Christian Counseling Service -- Devotions

Have mercy

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Luke 19:37-38
The people proclaimed, "Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!"

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/032413.cfm

In her online devotion this week, Ruth Haley Barton writes,

In the church where I worship, the whole congregation participates in the Liturgy of the Passion by reading the parts spoken by the fickle crowd. It is very sobering to move from crying out in loud voices "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" to shouting, "Crucify him! Crucify him!" It is a true beginning to the intense and conflicting emotions of this week in which we seek ways to walk with Christ and participate in his passion.

How do I acknowledge both of these passions within me? I love God and want to embrace him and be embraced. All my life comes from God, and I want to give it back to him in reverent joy.

But I am afraid, so I hold tight to myself in fear and scream out, "Don't hurt me. Hurt him instead! Crucify Jesus!" In a short Russian cinematic fable called The Island, a frightened coward uncovered by the Nazis shrieks his fear and finally kills his captain to save his own life. The Nazis spit on him and walk away. He lives.

Thirty years later he is Father Anatoly, an iconoclastic Orthodox priest who spends his days muttering the Jesus Prayer. Father Anatoly offends everyone, but nevertheless, both lay people and his fellow priests are awestruck by his words and life. They see that he heals, exorcises demons, and brings new life to many.

For his part, he spends most of his time carrying coal in a small wheelbarrow from a boat at one end of a long dock back to his cabin-church. He lives there alone, but often pretends to be Father Anatoly's servant. When someone wants a blessing, he tells them to wait outside while he goes in and has a conversation with himself, loud enough for the supplicant to hear.

Often these "conversations" change the lives of those who hear them. They truly do go forth blessed, in tears, more ready than before to follow the downward path of Jesus. Little that is gentle comes forth from Father Anatoly, but much comes through that is true.

Each night he prays for the soul of the man he killed, his friend, a much better man than he. And he prays his confession. "Almighty God, merciful Father, I, a poor miserable sinner, confess to you all my sins and iniquities, with which I have ever offended you and justly deserve your punishment now and forever. But I am heartily sorry for them and sincerely repent of them, and I pray you of your boundless mercy, and for the sake of the holy, innocent, bitter sufferings and death of your beloved son, Jesus Christ, to be gracious and merciful to me, a poor sinful being."

Finally, Father Anatoly kisses his icon of Jesus, and sleeps. Perhaps peacefully. Embracing all his passions, waving his palm, knowing his own depravity but trusting Jesus more than he distrusts himself.

Jesus, your blood pours down through this holy week, torrent of grace and mercy funneling down on me, on every one of us, all your children and creation. Loving living water you are, and we drink our fill from you, come back for more. There is always more. You are holy, you are good.

Devotions Archive

Have mercy

Sunday, March 24, 2013