For the past year or so, I have been running a couple times
a week. It’s a win-win activity; the
dogs get exercise and so do I. I like
the paths I run because even though the lakes I run around are manmade, they
have attracted a great deal of wildlife right in the middle of a suburban
neighborhood. From Canada geese to great
blue herons, from hawks to squirrels to beavers; I’ve seen quite a variety out
there. Over the course of a year, I
have also watched the landscape progress through the seasons: Spring… summer… fall… winter… and now back to
spring. The scene is slightly different
each day, but I confess that I don’t always notice. I can be pretty focused on “getting
my run done” and miss the subtle changes going on around me.
I can be so absorbed
in Alan’s world—my thoughts, worries,
and concerns—that I am virtually blind to God’s
world.
Sometimes I wonder, if the Risen Lord himself were to
approach me on the path, like he did the disciples on the Road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35) would I recognize
him? I might just as likely smile
politely at the stranger passing by, tell the dogs to “leave the nice man alone,”
and keep right on running.
I feel solidarity
with Jacob. God is always on my path but some days I scarcely recognize him.
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| Moses "saw" God in a burning bush. —Exodus 3:1–4:23 |
But occasionally I
have what I might describe as Moses-moment. A moment when, “It’s burning there, what can
I do but see?”
I had one such “moment” this week as
I ran. Perhaps it was because we had just celebrated Easter, and my mind was
more keenly focused to notice “signs of new life”. Or maybe it was because spring is springing
where I live in Maryland, and colorful blossoms seemed to be exploding
everywhere along the path. The trail was teeming with life at every turn—rabbits,
squirrels, ducks, geese, herons, hawks, and several times along the way, the
flutter of doves wings… The sound of the
Spirit passing by perhaps? I think one might have to literally be blind to
“miss the resurrection” that morning.
Once Jacob’s eyes were open and he
“saw” that God was present with him, he was never the same again. His encounter changed him entirely; God even
changed his name. Likewise, the
disciples on the Road to Emmaus had their own Moses-moment when the Risen Christ broke bread with them. After Christ left them, they recognized the burning that had been there all along
while Jesus was with them on the road.
My prayer is that as time goes on
I too might have more Moses-moments—moments
when I realize the Risen Lord is with me, to the point where my heart burns;
moments when I “see” resurrection beyond a shadow of a doubt.
My praises will rise
As I come to recognize
Jesus is near.
Glory is here!
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