Have you ever noticed that nature has a natural rhythm? One season - no matter how brief - always flows after another. The weather shifts from winter to spring to summer to fall and back to winter in an uncontrollable but natural flow. Plants follow this same natural flow as do all the various species of animals. That includes us - we start as babies and as we mature, our life cycle naturally flows from one stage of development to another. Many other biological fuunctions follow a natural or circadian cycle. Our body temperature naturally raises and lowers during the day as does our blood pressure among others. Life flows and follows a natural pattern of progression.
Our spiritual life also seems to follow a flow similar to nature - the difference between that flow and biological is that we have the ability to change and modify our spiritual development. We can chose to make it better or worse - God's gift of free will allows us to do that. We chose to stay away from church or we elect to attend weekly - and for those who keep church attendance on a very low priority - even they feel the natural urge to attend - at a minimum - the High Holy Days of the Church year. We notice this particularly at Easter and Christmas. My Jewish friends note that the same thing happens in their congregations as well - so it would seem that even though all of us have that gift of free will - we also have been blessed with an innate sense of the Divine and it is that sense that calls us back to our respective congregations to gather as a spiritual family and worship God at least at the most important times of the year. Praise God for that hidden gift and for all the other gifts that we may not be aware of - and most importantly that He sent His son to us - Jesus who walked among the Jewish families of Israel - to share with them God's hope and love for each of us - to live in peace among strangers and to spread that message to the peoples of the World. Alleluia! Alleluia!
Deacon Dale
Deacon Dale
