Living in the Spirit
August 8, 2018
Scripture Reading: Psalm 130
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;
my soul waits for the Lord
more than those who watch for the morning,
more than those who watch for the morning.
O Israel, hope in the Lord!
For with the Lord there is steadfast love,
and with him is great power to redeem.
It is he who will redeem Israel
from all its iniquities. –Psalm 130:5-8
I once heard a speaker say that hope is the difference in being poor and living in poverty. He was discussion financial poverty, but I almost think this idea is just as true if not truer regarding the poverty of our souls. What does poverty of the soul look like? Fred Craddock preached a sermon I heard many years ago and taught me the French word ennui. According to Merriam-Webster’s the word means a feeling of weariness and dissatisfaction: languor or emptiness of spirit*. Know how that feels? It is just not worth the effort to get out of bed and face the world that seems to be spinning out of control. I sense a lot of followers of Christ are feeling a bit of ennui as we listen to the evening news. It is at times like these that we need to remember we serve a risen Savior whose in the world today** and therein lies our source of hope.
My father used to say that his mother embodied the idea of praying without ceasing that Paul puts forth in 1 Thessalonian 5:17. My parents prayed on their knees kneeling by the side of their beds each evening. As a child, I envisioned my grandmother in that constant state all the time. I now realize that was not what my Dad or Paul meant. I think of it now as being in constant communion with God. We often pray publically like I was taught to write letters in school. It was all very formal and started with a dear someone and ending with a proper closing. Prayer without ceasing, I think, is more like the thread on a recurring email. Me: Interested in lunch today. Friend: No, I have a late morning appointment. How about Friday. Me: Sounds good. Meet at the Deli? Friend: 11:30 am? Me: OK. This is a conversation between people who are well acquainted. Our goal is to become so well acquainted with our Savior such prayers are woven through our daily routines. For me, driving in a car is a great time to update my life with God. Watching the news provides much material for communion with God. Reading scripture and quietly contemplating it each morning nurtures my soul. I spend some time doing restorative yoga and other exercises that also seems to get me ready for a full day. Find and practice your hope-building disciplines.
If these spiritual disciplines do not restore your hope, Paul also says in 1 Corinthians 13:13 now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love. When hope seems gone and ennui begins to fill its space try loving someone else. Help a homeless person, visit a prisoner, tutor a child. Give someone else hope and I promise your hope and faith will be restored.
Prayer: God of Hope, restore our souls so we may bring hope to the whole world. Amen.
*http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/ennui
** First line of the hymn I Serve a Risen Savior see at https://www.hymnal.net/en/hymn/h/503