I walked on the trail at 5:15 this morning. When you must be at church at 7:30, then you walk early. It rained a little, and the birds sang with great abandon at that hour. A choir praising God.
Church went well enough. A women’s chorus sang a lovely anthem for Father’s Day. After church someone asked me if I had any special plans for today. Her family was having a cookout for its Dads. I said, “I will probably read a book.” I do not have a father, and I am not a father myself, so there isn’t much to do on Father’s Day.
So I am reading this afternoon. I gleaned this from Austin Farrer, “The more emptied out you are, the more hope there is of your learning to be a Christian.” True! It made me smile. I have nothing, but I possess everything in the inverted world of the kingdom of God (2 Cor 6:10).
Are you sure there is no one you know who is in need of special companionship in spirit – with you? An older man who has wisdom to share, and girls and boys who need a safe adult to learn from and …know.
Relationships are important.
….i could’nt agree more with the quote from Farrer…it’s verified and confirmed in the writings and lives of the Greatest Saints and Christian Mystics throughout the Ages…For some of us the process of being “emptied out” is tantamount to having our personal lives and Ego dismantled piece by piece,forcefully when necessary,and crucified alongside Christ..unfortunately this often adversly affects those of us who are prone to the temptations of melancholy…
There are men at church I see as father figures, and there are children and youth I probably influence in some way. I treasure all these relationships and could not live without them.
And Mike… our emptying mirrors Christ’s own emptying. See the Christ hymn in Philippians 2.
Okay, okay. So you are not needy emotionally. That’s good. Dependecy in relationships will not be a problem.
I understand that your achieved balance involves substantial alone time.
Yes, solitude recreates my spirit.