Called by name

It is our developing awareness of God that generates our need for recognition.

It is growth in that awareness which prevents our stagnation in a purely self-centred desire.
Living in the presence of God brings a metamorphosis from the self, and a coalescing of our needs into one all-encompassing longing: - a longing to take our place within the stream of love.
To give as well as to receive, to console and to be consoled, to heal and be healed, to carry and be carried; to take our place on the path that leads up through the mists, into the stillness and the high mountains where we shall be taken to the very edge, and, ultimately, to within touching distance of our Lord’s cloak, the hem of which wafts past us each time we turn to face Him.
From this holy ground we shall carry the seeds of that which we seek, and return to the plains, there to cultivate the soil within ourselves until ready to plough and to harrow where God wills: - in the places we were destined to be.
And then, at His command: - whatever, wherever, whenever, however, whoever – to sow those seeds.

We live within a lifelong paradox of being infinitely far from Him who is always right here beside us; of being touched by the untouchable; of always finding it a struggle to move closer to that which is our deepest desire; of always failing where we yearn to follow His ways.
Peace can only come as a product of the gentle flow of God’s love through us, and it is in search of our place within that eternal stream that we become disciples: we become His followers, and we join with the group of travellers along the way to bring awareness of His proximity and His touch to others.
In doing so, we avail ourselves of a new possibility; our gifted fellow travellers may include one who brings the very insight and touch we need for the continuation of our own journey.

We have been drawn towards Him.
We may not have heard directly, but we were called; He called us and we responded, and our response has made the call clearer to us.
“You have called me by my name. I hear you Lord.”
An awareness of having become one of The Found has brought its own gifts. These will vary according to our needs and to their relevance to the person we are discovering within ourselves, but one gift will be common to us all: -
we are now also among The Named. (4th & 6th January posts)

We could so easily rest in this place.

If, in any way, we have travelled an appreciable distance, whether in our faith, our relationships, our trust, our forgiveness, our repentance, - in whatever way may be relevant to our own personal spiritual and temporal lives - the change may be great enough to have already eased a considerable burden, or to have raised a comparatively trouble-free but featureless life to a new-found brightness and potential vitality.
We have not been called simply to give us the recognition we need: to enable us to hear the words “I know you”, and to tuck them away somewhere as though they were a membership card or a season ticket; something we can take out and listen to again whenever we like: something downloaded onto our MP3 player, or maybe even used as a ring tone on our mobile.
No, we are called to follow Him.
We are called to be His disciples, and to be ready to hear Him whenever He calls us to hear, to see, to do, to stay, or to go; whenever he calls on us to love.

If we do not feel we have moved from where we started, we can be assured that our very interest in progressing in our faith is enough to work within us. We each have our own paths to follow within the journey we are all called upon to make, and much may need to be unravelled, laid bare or made good.
This may take time, but our worth is not measured in quick results.
It is realized only in becoming the person we were born to be, and thus in doing whatever God may intend to ask of us.
We have only to follow and to be open to the working of the Spirit of God within us.
If my whole place in this world is centred on being able to respond correctly to God’s word for only one moment, in another forty years time, I can only hope and pray that when the time comes I shall be in the right place, fully prepared, and ready to respond according to His will.

If our journey so far has brought any form of loss, of desolation, or of misery, hold fast; believe in Him.
Once again, Lay it all before Him.
Share the truth with Him, that He may share His truth with you.
Make every sorrow and every thought a prayer.
Trust that He alone knows what is needed for us, and from us.
The unravelling may well be very painful. Perseverance will prove it to also be very fruitful.
I say this in the knowledge that my own experience of being emptied and refilled formed the bedrock of my present sense of peace and overflowing, however dimmed and restricted that sense may still be.

… ‘Samuel! Samuel!’
Samuel answered, ‘Speak, Lord; for your servant is listening.’ (1 Samuel 3:10)
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