iv. Signs and Wonders - Jesus
Jesus
Late 12thC Old English use hælend; saviour, from Greek Iesous, from Aramaic proper name Jeshua, Hebrew Yeshua.
Four In The Afternoon
St John 1. 35-51
Four in the afternoon, casting
nets for men drowning, he had begun
to set the pace. Staggered
they grew close. Claims were made
quickly. Honours heaped too thick.
Each would regret later, this
tendency to recklessness. Afterwards
none of them could cope. Four in
the afternoon: the circle widens.
The last calls him a frog prince
then a king. Only one saw
the dilemma left unsolved. Getting
a taste for sour figs.
Four in the afternoon. Follow me.
Jeff Guess
Reflection:
O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go
O Love that wilt not let me go, I rest my weary soul in thee; I give thee back the life I owe, That in thine ocean depths its flow May richer, fuller be.
O light that followest all my way, I yield my flickering torch to thee; My heart restores its borrowed ray, That in thy sunshine’s blaze its day May brighter, fairer be.
O Joy that seekest me through pain, I cannot close my heart to thee; I trace the rainbow through the rain, And feel the promise is not vain, That morn shall tearless be.
O Cross that liftest up my head, I dare not ask to fly from thee; I lay in dust life’s glory dead, And from the ground there blossoms red Life that shall endless be.
George Matheson 1842 – 1906
George Matheson excelled at school and entered Glasgow University where he studied Classics, Logic and Philosophy. He graduated with first class honours when he was only 19 years old but a deep tragedy was coming even as he completed his studies – he was rapidly going blind, an incurable condition that would eventually result in total blindness. But for Matheson there was to be an even heavier blow to come. Whilst at University he had met and fallen in love with a girl who was a fellow student. When she was told she rejected him immediately. Years later the memory of that twofold pain and tragedy came flooding back and it was on that occasion he penned this his most famous hymn - reportedly in ten minutes without ever changing a word.
Reading: Revelation 3:20
Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. KJV
Prayer:
I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year, “Give me a light so that I may tread safely into the unknown.” And he replied, “Go out into the darkness and place your hand in the hand of God. That shall be to you better than a light and safer than a known way.”
Minnie Louise Haskins 1875-1957 and included in the last Christmas message
to the world by the late King George VI before his death.
©Jeff Guess 2017
