Begin with the end in mind -- Perhaps that is the appropriate theme for our readings today: · The Amos chapter seems full of doom and gloom, but if we skip to the end paragraph, we read “I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel” (Amos 9:14). Sin and disobedience will bring tumult, but in the end God’s faithful “Shall never be plucked up again from the land I have given them” (Amos 9:15).
· Likewise, Psalm 115 proclaims that those whose idols are silver and gold will have a difficult time, but if we skip towards the end, we are reminded that God “will bless those who fear the Lord, both small and great (Psalm 115:13).
· And throughout Matthew 17, it seems that the disciples don’t want to keep the end in mind either. The Transfiguration mountain is becoming the end in itself for them, rather than a reaffirmation that the difficult passion ahead for Jesus is the way in which he and the disciples will come to experience resurrection. As a result, their “mustard seed” faith prevents them from a healing miracle.
Beginning with the end in mind -- having an awareness of where God is leading us -- can enable us to be more aware of God in the midst of strife. The Celtic Christ-followers, whose faith community developed from an early stage in history, had a keen awareness of this. Incorporating the pagan Druidic gods of their immediate ancestors, who found gods in every tree, they were acutely aware of the accessibility of the divine. Heaven was often seen as just about a foot above the head of a person. Likewise, there are “thin places,” where it is much easier to break through the veil separating heaven and earth.
One of the misconceptions I had was that the Celts came to find God in these thin places merely because of their natural beauty. While that may be partially true, the greater truth is that the rugged, harsh, raw conditions that they experienced were such that they disturbed you. I could go out into the wild sea in a little boat made of cloth without rudder, in order to experience my need to depend on God’s protection. I could create my little hermit’s hut and experience the wilds of cold winter rain and wind, and the macrocosm of the world’s weather echoed the microcosm within my soul – experiencing the tremendous power of God overcoming my limitations and weakness. The external conditions experienced were such that it encouraged me to go to those places internally that I might not normally want to go. The experience of God’s infinite power can create within me that most holy gift of the “fear of the Lord,” that enables me to live like the psalmist urges us today: Trust in the Lord, he is your help and your shield. Keeping the end in mind, I can deal a lot better with the temporary challenges placed before me.
So my own reflection calls me to look within. The places, situations, and people that disturb me might just be where God wants me to find God – if I can keep the end in mind. So I ask myself, where am I concentrating too much on the mountaintop and forsaking the rest of the journey? Where am I concentrating on the mustard seed and forgetting the great tree that it will become in the end? Where am I concentrating on the difficulties of the cross instead of the fullness of resurrected life waiting for me to experience in my own thin places?
As we enter into this Thanksgiving week, the golden nugget I personally take away from all this is that my attitude needs to be like the psalmist: “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness” (Psalm 115:1).
Marty Zlatic
· Likewise, Psalm 115 proclaims that those whose idols are silver and gold will have a difficult time, but if we skip towards the end, we are reminded that God “will bless those who fear the Lord, both small and great (Psalm 115:13).
· And throughout Matthew 17, it seems that the disciples don’t want to keep the end in mind either. The Transfiguration mountain is becoming the end in itself for them, rather than a reaffirmation that the difficult passion ahead for Jesus is the way in which he and the disciples will come to experience resurrection. As a result, their “mustard seed” faith prevents them from a healing miracle.
Beginning with the end in mind -- having an awareness of where God is leading us -- can enable us to be more aware of God in the midst of strife. The Celtic Christ-followers, whose faith community developed from an early stage in history, had a keen awareness of this. Incorporating the pagan Druidic gods of their immediate ancestors, who found gods in every tree, they were acutely aware of the accessibility of the divine. Heaven was often seen as just about a foot above the head of a person. Likewise, there are “thin places,” where it is much easier to break through the veil separating heaven and earth.
One of the misconceptions I had was that the Celts came to find God in these thin places merely because of their natural beauty. While that may be partially true, the greater truth is that the rugged, harsh, raw conditions that they experienced were such that they disturbed you. I could go out into the wild sea in a little boat made of cloth without rudder, in order to experience my need to depend on God’s protection. I could create my little hermit’s hut and experience the wilds of cold winter rain and wind, and the macrocosm of the world’s weather echoed the microcosm within my soul – experiencing the tremendous power of God overcoming my limitations and weakness. The external conditions experienced were such that it encouraged me to go to those places internally that I might not normally want to go. The experience of God’s infinite power can create within me that most holy gift of the “fear of the Lord,” that enables me to live like the psalmist urges us today: Trust in the Lord, he is your help and your shield. Keeping the end in mind, I can deal a lot better with the temporary challenges placed before me.
So my own reflection calls me to look within. The places, situations, and people that disturb me might just be where God wants me to find God – if I can keep the end in mind. So I ask myself, where am I concentrating too much on the mountaintop and forsaking the rest of the journey? Where am I concentrating on the mustard seed and forgetting the great tree that it will become in the end? Where am I concentrating on the difficulties of the cross instead of the fullness of resurrected life waiting for me to experience in my own thin places?
As we enter into this Thanksgiving week, the golden nugget I personally take away from all this is that my attitude needs to be like the psalmist: “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness” (Psalm 115:1).
Marty Zlatic
RSS Feed