Mary van Balen

‘The rich man replied, “Father, I beg you then to send Lazarus to my father’s house, since I have five brothers, to give them warning so that they do not come to this place of torment too.” “They have Moses and the prophets,” said Abraham “let them listen to them..” “Ah no, father Abraham,” said the rich man “but if someone comes to them from the dead, they will repent.” Then Abraham said to him, “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead.”’
Gospel: Luke 16:19-31


Sometimes I think if only God would speak more clearly, I would be able to find the path to follow, the job to take, the place to move. Luke's gospel tells me otherwise. God is speaking. The difficulty is more on the listener's end.

The story about a man stranded on the roof of a house during a flood comes to mind. He is sure God is going to save him, so when someone comes in a boat, a helicopter, and a raft, he declines their offer of help: "God will save me," he says. After he drowns and goes to heave he walks up to God and complains: "You said you would save me. What happened?"

"I sent you someone in a boat, a helicopter, and a raft. What else did you want?"

The man could not see God's hand in the offers of help missed his chances. Luke is saying the same to the rich man who begs Abraham to send Lazarus to his brothers' house to warn them not to repeat the behavior that landed the rich man in hell. Read More 

PHOTOS: MARY VAN BALEN
For just as from the heavens the rain and snow
come down
and do not return there
till they have watered the earth,
making it fertile and fruitful,
giving seed to the one who sows
and bread to the one who eats,
so shall my word be
that goes forth from my mouth.
It shall not return to me void,but shall do my will,
achieving the end for which I sent it. Is 55,10-11

These verses are especially appropriate to read during this season when winter is slowly melting into spring. Snow is not always linked with bringing forth summer abundance, yet, the psalmist knows that snow not only protects dormant plants from extreme cold but also nourishes them when melts. Robert Frost wrote about that in his poem Spring Pools .

Rain and snow have a purpose: To bring forth life on this planet. God's word also has a purpose. Unlike rain and snow, God's word is not a thing. It is not a command or an instruction. God's word is the Divine Self, the emanation of God's being, not as much spoken as breathed onto the earth and into creation. It is what brought everything into being and what holds it in existence.

Sit quietly with these verses. Lay back, as if you were letting a soft spring rain fall on you and the ground around you. How sweet is that rain. And how sweet is the Word of God. Let it drench your spirit and soak into your soul. Let i saturate every inch of your being. Then, like a seed, softened until the tiny plant within wakes and stretches and grows, your deepest self will stretch and grow and become what God has intended for you to be. That is the purpose for which the Word is sent.
© 2010 Mary van Balen
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