the words of a book;
We want to hear Jesus speak to us. He wants to be real to each of us personally. He wants to engage us as individuals. But in our prayer we feel deaf. We feel unable to open ourselves to listen to these words. We can't imagine hearing from God with the specificity that is the constant experience of the disciples records in the Acts of the Apostles. For instance, God says to Philip, "Get up and head south on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route", and then "Go and join up with that chariot" (cf. Act. 8:26, 29). God gives similarly concrete instructions to Ananias. "The Lord said to him, "Get up and go to the street called Straight and ask at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus named Saul. He is there praying, and he has seen a man named Ananias come in and lay hands on him, that he may regain his sight" (cf. Act. 9: 11-12). This is so different from the common experience today. We read Acts with a disconnect because it is beyond what we typically experience.
But Jesus wants to speak to us. And it is important that he be able to do so for the same reason it is for Ananias and Philip. He wants to use us to bring others to himself just as with the Ethiopian and with Paul himself. The best part, however, is that it isn't all about our listening skills. Jesus speaks words that can penetrate our hearts. The "words of a book" have the power to break through our deafness. In this book we read:
"Let it be done for you according to your faith.""
And their eyes were opened.
These words have power. They inspire in our hearts the faith to trust in the power of Jesus. These words are no mere human words. They open the eyes of the blind and the ears of the deaf. The are not spoken once, written, and now lifeless. They are spoken to us here and now by Jesus himself in the power of his Holy Spirit. This is how he leads us into "all truth" (cf. Joh. 16:13). It is precisely in this sense that we have no need of teachers (cf. 1 Joh. 2:27). No matter how good the teacher, his words don't have the power of these words. If a teacher asks, "Do you believe that I can do this?" we answer no. But the word of Jesus inspires us to say, "Yes, Lord" from the depths of our hearts.
In the deepest places of our hearts we long to see God.
One thing I ask of the LORD;
this I seek:
To dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
That I may gaze on the loveliness of the LORD
and contemplate his temple.
Only he himself makes this possible. He is the vision and the light that illuminates the vision. In his light, we see light (cf. Psa. 36:9).
He tells us how we ought to listen. We are called to be poor and lowly enough to find joy in the LORD. This is exactly what Mary does. We are called to avoid tyranny and arrogance. The LORD casts down the mighty and lifts up the lowly (cf. Luk. 1:52). Those who do evil are cut off, but the childlike rejoice in the splendor of the Holy One.
When his children see
the work of my hands in his midst,
They shall keep my name holy;
they shall reverence the Holy One of Jacob,
and be in awe of the God of Israel.
Are we deaf to the words of the LORD? It isn't too late! No matter how long this has been our 'normal' the LORD wants to guide us to a new normal, a better normal.
Those who err in spirit shall acquire understanding,
and those who find fault shall receive instruction.
We need to let him guide us so that we too may say:
The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life’s refuge;
of whom should I be afraid?
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