Reading
Colossians 3:23
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters....
Devotion
Today's artwork is a photograph from a member of my parish! She took this candid shot on Pentecost Sunday as I was caught in the moment of showing off the flaming socks provided by another thoughtful parishioner. I am struck by the whimsey of the socks juxtaposed with the liturgical seriousness of alb, stole and chasuble. The spontaneous nature of the pose also contrasts the general seriousness of priestly vocation with a bit of comical irreverence. Admittedly it is a portrait of the author so I may be a bit biased, but I think it captures something of the nature of joy.
The passage from Colossians above is one of my all-time favorite Bible verses. How does one show how a person of faith does things? How does a person of faith go through hard times--illness, divorce, melancholy? How does a person of faith learn how to start over in a job or relationship? The world is always curious about how people of faith demonstrate the things they claim to believe. The world seems to love schadenfreude, which means to take delight in another's failure or suffering. How does the person of faith rise to the challenge to 'show them how it's done'? After all these are serious things we are talking about!
I would suggest that the passage from Colossians, when coupled with another passage from Proverbs, provides the person of faith a path. Colossians says, 'work at it with all your heart.' Proverbs 17:22 says "a merry heart doeth good like a medicine." The Hebrew for 'merry heart' is sameach leb which means an inner disposition of profound joy. This joy comes from being centered in the Love of God. Joy is more profound than a transitory pleasure that may come from eating something yummy or witnessing a winning goal. It is about something inside of us. One of my favorite beat poets, Charles Butkowski has a poem entitled "How Is Your Heart?" in which he talks of this inner balance, this crazy contentment that allows one to 'walk through the fire.'
I pray this week for you dear reader, that your heart is aligned with the Source of life and love and burns with sacred fire!
Prayer
Lord Jesus, ignite within us the joy of Your holy fire. May it burn away our doubts and fears, filling our hearts with Your love and peace. Let this divine flame inspire us to share Your light with others, transforming our lives and the world around us. We seek Your presence, Lord, that we may rejoice in Your eternal warmth. Amen. (Anonymous)