Friday, August 22, 2014

Friday August 22, 2014 

Acts 9:1-9

This account from the Acts of the Apostles tells of the conversion of Paul, formerly called Saul, of Tarsus.  In terse phrases, the author describes this moment in the life of the first missionary for Christianity when all that is real changes.  Formerly a persecutor of the “people of the Way”, Paul encounters the risen Christ on the Damascus road, and is forever changed.

This description of conversion has often been mistaken for the norm in conversion experiences.  Perhaps you have been asked by a well-meaning friend or acquaintance if you have been “saved”, or words to that effect.  This Damascus Road experience, with flashing light, and an ethereal voice, and a resultant temporary blindness, is just that – one experience.  We may well have experienced the presence of God, or the Christ, or the Holy Spirit, in far more subtle ways in our lives.  And, like Saul/Paul, we go on experiencing God’s love and mercy and compassion day by day, moment by moment, if and when we are open to that experience.

In Great Lion of God, a book written in 1970, prolific author Taylor Caldwell took on the life of Paul in a fictional account.  She describes Paul’s conversion experience thus:

Saul lifted his hands and his mouth opened and he knew, at last, for Whom he had been searching, with longing and despair and hope and love – and with vehement denial.  His eyes, though filled with that splendor which shone upon him did not blink, did not turn away, did not scorch.  A quietude, as immense as the ocean, fell upon him.  His heart bulged in his breast, shaking.  His flesh quailed.  But the ecstasy increased moment by moment, and he tried to speak, to whisper, and finally it was enough for him to see. (p.413)

It was enough for him to see   It was enough. 

Is our relationship with the One who cares for us, and loves us beyond all measure, enough?  How do we foster that relationship, care for it, how do we share it with others?

- Reverend Paul Kett