But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin. Micah 3:8.

…that you may know what is the hope of His calling. Ephesians 1:18. Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you. Peter 4:12.

And continuing our 351 Old Testament prophecies, promises of God, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, we come to number 31: The leper cleansed – Sign to priesthood. Leviticus 14:11: And the priest who pronounces him clean shall present the man to be cleansed and the aforesaid before the Lord at the doorway of the tent of meeting. And, Luke 5:12-14; Acts 6:7: While He was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man covered with leprosy; and when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and implored Him saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” And He stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” And immediately the leprosy left him. And He ordered him to tell no one, “But go and show yourself to the priest and make an offering for your cleansing, just as Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” The word of God kept on spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith.

This morning in our Friday Zoom Retreat, we talked about “The Triple P’s” – Personal Pattern of Practices. Those personal practices we have found that draw us near to Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit. We saw a graphic showing a list of Spiritual Disciplines by Adele Calhoun and although they included so many practices, what we find as we long for closeness with God, is that our longing for Him opens the way naturally to so many of those on the list. In You are the Beloved by Henri Nouwen today, he shared one discipline that exemplifies all of them: “Contemplative Prayer can be described as an imagining of God’s Son, Jesus, a letting Him enter fully into our consciousness so that He becomes the icon always present in the inner room of our hearts. By gazing at Jesus, walking on the earth, we give Him loving attention and we “see” with our minds and hearts how He is the way to the Father. Jesus’ life and work is an uninterrupted union with and contemplation of His Father. We, as followers of Jesus, try to enter into the same disposition. We welcome the discipline of contemplation, taking time regularly to enter into the life of Jesus to contemplate the incredible bond between Jesus and the Father. And we trust that in, through, and with Jesus, we, too, may live and bask in God’s unconditional love.” I shared with our group something I learned in Open Table Conference discussing 1 Corinthians, that one of the presenters, Chris Greene, shared: “The revelation of Jesus Christ is not just His appearing but His appearing as the LORD, the fulfillment of all things and all things being drawn into the life of God…The revelation is not the appearance of an individual but all things being drawn up into the life of God.”

One of the many benefits of learning from God as we open our hearts to Him, is a progressive growth toward faith in Him. In our group this morning one member asked for prayers for his country impacted by everything impacting all nations today – the uncertainty of what is happening in the Middle East. As I prayed, I thought of Daniel. His nation was defeated by a powerful empire and he was among the captives. Yet, his life continued as it had before because his sole focus was on God. Not the powerful king, not any events, not the strange customs of the nation he was now serving within. God. I love that about his example for us! Two powerful leaders are meeting again today, or have met depending on which part of the world you live in. They will do what they will do and we will all of us be impacted in some way. Wars will continue, prices will continue to be impacted, lives will be disrupted in many ways. And even through all of that we have a choice that is uniquely our own. To believe in this fallen world – or to believe God. In this fallen world we may have no choice in events. With God we always have a choice. In choosing Him, we choose His love and His care and provision. Even as things happen we don’t understand, with Him His love is understood in the deepest possible way as we draw near to Him who promises to be with us. I don’t think any of us truly knows or understands exactly what God’s Love is. In His Love He created life. He entered into our limited physical existence and loved – and is our sacrifice for everyone you love and everyone you hate. I don’t know anyone who has that kind of Love. Creator God IS Love. Everything and everyone in our fallen world stands in stark contrast to the Love of God. He knows and understands that. Beloved – do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you – as though some strange thing happened to you….I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling – what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints! His Love for all eternity showing us how to love Him and be loved by Him, and how to love one another. It is God who draws us near so we can be with Him.