Devotion for the Week of June 25, 2007

When I was in a DOD high school overseas, in order to save money, the school purchased only a few scripts for the drama class of a certain play and cut them up into the separate parts. The student director gave each actor his or her individual part in order and then started to rehearse the play. But nothing went right. After an hour of missed cues and mangled sequences, the cast gave up.

At that point, the director sat the actors all on the stage and said: "Look, I'm going to read the entire play to you, so don't any of you say a word." She read the entire script aloud, and when he was finished, one of the actors said: "So that's what it was all about!"

And when they understood the entire story, they were able to fit their parts together and have a successful rehearsal.

C. S. Lewis once said that the most frequently spoken word in heaven would be, "OH." As in, "Oh, now I understand." Or, "Oh, now I see God's plan." Or, "Oh, now I see the reason for everything."

In this world, however, we walk by faith, not by knowledge. But one day it will be revealed to us. We will be in the presence of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

There are some answers that are too large for our earthly, human brains to contain. But our greatest need is not understanding, but trust that God is with us. God is with us and will be with us until that day comes when all will be revealed.

Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven." (Matthew 16:17)

Devotion for week of June 4, 2007

In an old Peanuts cartoon we see Peppermint Patty at the counter in a store. She is telling the store clerk, "I need some school supplies . . . some pencils, some paper, a loose-leaf binder . . .and some answers . . . I need a lot of answers!"

Well, don’t we all?

Life is full of difficult questions. There are many things in life we do not understand. This past Sunday I realized how many of us have a hard time understanding the Trinity--God as Father, God as Son, and God as Holy Spirit.

Even the best theologians find themselves at a loss to explain it satisfactorily, otherwise wh would there be so many books on the topic. Some use the analogy of the masks worn by actors in the old Greek tragedies. One actor wearing many masks can play many parts. But it is still just one actor.

There are many ways people try to explain the Trinity, but I think the secret of understanding the Trinity is trust. We can either spend our lives making ourselves miserable about what does not make sense to us or we can live joyful lives based on trust in God.

We may not be able to understand the mystery of God in three persons, but we can enjoy the incredible beauty made by God the creator. We may not understand how a baby born in Bethlehem's can be part of the Godhead, But we can read with awe the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth and know that no one has ever lived closer to God than Jesus.

We may not understand all there is to understand about the Comforter that Jesus said he would send us, but there have been times when that Comforter, the Holy Spirit, has enveloped us with love. We do not have to understand God in three persons in order to experience the awesomeness of what those three persons can mean in our life. The secret of a successful life is not understanding but trust.

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 28:19)