Friday, December 13, 2013

2nd Advent 2008, Radiate Warmth

2nd Advent
Philippians 4:1, 4:4-9

Therefore my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and my crown of glory, stand firm in the power of the Lord.

Rejoice in the nearness of the Lord at all times! And I say it again: Rejoice!
Let a gentle kindliness be evident toward all human beings you encounter. The Lord is near! Let not worry have power over you; let your concerns in all things be known to God by sending your supplication and prayer upward in thankful thoughts. And the peace of God, which transcends anything that the intellect can grasp, will keep your hearts and thoughts safe in the Being of Christ….

And lastly dear brothers I say to you:
all that is true,
all that is worthy of reverence,
all that is good and holy,
all that is lovely to look at and beautiful to hear,
all that has virtue and deserves praise:


let these be the content of your conversations and thoughts. All that you have had handed on to you, what you have heard from me and seen in me—put all this into practice; then the God of Peace will be with you!


2nd Advent Sunday

December 7, 2008
Philippians 4:1 and 4:4-9

When we are cold, we seek a heat source. We do so because, of course, warm objects, warmth itself, radiates itself outward. And one can receive it, absorb it. Snakes need to receive their warmth from the sun before they can begin to move. We human beings, on the other hand, are warm-blooded. We can generate and maintain our own heat, although we may need help from time to time from warm surroundings. A room full of people gets warm.

There is also the matter of inner warmth, warmth of soul. We are also capable of generating soul warmth, and radiating it outward, so that others, too, are warmed. In this reading, Paul encourages us to generate soul warmth. This warmth is intimately connected with the quality of mood. He encourages us to generate the warm mood of joy in the place of fear; a warmth of kindness instead of the pinch of concern; a radiance of gratitude in place of the cramp of worry.

In these times, we may feel we are having trouble keeping our souls warm. We need help in maintaining inner warmth. We are able to do so when we turn to the Christ Sun; His radiance warms human hearts. Through the nearness of His eternal presence, our souls can warm and expand. Through His warmth, our souls can radiate warmth and light, in joyful kindness and gratitude.
Maulsby Kimball

Hafiz wrote a poem about the moon, whom we can think of here as an image of the soul. The moon says:

The Sun has been my faithful lover
For millions of years.
Whenever I offer my [self] …to him,
Brilliant light pours from his heart
Thousands then notice my happiness
And delight in…my beauty.
…Is it true that our destiny
Is to turn into Light
Itself?[1]

The soul can turn to the Christ Sun. He helps generate the radiance of the soul’s beauty and happiness. He helps her generate her warmth and light.




[1] Hafiz, “Faithful Lover”, in The Gift, by Daniel Ladinsky, p. 159.