2005
From Harold Masback, And This is Eternal Life" (April 24, 2005) at page 11:
You don’t need what you don’t have. But you have to use what you have.
From Carl Sagan, Other Words, used in And This is Eternal Life", May 8, 2005.
Astronomer Carl Sagan used to tell a story about a Biology 101 course in which the professor’s exam consisted of only one question: “Suppose you could take to Mars any of the laboratory equipment used in this course. How would you determine if there was life on Mars?” One student responded simply: “Ask the inhabitants. Even a negative answer would be significant.” According to Sagan, the student got an “A”.
1988
From Annie Dillard, Holy the Firm (Touchstone, September 1, 1988) used in The Divine Succession Plan", May 22, 2005
“A blur of romance clings to our notion of these people in the Bible, as though of course God should come to these simple folks, these Sunday School watercolor figures, who are so purely themselves, while we now are complex and full at heart. We are so busy. So I see now, were they. Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? There is no one but us. There is no one to send nor a pure heart on the face of the earth, but only us, a generation comforting ourselves with the notion that we have come at an awkward time. But there is no one but us. There never has been. . . . There is no one but us, not in this time and space. We can stand looking up into heaven or we can believe the promise of Jesus: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you will be my witnesses.” You will make footprints in and through ordinary, imperfect communities of faith that seldom get it right. Ascension Day is not a call to look up. It is to trust that Christ’s promise is down and in and around us. We are not alone – you and I who dance and climb, who run and get knocked down, we who lie on the grass or sit watching the late-night news. We are not alone. The Holy Spirit, promised by Jesus, surprises us at every turn, saying, ‘Guess who?'”
From Harold Masback, The Divine Success Plan" (May 22, 2005) at pages 3-4:
I went to see the new Star Wars movie this week, Episode III, Revenge of the Sith. Just in case you’re not all Star Wars geeks, Episode III is the last of three prequels that carry the story up to the point where we first came into it 28 years ago in the first Star Wars movie made, Episode IV: A New Hope. I hope I’m not spoiling the ending for you, after all, we all know from the three sequels how it all ends, but when this Episode III ends, things are looking pretty grim for the good guys. They have been routed by the bad guys and their numbers reduced to a tiny handful. The awesome power of the mighty empire is arrayed against them and they have fled into hiding in a remote, insignificant corner of the universe. They are the last guardians of a belief system that has been sloughed off by a civilization in the thrall of darker powers, and if they don’t manage to teach the ways of the force to the next generation of disciples, creation’s last hope for peace, freedom and love will end forever. If we didn’t know how things turn around in the sequels, it would be a thoroughly depressing end to the saga. But of course, we do know, so as the credits roll and the theme music comes up, we leave the theater with a lilt in our step.
From Matthew 2:13-23:
13 Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.”
14 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt,15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.”
16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men.
17 Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: 18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.”
19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, 20 “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.”
21 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel.
22 But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee.
23 There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, “He will be called a Nazorean.”
From Psalm 80:1-7,17-19:
1 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock! You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth 2 before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh. Stir up your might, and come to save us!
3 Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
4 O LORD God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
5 You have fed them with the bread of tears, and given them tears to drink in full measure.
6 You make us the scorn of our neighbors; our enemies laugh among themselves.
7 Restore us, O God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
17 But let your hand be upon the one at your right hand, the one whom you made strong for yourself.
18 Then we will never turn back from you; give us life, and we will call on your name.
19 Restore us, O LORD God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
From Psalm 31:1-5:
1 In you, O LORD, I seek refuge; do not let me ever be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me.
2 Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily. Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me.
3 You are indeed my rock and my fortress; for your name’s sake lead me and guide me, 4 take me out of the net that is hidden for me, for you are my refuge.
5 Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God.
From Romans 12:3-8:
3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
4 For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, 5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another.
6 We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; 7 ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; 8 the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness. RefMgr field[18]: An Ark for Everyone: Berths and Tasks for All God’s Children
From Sirach 8:9; 25:3-6:
9 Do not ignore the discourse of the aged, for they themselves learned from their parents; from them you learn how to understand and to give an answer when the need arises.
3 If you gathered nothing in your youth, how can you find anything in your old age?
4 How attractive is sound judgment in the gray-haired, and for the aged to possess good counsel!
5 How attractive is wisdom in the aged, and understanding and counsel in the venerable!
6 Rich experience is the crown of the aged, and their boast is the fear of the Lord.