Risen Indeed, April 12

Nouwen speaks often of his experiences in the L'Arche community where he and others lived among persons with varying physical and mental challenges, not just as caregivers, but as brothers and sisters, co-equals before God. In the context of resurrection he speaks of their bodies being made new. He is careful to point out however, that their existence now is not a diminished one. He writes, "The body is not a prison to escape from, but a temple in which God already dwells, and in which God's glory will be fully manifested on the day of the resurrection." (p.178) We are not a captive people who wait only for the return of Christ or for our journey to him in death. God lives and dwells among us. "The Word became flesh..." and we are the benefactors today. Easter Sunday calls us to embrace once more the peace that is offered through the Holy Spirit, and the living hope that dwells within us through the resurrected Christ. With that in mind, we pray with Nouwen, "Make us new through your Spirit, so that we too may rise and walk in the light of life." Amen my brothers and sisters. Christ is risen...He is risen indeed!

JKA

Mortification, April 11

Sandwiched between the horrors of Maundy Thursday/Good Friday and the celebration of resurrection on Easter Sunday, is the mourning of Holy Saturday. Nouwen reminds us in today's devotion that death is a part of life, and for the person of faith, it is a bridge to eternity. For the disciples however, the long hours of the Saturday after Good Friday were probably filled with doubt, fear, and unrelenting grief. Nouwen reminds us amidst consideration of our own mortality that death will not be denied. This is not a morbid view, but a recognition of life's realities amidst the hope of faith. He writes, "In every arrival, there is a leave-taking; in every reunion there is a separation; in each one's growing up there is a growing old; in every smile there is a tear; and in every success there is a loss." That is the reality of life and death...but hope is coming...hope is coming...hope will not be denied!

JKA

Cross of Hope, April 10

One would not normally look at an instrument of punishment and death as a sign of hope, and yet, for those who have experienced the forgiveness and grace of God, purchased by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the cross is such a sign. To view the cross is to catch a glimpse of God's love, for it was there that God paid the greatest price for your sin and mine. In today's devotion, Nouwen imagines the world, overshadowed by the outstretched Jesus. His wounds cannot be ignored, his pain and suffering cannot be denied. But in that vision, he also embraces the reality of Christ hovering over the world again with love reaching to the hurting, the infirmed, the broken and weary, the wheelchair-bound, the blind and deaf. The Christ of the cross reaches out to all, and so, on this day, this Good Friday, do not turn away, but look intently at the cross and find there God's great love for you.

JKA

The New and Eternal Covenant, April 9

Responding to the honest question of Thomas pertaining to direction in the fourteenth chapter of John's gospel, Jesus replies, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." He was, in that moment establishing himself as the pattern his disciples were to follow in life and in death. We are often enamored with the patterns others leave us, choosing to mirror our lives after the qualities of another that appeal to us or challenge us at some level. In these last days of Lent, as we view the upper room, the Garden, the cross, and the empty tomb, the example to be followed is found in Jesus alone. In humility he washes the disciple's feet, serves them a final meal, allows himself to be handed over to his betrayer, endures the travesty of the Sanhedrin trial, and carries his own cross upon which he dies. He exemplified in those last days and hours the servant attitude that he called his disciples to follow, and he established a meal that has been observed again and again and will continue to be observed until he returns. The bread and cup, symbolic of his broken body and shed blood, remind us each time we receive it, of God's great love and the willing sacrifice of God's servant Son. In remembrance of Him, we receive...and in commitment to follow Him, we serve. "Do this," He said, "in remembrance of me."

JKA

Eyes That Heal, April 8

Nouwen reminds us often of the significance of intimacy with Christ. In today's devotion we are called to see with the eyes of Christ, for his penetrating eyes see through the evidence of our sinful ways to the need of our hearts. An old gospel song says, "He looked beyond my fault and saw my need." The Psalmist implored God, "Search me, O Lord, and know my heart..." The penetrating eyes of Christ search our hearts and love us still. Oh that we could love others with such a love. Nouwen writes, "Lord, let me see what you see...the love of God and the suffering of people so that my eyes may become more and more like yours, eyes that can heal wounded hearts." (p.162) As the eyes of Christ bring healing to our wounded hearts, we too can become healers to the wounded around us.

JKA

Handed Over, April 7

I believe it was Doris Day who sang many years ago, “Que sera, sera, whatever will be, will be…” Now I know I am dating myself when I quote the lyrics of a Doris Day song. Some of you will have to google her name to find out who she was. The message of her song, however, intimates a certain fatalistic view of life…what will be, will be. Is Henri Nouwen offering a fatalistic view in today’s devotional? He speaks of passion not as a matter of choice, but rather as what is thrust upon us. He cites the betrayal and crucifixion of Jesus as an example, saying, “From the moment Jesus is handed over, his passion begins, and through this passion, he fulfills his vocation.” I would not view this however as fatalism for while the actions of others impact the Passion stories, Jesus walked willingly to the cross. This decision was made long before Judas betrayed him with a kiss. He allowed himself to be handed over, to be taken to a cross as a matter of choice, “for God so loved the world that he gave his Son…” The purpose of this gift was not fully revealed until Jesus allowed himself to be taken and then submitted himself to the humiliating torture of his trial and crucifixion. Dying on the cross, he allowed himself to be placed in the hands of the One he came to glorify, saying, “Into your hands, I commend my spirit.” Giving himself up, he died and then lived to bring glory to God. Nouwen writes, “I, too, have to let myself be handed over and thus fulfill my vocation.” Que sera, sera.

JKA

The Little Way, April 6

"The way of Jesus only can be walked with Jesus." (P.156)

The words of Henri Nouwen are often profound in their simplicity. At times we make the gospel message more complicated than it is, leaning more on our own understanding and interpretation instead of listening for the voice of the Lord. The statement quoted above reminds us that we are nothing apart from Christ. "I am the vine, you are the branches," Jesus said. "Abide in me... for apart from me, you can do nothing." To love others as Christ loves is impossible apart from walking with Jesus. John wrote, "We love because God first loved us." To experience God's love and mercy empowers the follower of Christ to live and love in that mercy...regardless. For today or tomorrow, ponder deeply this love and mercy, and walk with Jesus wherever you go.

JKA

Christ on a Donkey, April 5

Have you ever studied the expressions on people's faces? You can really tell a lot by looking at a person's face. You can see the sorrow on the face of a relative after they experienced the loss of a loved one in another of our country's tragic shootings. You can see the sense of happiness and celebration on the face of the basketball player whose team will play for the championship Monday night. You can see the innocence of a child when you look at their face as they listen to you read them a story. Nouwen looks at the face of Jesus in a sculpture at the Augustiner Museum in Freiburg, and sees something that is out of place with the scene. The scene is excited, noisy, and celebratory as Jesus rides into Jerusalem, but Nouwen sees that Jesus is thinking about something else. He is thinking about "an agonizing journey of betrayal, torture, crucifixion, and death." Nouwen sees in the face of Jesus melancholy, peaceful acceptance, insight into the fickleness of the human heart, immense compassion, an awareness of pain, determination to do God's will, and above all, an endless, deep, and far-reaching love. When you imagine Jesus riding on the donkey, what do you see in his face?

Nouwen is reminded every time he looks at this sculpture of Jesus that he is "seen by him with all my sins, guilt, and shame and loved with all his forgiveness, mercy, and compassion." Let us take comfort in knowing that Jesus sees us for all that we are and loves us fully, with the love that was present in his face as he rode on a donkey on that Palm Sunday.

Where He Wills, April 4

Even though Nouwen wrote today’s devotional nearly 20 years ago, it is as relevant now as it has ever been. Much of the turmoil going in Christendom has at its heart a claim by some to speak with certainty about the mind of God. It is always dangerous when the finite is sure that it knows the mind of the infinite.

One thing that keeps us from knowing the mind of God is a strict adherence to tradition. A few years ago a seminary professor defended his fatalistic view of the Book of Revelation by saying, “That is how I was taught to interpret this book of the Bible.” He seemed to be saying that he was not open to understanding a way other than what he had previously learned. We humbly must be open to different views and to a fresh revelation of God if we limited humans are ever going to know anything about our limitless Father.



Mark Brasler

Divine Humanity, April 3

"He became lost with the lost, hungry with the hungry, and sick with the sick."

(Nouwen, p.145)

Nouwen reminds us that Jesus was aware of and experienced much of what we experience as human beings. John establishes this divine/human connection as he writes, "And the Word became flesh and dwelled among us." That is the unmatched message of the Gospel, that God came in human form to purchase salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus the Christ. His sensitivity to and compassion for the brokenness of our human experience proves once again the depth of God's love, and that empowers us to live hopeful lives. Again, Nouwen writes, "His compassion makes it possible for us to face our sinful selves, because it transforms our broken human condition from a cause of despair into a source of hope." Praise God for such a hope!

JKA

Listen to the Church, April 2

"...the greatest spiritual danger for our times is the separation of Jesus from the church." (p. 143)

As I write this response, Alan Jackson is singing "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus," in the background. The text says, "Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow stangely dim in the light of his glory and grace." It is one of my wife's favorite hymns, and mine as well. It is a powerful text that calls the believer to focus on Jesus, for in doing so, everything else finds its proper place. Nouwen's concerns raised in the above quote are a reminder to the church to keep Jesus at the heart of its identity and purpose. Amidst the distractions and challenges that face the modern church, none poses a greater threat than taking our eyes off of Jesus. As Nouwen asserts, "Without Jesus there can be no church." Amen.

JKA