Hallelujah!

The Lord is Risen! He is Risen indeed!

The Cross

"Christ Jesus came to earth for one reason - - to give His life as a ransom for you, for me, for all of us. He sacrificed Himself to give us a second chance. He would have gone to any lengths to do so. And He did! He went to the cross, where man's utter despair collided with God's unbending grace. And in that moment when God's great gift was complete, the compassionate Christ showed the world the cost of His gift." (from Max Lucado's book The Gift for All People)

GRACE

Lent has provided us time to empty our souls of the unnecessary so that we might be filled with the essential. In the moments when we found ourselves most barren, we discovered what Edna Hong called "a passionately felt need for grace." Philip Yancey's book, What's So Amazing About Grace, ends, "When grace descends, the world falls silent before it." Holy Father ~ We come to You full of the world and empty! Our human hearts cannot offer Perfect Love. Our finite minds cannot comprehend Eternal Glory. Our barren souls cannot know Everlasting Peace. Father, reveal our needs. Fill our hearts with Your Desires. Fill our minds with Your Wisdom. Fill our souls with Your Joy. In Your Holy presence, when grace descends ~ let us fall silent! "Let it be to me according to Your word."** Amen. ~dho (**Luke 1:38)

In the Temple

Meister Eckhart (1260-1327) wrote The temple God wants to be master of is the human soul, which he created and fashioned just like himself. We read that God said, “Let us make man in our own image.” . . . He made each soul so much like himself that nothing else in heaven or on earth resembles him as much. . . God wants the temple to be pure, so pure that nothing should dwell there except he himself. And that is the reason why he is so pleased when we really prepare our souls for him.

“Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who were buying and selling there.”
Matthew 21:12

Eckhart continued If Jesus is to speak and be heard the soul must be alone and quiet. And what does Jesus say when the soul has been cleared? . . . He reveals the Father’s majesty with unmeasured power.

“When Jesus entered Jerusalem, all the city was filled with excitement. The people asked, “Who is this man?’
The crowd said, “This man is Jesus, the prophet from the town of Nazareth in Galilee.” Matthew 21:10-11 (NCV)

As Holy Week begins, allow Jesus to enter the temple, clear the soul. Listen for the Father’s majesty with unmeasured power. ~dho

Breathe

© dho/2004

Prayer is the breath of life to our soul. ~ Mother Teresa