Johnson: no temple

Saturday, March 23, 2024
Meditation:
    And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
    —Revelation 21:22 (KJV)
Quotation:
    We ought not to forget that the whole Church, quite as much as any part of it, exists for the sole reason of finally becoming superfluous. Of heaven St. John the Divine said, “I saw no temple therein.”
    ... Howard A. Johnson (1915-1974), “The Vocation of the Anglican Communion (Theme Address),” included in Anglican Congress 1963: Report of Proceedings, Eugene Rathbone Fairweather, ed., Editorial Committee, Anglican Congress, 1963, p. 227 (see the book)
    See also Rev. 21:22; 1 Kings 8:27; 2 Chr. 2:6; 6:18; Ps. 51:17; Isa. 57:15; 66:1; John 4:23-24; 14:23; 1 Cor. 3:18; 6:19; Eph. 2:21-22; 1 Pet. 2:4-5; 1 John 3:24
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, we will worship You in Your presence. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Chesterton: miracles

Friday, March 22, 2024
Meditation:
    Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed, and he healed them. Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him.
    —Matthew 4:23-25 (NIV)
Quotation:
    My belief that miracles have happened in human history is not a mystical belief at all; I believe in them upon human evidences as I do in the discovery of America. Upon this point there is a simple logical fact that only requires to be stated and cleared up. Somehow or other an extraordinary idea has arisen that the disbelievers in miracles consider them coldly and fairly, while believers in miracles accept them only in connection with some dogma. The fact is quite the other way. The believers in miracles accept them (rightly or wrongly) because they have evidence for them. The disbelievers in miracles deny them (rightly or wrongly) because they have a doctrine against them.
    ... Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874-1936), Orthodoxy, London, New York: John Lane Company, 1909, p. 278-279 (see the book)
    See also Matt. 4:23-25; 9:2-7; Mark 2:3-12; Luke 4:14; John 2:11; 7:31; 20:30-31; Acts 19:17; 1 Cor. 1:22-24
Quiet time reflection:
    Do I hold on to some remnant of skepticism? CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Augustine: the heart's rest

Thursday, March 21, 2024
Meditation:
    [Jesus:] “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
    —Matthew 11:28 (NIV)
Quotation:
    Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in thee.
    ... St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430), Confessions [397], Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1886, I.i, p. 1 (see the book)
    See also Matt. 11:28-30; Ps. 38:4; 116:7; Isa. 55:1-3; 66:2; Jer. 6:16; Mic. 6:6-8; Gal. 5:1; 2 Thess. 1:6-7; Heb. 4:1
Quiet time reflection:
    Are there some near me who need hear about the Lord’s rest? CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Owen: spiritually minded

Wednesday, March 20, 2024
    Feast of Cuthbert, Bishop of Lindisfarne, Missionary, 687
Meditation:
He that keepeth the commandment keepeth his soul;
    But he that is careless of his ways shall die.
    —Proverbs 19:16 (ASV)
Quotation:
    To pray earnestly and live carelessly is to proclaim that a man is not spiritually minded in his prayer.
    ... John Owen (1616-1683), The Grace and Duty of being Spiritually Minded [1681], in Works of John Owen, v. VII, London: Johnson & Hunter, 1852, I.6, p. 295 (see the book)
    See also Pr. 19:16; Ps. 62:11-12; Eccl. 12:14; Matt. 7:26-27; 12:35-37; Gal. 6:7-8; Jas. 2:20
Quiet time reflection:
    Do my petitions match my life? CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Lawrence: drawing us to Himself

Tuesday, March 19, 2024
    Feast of Joseph of Nazareth
Meditation:
In him our hearts rejoice,
    for we trust in his holy name.
May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD,
    even as we put our hope in you.
    —Psalm 33:21-22 (NIV)
Quotation:
    God has many ways of drawing us to Himself. He sometimes hides Himself from us; but faith alone, which will not fail us in time of need, ought to be our support and the foundation of our confidence, which must be all in God.
    ... Brother Lawrence (c.1605-1691), The Practice of the Presence of God, New York, Revell, 1895, Twelfth Letter, p. 40-41 (see the book)
    See also Ps. 33:21-22; 10:1; 13; 22:1-2; 89:46; 147:11; Pr. 3:25-26; John 20:29; Rom. 1:17; Heb. 4:16; 1 John 5:14
Quiet time reflection:
    Am I trusting in God alone? CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Orchard: Breathe on us, breath of God

Monday, March 18, 2024
Meditation:
    The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.”
    Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.
    Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
    —1 Kings 19:11-13 (NIV)
Quotation:
    Breathe on us, breath of God; not as the mighty rushing wind, lest the dimly burning flax be quenched; but with the quiet breath that shall fan to flame our smouldering faith. Inward Presence of our God, we cannot do without Thee! Unless first we hear the gentle whisper of Thy voice, the majesty of fire and storm, the glories of earth and heaven will pass in meaningless pageantry before us. The sacred page of the past and the slowly-traced bible of today will alike be closed to us. As we address ourselves to seek our God, light Thou our hearts with His presence. As we turn to think of Jesus, make our hearts to burn with love. Spirit of the Living God, Spirit of Jesus, Spirit who choosest man’s mind for Thy dwelling; make Thyself known to us now. Amen.
    ... William Edwin Orchard (1877-1955), The Temple: a book of prayers, 3rd ed., New York, E. P. Dutton, 1918, p. 146 (see the book)
    See also 1 Kings 19:11-13; Ps. 46:1-7; Joel 2:28-29; John 14:16-17,23; Rom. 5:5; 8:10-11; 1 Cor. 3:16; 6:19; 2 Cor. 6:16; Eph. 2:21-22; 1 John 4:4; Rev. 3:20
Quiet time reflection:
    Can I open up more to the indwelling Spirit? CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Martin: the unity that is true

Sunday, March 17, 2024
    Feast of Patrick, Bishop of Armagh, Missionary, Patron of Ireland, c.460
Meditation:
    But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.
    —Romans 3:21-22a (NIV)
Quotation:
    The Churches belong together in the Church. What that may mean for our ecclesiastical groupings we do not know. We have not discovered the kind of outward manifestation which God wills that we shall give to that inner unity. But we must seek it.
    ... Hugh Martin (1890-1964)
    See also Rom. 3:21-22; Ps. 133:1; Matt. 23:8; John 17:20-21; Acts 4:32; Rom. 8:1-2,13-14; 12:16; Gal. 3:7-9; Phil. 2:1-2; 3:8-9; 1 John 1:3,7
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, lead Your people into visible unity. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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