Vespers for December 1, 2004

Among my daily reads is Alan Creech's blog, where today, he posted a very thoughtful piece about the Central Thing we should get down in the Christian Life -- that we are God's beloved children. It is the foundation of all else God's wants to do in us, because of His Tender Mercy and Boundless Love for us. Alan notes: "If you never get that he IS your Father, your Dad, and that you belong with Him, in His House, then you will never be able to step into the Life that is a part of that Family." Thank you, Alan, for the reminder.

In fact, it brought to mind the words of the Psalmist from today's (12/1/2004) Vespers over at Unversalis. In the first Psalm (27), David expresses his one desire:

"One thing I ask of the Lord;
this I seek:
To dwell in the house of the
Lord all the days of my life,
That I may gaze on the loveliness of the Lord
and contemplate His temple."

after he declares, as did Alan, in other words:

"The Lord is my light and my help: whom should I fear?
The Lord protects my
life: what could terrify me?
When they come to do me harm, to consume my
flesh,
my enemies and my persecutors, it is they who stumble and fall.
...
For he will shelter me in his tent in the time of evils.
He will
hide me in the hidden parts of the tabernacle; then raise me up on a rock..."

and, then, knowing God will hear him, David asks what only one who knows his true place in God's Heart can ask:

Show me your ways, Lord, and guide me along the right path ..."

The NT canticle for tonight (Col 1:12-20) drives home this point, that we are God's Beloved Children, for whom Jesus endured the Cross, that we might be in the Family. What Joy!

Dorothy Day on Advent Waiting (from the Daily Dig)

In this brief quote, Dorothy Day captures perfectly the longing for Life to be born. And the wisdom of Silence. Read the whole piece. Use it for Lectio. Remember it while you are waiting for Christ fully to be born in you, again.

Here is a link to a brief biography of Dorothy Day.