Awe

SCRIPTURE
- Proverbs 1:7
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

REFLECTION
- Fr. Jim

MUSIC
- "Hands Be Still" by Ólafur Arnalds
- "Awesome God" by Taryn Harbridge

NOTES
-

PRAYER OF LETTING GO
To You do I belong, O God,
into Your hands I surrender my life.
Pour out Your Spirit upon me
that I may love You perfectly,
and serve You faithfully
until my soul rests in You.

Transcript

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SPEAKER_04 0:29

There are things about God we can know, and then there is so much more that leaves us simply in wonder. That's part of the gift of prayer. We don't have to understand God completely to draw close to Him. We only have to be willing to enter the mystery. Wherever you are, may these next few minutes open your heart again to the wonder of who God is. Let us pray. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

SPEAKER_05 1:11

O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall I declare your praise.

SPEAKER_03 1:28

Remain ever before me, O God, for in you I am safe. You are my beloved. In you and through you I can do all things.

SPEAKER_01 1:45

I look to those who are at one with you and learn from them of your ways. My delight increases each time I sense your presence within me.

SPEAKER_03 2:01

Love is my chosen food, my cup, holding me in its power. Where I have come from, where I shall go, I will not be concerned. The hand of God is with me, showing me the way.

SPEAKER_01 2:29

I bask in the oneness of all. Thus my heart is glad, and my soul finds peace.

SPEAKER_03 2:40

Glory be to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever.

SPEAKER_00 2:50

Amen.

SPEAKER_02 3:14

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and understanding. The word of the Lord. Do you ever ask yourself what God is your God? Please don't get the fence of all of us, I am sure all of us either were taught or make God to be something that surely God is not, or make an attribute of God, the whole and only piece of God's mysterious being we acknowledge or respond to. Some examples. The angry God, the punishing God, the nice guy God, the harsh judge God. Okay, enough. The fear of the Lord is all about awe. Awe is all about beyond my knowledge and comprehension. All about mercy and justice, and mercy triumphs over judgment, all about the triumph and power of the cross. All about goodness that triumphs over evil. Our God is an awesome God. To respond to God's love for us with love and obedience is a harsh and dreadful thing, a life-altering thing, a life-giving, transformative commitment. Awe will lead us, usher us into knowledge only discernible with faith, to understanding that might seem foolish and impossible, but to one who in faith learns to trust is the path to greater understanding, to the wisdom that dares to ponder and hope for fullness of life in Christ. As I learn to trust in our awesome God, I learn to let go of my limited understanding and acceptance of God. God less than God is, is a God of our own making, one whom we can control, one who judges and creates the world we prefer in place of the world we have been given. A world so wonderful and great, a world so powerful and terrifying. A world in which, given free will, we can fail and be forgiven and grow. One in which we can build on God's grace for the coming of God's kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. I'm growing older, yeah, I know we all are, but now that I'm in my later 70s, recently I turned down some tickets to a Cubs card ball game. I can see ease crowding out excitement and enjoyment. That bless that only a big, loud, crazed crowd can give. Am I settling for less? It's easier and cheaper. So I ask, am I settling for less with my faith? Are comfort and ease chasing away the power and the wisdom of awe? Am I choosing a curated foolishness of religion without mystery? A partial God who only confirms me, never challenges me. Or an angry, cruel God who only condemns my feared and frightening enemies, for whom mercy is pitiable softness. So say it again. Let us bow down and worship.

SPEAKER_04 7:56

On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen. Let us pray. God of wonder, you are mystery beyond our knowing, yet closer than our very breath. Awaken the wonder within us. Break open the small places where we have tried to contain you, and draw us into the wideness of your love. When answers fail us, let trust remain. When the way is hidden, give us faith enough for the next step. May awe become our prayer, and our lives become our worship. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. To you do I belong, O God, into your hands I surrender my life. Pour out your Spirit upon me, that I may love you perfectly and serve you faithfully until my soul rests in you. One of the great things about faith is knowing we will never reach the end of God. There will always be more to discover, more to understand, and more reason to stand in awe. So today, leave a little room for mystery. Let God surprise you. And may our awesome God bless us in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Look for Christ and the small things until we pray again tomorrow.