Late last night I got a call and was informed of what would be a tragic event if it would happen as described. It took me immediately to the bottom of my evilest instincts. How could this thoughtless and hurtful action even be comprehended without consideration of its impact?
Fortunately I just listened and shared only my mutual dismay and disbelief with the caller but my mind was immediately racing to response and reaction. It took me hours to fall asleep and when I awoke the pain and disappointment was still present. How could this be happening? How could this be happening to me?
Even though my heart was broken it was still beating. There was still enough life and solace present to say a couple ‘Our Father’ prayers last night and then again this morning. There was a sliver of light, there was a touch of hope in me. My faith in my Personal Savior Jesus Christ, God and The Holy Spirit remains as my foundation upon which to build a day upon. This day for which I am grateful.
I woke up and walked in The Bible today…
God has instilled patience in me and I am so very grateful. I do not have to respond or react immediately to anyone or anything.
I open my Bible to the writings of Saint James in the New Testament to find the passage that is near and dear to me and has been for some time…
Saint James, Chapter 1, Verses 2-4: “Esteem it all joy, my brethren, when you fall into various trials, knowing that the trying of your faith begets patience. And let patience have the perfect work, that you may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”
Amen.
In this moment, for this moment, God has made me perfect and entire, wanting nothing. If I give ‘patience’ her due, her time, and her respect she will be miraculous things in me and in my life and the lives of my friends and family. Indeed, in the life of all if they so believe and walk in the Bible as anyone may.
Patience frees me and gets me back to my lifelong perspective of ‘peace, joy, unity, and freedom.’
Next I open my Bible to find comfort in The Holy Spirit, such a powerful force in the world today.
I find not only comfort but strength in the Epistle of Saint Paul to Titus in the New Testament…
Titus, Chapter 3, Verses 5-6: “Then not by reason of good works that we did ourselves, but according to His mercy, He saved us through the bath of regeneration and renewal by The Holy Spirit; whom He has abundantly poured out upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior, in order that, justified by His grace, we may be heirs in the hope of life everlasting.”
Hope and grace go together like two peas in a pod. Find one, find the other. Feel one, feel the other. Let them nourish us in our time of need.
I can’t fix this but God, Jesus, and The Holy Spirit can if so needed in God’s overall plan to save the world. It may remain broken if that is God’s Will. I am not God to myself or anyone else. I trust in God and believe in Him through His Word as found in The Bible.
Feeling much better overall I open my Bible once again in search of more wisdom, grace and hope through my personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
I knew the Scripture I would be led to because last night when I heard the news I felt like I was only connected to humanity through the fleeting fingertip touch of God and Adam as portrayed in Michelangelo’s fresco ‘The Creation of Adam’ found in the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
Isn’t all our lives, in reality, only strung together by threads?
The first Epistle of Saint Paul to the Corinthians, Chapter 13, Verses 4-8:
“Love and charity is patient, is kind; love and charity does not envy, is not pretentious, is not puffed up, is not ambitious, is not self-seeking, is not provoked; thinks no evil, does not rejoice over wickedness, but rejoices with the truth; bears with all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love and charity never fails, whereas prophecies will disappear, and tongues will cease, and knowledge will be destroyed.””
That wording is from my 1952 family Bible… here is the latest version from the New International Version (NIV):
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.”
I have to remember that love is charity whether giving or receiving. It knows no law and has no expectations.
My thoughts go to a recent movie I saw called “Molly’s Game.” The main realization for me in this inspiring story is the importance of one’s name. What it means to self and others, past, present, and future. In reality Molly’s love, spirit, and patience enable her story to be told in a proper manner and ultimately leads to her human and spiritual freedom.
Walking in the The Bible, I am now able to rejoice in my free will, which is independent of habit and addiction in this moment of grace, that I am sharing with my personal Trinity friends. I am grateful for free will and know there will be alternatives to be pursued and evaluated and choices and decisions to be made in the months ahead.
But for now, I am my Splendid Spiritual Self, unfazed by the on goings of the world and human interactions. I first apply all the above inspiration first to my relationship with my self and then to my relationships to others and Let Go and Let God be present and work miracles in my life.
Maybe one of those miracles will be the telling of “Andy’s TROML Story?”
Al-le-lu-ia
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