Beatitudes continued

 

So far this week we have held salt, light, and anger…it has been a bit of an emotional rollercoaster.  Today, I want you to ponder prayerfully one moment in your life when you have received care (remember Jesus said blessed are those who mourn/grief for you will be comforted).  Often our anger shows us where we hurt…and often we hurt because there is grief there or pain there or some wound/want there.  And when was the last time someone held your hand or listened to you?

 

Here is the rub, that probably did not instantly and immediately make everything better.  The blessedness of that holy moment when someone cared might have been fleeting and faded as soon as the person needed to leave.

 

Living the Sermon on the Mount is not a “one and done” exercise.  It is a daily practice.  With the rising of the sun, we have agency and a choice…do I live my life receiving God’s blessing and offering a light to those who are hurting…or do I seek to live my life with my own agenda?  How I answer that question impacts what I think, which impacts what I say, which like dominos then influences what I do…which over time is how I live my life.  Remember, the whole Sermon on the Mount is asking, what kind of world do we want to live in, then choosing to reside there.

 

Go back and re-read the Beatitude, when was a moment last month you discovered God’s presence when your soul was on empty?  When was a moment in January you were comforted in your grief?  When did your humility/humanity/human-size-ness connect you in vulnerability to another featherless biped walking this earth?  When was your mercy/love like a light you shared and shined back on you with more mercy and love?  When were your words peaceful defusing, rather than escalating, the words of the world? 

Jesus’ Beatitudes are more than words on a page, they are wisdom to live our lives by.  And as I asked a few weeks ago, does my life show evidence of an encounter with God?  The Sermon on the Mount gives us some possible/prayerful ways we might embrace and embody with an enthusiastic, “YES”.  May God’s “Yes!!” to you, as beloved, feed and fuel your living today. Amen.