This
evening we ponder the amazing reality that God desires to be with us.
The
OT prophet Isaiah predicted it 800 years before it happened when he wrote:
Is. 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give
you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and
will call him Immanuel.
And the New Testament Gospel
writer Matthew revealed it’s historical reality when he wrote:
Matt. 1:23 “The virgin will be with child and
will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God
with us.”
Ignatius Loyola, the founder of
the Jesuit Order in the 15th century, had one driving passion that
marked his entire life and ministry and it was this:
“To find God who is
with us in everything.”
In other words, St.
Ignatius took God at His word and decided for the rest of His life to look for
and find God in everything all about him.
Why could St. Ignatius have such
certainty that God is present with us always and everywhere?
Because Jesus said just before He
ascended into Heaven:
Matt. 28:20
. . . And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
The Apostle Luke was convinced of this fact when he
wrote:
Acts 17:28 ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’
Our Lord is Immanuel - God with
us! He is ever and always with us. He came to us in the past – He comes to us in
the present - and He will come to us again that final time when heaven comes to
earth completely!
He comes to all of us – the good,
the bad and the ugly.
He comes to save the lost – not
just to proper and the prim.
He is with us in this sanctuary
right now.
Evangelicals tend to look for and find Him in His Word – the Bible!
Charismatics tend to look for and find Him in praise and worship!
Sacramentalists tend to look for and find Him in
the Eucharist!
But how many of us look for and find
Him in each other . . . for He is there also to be found.
Let’s
never forget that we were made in God’s image – the Bible tells us that in its
first Book:
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
Gen. 1:27
The mark of God is on all human beings
and it is His heart’s desire all would come to know and love Him as their
Father.
But
to be able to do this day in and day out we need something . . . a pure heart.
Jesus
told us this when he said,
Blessed
are the pure in heart,
for they will see God. Matt. 5:8
Keep
your heart pure. A pure heart is absolutely essential if we are going find God
in each other.
To
this end then I would offer you this.
May it become our prayer:
To Find
You
Create in me a pure
heart
Renew a right
spirit within me
So that I may
find myself
Unbound,
unfettered and free.
To find you everywhere
In everyone and
everything
That’s a prayer
worth praying
A dream
worth dreaming.
To live a life of
wonderment
Amazed at
finding you
I live and move
and have my being
Immersed - afloat
in you.
I find you
easily
in heavenly
sacraments
But not so easily
In angry arguments.
Are you really
here and there
All about and
everywhere
Ever waiting to
be seen
To turn my
battles into your dreams.
Dreams and
prayers of heaven on earth
Your dreams and prayers
for me and all
To live a life
secure and free
From death and
threat to liberty.
May we then
cloth ourselves
In your humble sinlessness
So that our eyes
are opened wide
To find you
there and at our side.
Never alone with
ourselves
You stand with
us Immanuel
Come now and
never cease
To come to us a
gift of peace.
O Lord teach us
how to pray
For purity of
heart and mind
So that our
earthy eyes can see
Through hearts
inspiried by purity.
My
dear family prayer inevitably helps us to find God who is always and ever with
us. Prayer helps us to purify our hearts
and pure hearts only can see God!
May
I encourage us all in this coming year to purify our hearts and then to look
for and find God all about us!
Let
us pray . . .
