Wednesday, 26 May, 2004

The focus of these devotions is Walter Wink’s book “The Human Being” and a section dealing with the vision of the Son of the Man in Ezekiel.



So this is not Operation Bootstrap, trying to lift myself into my own potential. We must, it is true, be constantly attentive to the clues being provided, oh so gradually, in prayer, in scripture, in worship, in preaching and silence and dreams and meditation – and, yes, also from our parents, our culture, our mentors and peers and colleagues. And perhaps, above all, from our enemies. So the journey is conceived, executed, and consummated by God’s grace by the promptings of the imago Dei within us; by the nudges, glimmerings, and insights that further that journey; and finally, by the transformative power of God in the revelation of who we really are in the consummation of all things. As one of the most remarkable lines of Scripture puts it, “Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when the Humanchild [“he” or “it” NRSV] is revealed we will be like it, for we will see it as it is” (1 John 3:2).



Nudges are good. Nudges help us turn our heads and take another look at what we may be missing. Nudges help us lift up our eyes and see things again…maybe through another lens…maybe through the eyes of someone else who is with us as friend or foe. The Holy Spirit – in many and various ways - nudges and pulls us into the domain of God’s gracious Reign. Unfortunately, we do not always want to leave the place in which we like to be and from which we like to perceive the world. Here…this place…is always more comfortable than seeing anew or eating at a banquet feast that is not under our control. And yet, by God’s grace the Spirit never stops nudging us…never…ever…even to the end of all things. And then, the fullness of God’s grace will be seen and we will be greeted with the fullness of love and grace.



Connection: There are people all around you today. They may play a part in helping to nudge you to see the gracious Reign of God even within the ordinary business of the day. We may all be surprised by how the Spirit nudges us…but we may not even know it until tomorrow or next week or…



Inspiring God, nudge us so that we will see and hear your love as it comes to life today. Nudge us, with your grace, so that we may be graceful to ourselves as we stumble and fall and gracious to those who are instruments of your divine nudging. Amen.