Matthew under the arm 115

The weather for the last few weeks has, on the whole, been wet and windy. Columba looked pale and tired by mid-morning. So I found an elderly couples little dwelling just off the path. Smoke was rising from the little chimney...a welcoming sight. The old man took us in and gave us some hot water to wash and warm ourselves. His wife produced soup and bread. There by the fire were four other pilgrims. Three of them were watching the fourth with awe. Columba paid little attention. After a while one of them asked Columba: 'Do you know who this is?' Silence. 'Do you not know you are in the presence of a great spiritual teacher? He knows the scriptures and knows what it is to trust in Jesus.' Columba smiled and simply said, 'I'm enjoying my soup. That's my spiritual teacher for now'.
Matthew 24:1-14….
Jerusalem was sacked in 70CE and perhaps the writer of the Gospel was feeding back that experience into Jesus’ sayings. Here we the readers of the Gospel are having our compass bearings readjusted. The Kingdom of God is beyond any temporary civilisation or political system. Fear is engendered when a status quo or ‘our’ life is under threat. By focusing on God’s Kingdom these fears then become redundant. When there is the fear of collapse on any scale, characters emerge in public who claim apocalyptic insights and powers for themselves. Our culture now has a myriad of such personalities particular in the world of 'spirituality' and 'religion' played out in the realms of fantasy and marketing.

Be still and know the Truth of My Kingdom within that frees you from fear.

What makes it difficult for you to 'name' your fears, even to yourself? Do you recognise inclinatons in yourself to shift responsibility for your fears on to something or somebody else? Who do you know that accepts you for who you are and you can speak to about your fears...? When you look at a well-known a Christian leader that you admire, what qualities does he or she have? So in the silence allow your fear to come to the surface, but do so 'in the presence' of the sentence.

+Martin

Argyll and The Isles