May 20 , 2025
Good afternoon,” There are moments, and it is only a matter of five or six seconds, when you feel the presence of the eternal harmony…a terrible thing is the frightful clearness with which it manifests itself and the rapture with which it fills you. If this state would last more than five seconds the soul could not endure it and would have to disappear. During these five seconds I live a whole existence, and for that I would give my whole life and not think I was paying too dearly. ” Fyodor Dostoevsky ( 1821-1881 ) One of my top ten books is Crime and Punishment, by Dostoevsky. It was one of the books that I read that I learned about and reflected on the sin in my life. The book is about a murder by Raskolnikov. Dostoevsky was a Russian writer who was a Christian, so it is not s a surprise that I learned about sin and salvation from him. He is a great storyteller, as well as a theologian. He continues to be read all over the world. Eugene Petersen ( who translated the Bible into the The Message ) read him as a devotional writer. Peterson would put an hour a week in his day book to be intentional about reading Dostoevsky in prayer.
Do you meet God in spurts of four, five or six seconds or do you have mountain top experiences last a day or two or longer ? Moses met God in a burning bush and on a mountain. Elijah met God not in the fire or in the wind or in a earthquake, but in the silence. The Old Testament says no one who has met God and has lived ! Jesus went away to be in silence with God. God met Jesus in the form of a dove. Jesus spoke to God while on the cross . Where have you met God, and was it in passing or was it a whole afternoon ? What was it like, and how do you describe it ?
” I know a man in Christ about fourteen years ago (whether he was in the body I cannot tell, or whether he was out of the body I cannot tell, God knows) who was taken up into the third heaven. And I know the same man (whether in the body or out of the body I cannot tell, God knows), how he was taken up into Paradise and heard words not to be spoken which no man can utter. ” Second Corinthians 12:2-4This is strange talk by Paul referring to himself in the third person. When we meet God, we talk about it personally. Why do you think he chose to write it in this way ? Is it too dangerous to talk about our experience with God ?
I hope and trust you meet or met God today, in Spirit and in Truth. Praying for Gaza . AMEN
Fred
black and white shadows
crush humanity’s freedom
am I complicit ?
MPL 2025
Ponder Anew 