up some pleasure or valued part of their lives in order to be in concert with Jesus, who gave up His life to save from their sins, anyone, who would accept His greatest of all gifts. This forty day period of anticipation has answered a question, that I asked about a year ago. "Why do we seem to have so much prelude to Christmas, but so little prelude to Easter?". The answer seems to be, that Christmas is a time of getting, and Easter seems to be a time of giving up. Arguably, it is easier to celebrate and to anticipate a day when you can expect to get stuff for your own pleasure. Being good for forty days seems like a good investment, since the better you are the more stuff you can expect to get. Depriving yourself in a time of somber reflection doesn't seem to be a very worthy investment, especially since the best an adult can hope to receive on Easter is one or maybe two fairly nice meals. However, the saddest part of Christmas and Easter (for me, at least) is the day after each. When you go out and about away from home, life seems to be "same ol', same ol'." Nobody really talks much about the holiday just one day prior. Whatever benefit they had is pretty much over. "Now, it's time to press on to the next big thing on the calendar. In the case of Easter, especially in the U.S., the next big thing is Mother's Day in May. This is certainly a worthy celebration, but what has happened to the reflection on the importance of the Resurrection? Even more than that, where is the consideration of the forty days after the Resurrection when Jesus walked the Earth in His new everlasting body before He ascended back to His Father in Heaven, which was just ten days prior to the arrival of The Holy Spirit in Acts, chapter #2 on the Day of Pentecost, which was 50 days after the resurrection as signified by "pente," or "fiftieth" and "cost" or "day." Is it significant to anyone else, that Mother's Day consistently falls during these forty days after the resurrection? Mothers are the vessels through which we were each birthed into this world the first time. Jesus' resurrection is the vessel (or vehicle) through which any human, who is saved, has been birthed into the second birth of the newness of eternal life. (John 3:16; Romans 10:9-10, 13) Ultimately, I am starting to see that there are two separate sets of eighty days, surrounding the greatest (in my humble opinion) celebrations of the year, Christmas and Easter. The forty days before and the forty days after each of these holidays have significance. 1. Forty days before Christmas starts in the middle of the season between the annual harvest and Thanksgiving Day. (At least this is true for the United States.) 2. Forty days after Christmas ends right around Valentine's Day. 3. Forty days before Easter begins on Ash Wednesday. 4. Forty days after Easter ends at the beginning of summer. Further reflection will, no doubt, glean greater meaning to the significance of each of these seasons. First, the Christmas season begins during the time of thankfulness for the harvest of wheat by which we make bread to sustain life. Christmas Day celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ, The Bread of Life, in Bethlehem, "The House of Bread." The Christmas season "should end" (at least in my heart and from my perspective) on Valentine's Day when we remember that God sent His Son into the world because of His deep love for us. ("For God so loved the world, that He sent His only begotten Son..." John 3:16) The Resurrection season begins on Ash Wednesday with the remembrance of sin, that caused death to enter the perfect world God had created. The Day of the Resurrection shows, that though sin corrupted Man's very existence and death was its ultimate consequence, Jesus Christ was stronger than Sin, Death, the Grave and Hell itself because none of those enemies could prevent Jesus from coming back to life, again, in His newly eternal Body, that was equal to His own Original Creation. (Genesis 1:1-2; John 1:1) The Resurrection season ends at the start of the summer season, which is known for rest from the school year and joyful play, that a new time of study seems to be worlds away from this respite. (The result of the resurrection for those, who embrace its Gift and meaning will be eternal rest from temporal labors, joy in this new, everlasting respite, and the anticipation of meaningful work forever to the Praise of His Glorious Name.) This moment of clarity is significant for me, and I would suppose it would, also, be significant for others, who are on the same page with me, regarding this belief about the life of the spirit. There is value in taking out the deepest belief, that you hold to be true, contemplating it fully, and digesting that truth to greater levels of spiritual nourishment. Whether you agree with me or not, I would like to ask you to embrace truth to its fullest in your heart of hearts, wishing (as I do) God's Greatest Blessing to the rest of Humanity. by Jay O'Toole on April 26th, 2019 |
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