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A sacrament in the present moment
Monday, December 15, 2014
Third Week of Advent
Numbers 24:17
Balaam gave voice to his oracle, “I see him, though not now. I behold him, though not near. A star shall advance from Jacob, and a staff shall rise from Israel.”
As Christians we love words like these from the Hebrew Testament that are harbingers of the Messiah, of Jesus Christ. They are scattered through the books of the Torah, the prophets, and the wisdom books. We are drawn to them and drink them up, feeling their power in the presence of Jesus.
Even in the moment of its utterance, prophecy quiets my ego and my false certainties. God is alive and magic is afoot. I’m not in charge, and God is. Prophecy reminds me of God’s presence at every moment in every situation. I am never alone.
I watch a video about police handing out presents instead of tickets for a day last week in Lowell, Michigan (http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2014/12/10/watch-this-michigan-cop-hand-out-presents-instead-of-tickets/). I feel happy, teary-eyed, and grateful. None of us are ever alone.
I see him … though not now. But then in the mist and darkness, I see him through my half-closed eyes, and it is now, it is right now in this moment, and I am not alone.
The poetry of the Old Testament, the testimonies of the New, and the imagination God gave me to communicate with him all come together. I behold him, though not near. Well, now, maybe he is nearer than I thought.
Come and cheer our spirits by Thine advent here. Disperse the gloomy clouds of night. We sang these words in church yesterday. We sang the words about Jesus, and we sang them to Jesus. And we were not alone.
Rejoice! We rejoice with you and your angels, Lord, and cry glory in the highest, on earth peace. How silently, how silently, you are nearly born, Jesus. You are here, and you are nearly born.
http://www.christiancounselingservice.com/archived_devotions.php?article_id=1310
