Scripture
1Corinthian 13: 8 - 13
Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.
Reflection
Many of you might recognize the scripture for today, it is often used at weddings, as it speaks to all of the wonderful attributes of love. It speaks to the fact that love is patient, kind, not envious, and not boastful. I chose if for another reason and that is the idea of our seeing dimly in a mirror. Previously when I have read this scripture I have wondered about this part, what might this mean to us in our lives today. I believe that it speaks to a reality the many of us live within, the reality of understanding that we are always on a journey of self-discovery.
I want to share with you a quote I found, from an anonymous source; “Being on a spiritual path is not about swallowing your feeling and walking the Earth smiling and saying “love and light’ to people you meet. It’s not about carefully constructing a setting for your social media, where you perform a yoga pose with meditation music in the background. Being on a spiritual path means getting to know all of the parts of yourself, light and dark, so you can heal what hurts. It means working on ego and learned behaviours. It’s a deep dive into your soul. It’s being raw and vulnerable, and speaking your truth. It’s having respect not only for yourself, but for every living being. You may feel uncomfortable at times, but you’re supposed to, you are undoing years of programming and healing every part of your soul. That’s brave. You many feel lonely, you have woken up whilst everyone around you is still asleep. That’s okay, let them sleep, you keep going, keep walking your path and shine on like the divine being you are.”
I have often wondered about this idea of being on a spiritual journey. I used to say that I was on a spiritual journey, but in all honesty I didn’t really know what that truly meant. I see that, for me, being on a spiritual journey is to know that I am seeing myself dimly in that mirror. It is to understand that the me that I present to the world is a me that is layered with years of conditioning, expectations, challenges, and sometimes grief. It is a me that, in many ways, hides the real person underneath. It is a protection against the hurts of this world, but it also hinders me from fully becoming the person that I was create to be. To truly look at oneself, with all of the good, and the not so good. To look at the walls we have built around ourselves and to see why they exist. To open ourselves up to honestly look at ourselves, that is a spiritual journey. It is a journey of the soul. It is a journey where we learn to become all that we were created to be. It is a journey of fear, it is a journey of uncertainty, it is a journey where one must be brave enough to honestly look at oneself. It is a journey of healing.
Often times when we look in that mirror dimly we see a reflection of who the world wants us to be. When we embark on a true spiritual journey, we come to look in the mirror and we begin to see who God sees us to be, who God made us to be. It can be a journey from darkness to light, from hurt to healing. Many years ago I had an experience that shook the very foundations of what I believed. I wrote an article on the experience which was called, “Dark Journey of the Soul.” What I had seen, experienced, one dark October night began with my judgement of another. As I wrestled with this experience I can to understand that the one that I was judging, based on my own perceptions of myself, my own upbringing, my sense of worthlessness, was myself. This experience led me down a path of self-exploration where I was forced to look at myself and then look at who I was told I had to be. In the midst of that darkness I found the light of God’s love for me, as I am, as I was created to be.
To know only in part, but then to be known in full. To see ourselves dimly in that mirror, yet to know that God sees us as we were created to be. To know that our journey may take us through times of darkness, times of struggle, but to know that the greatest of these, Love, is with us always. These spiritual journeys that we take can change us, should change us, should challenge us to be who God created us to be, not who the world says we must be. I wonder, what is your journey and who do you see dimly in that mirror?
Prayer
God, of Infinite Love, we ask that you guide us on all of our journey. We ask that your presence be near and that you show us who you creates us to be. We ask for the courage to look honestly at ourselves, to see the good, and the not so good. We ask for the courage to become the people you call us, know us, to be. Help us to see ourselves as you see us, filled with the Divine Light of your love. We ask this in the name of Love Incarnate, your son, Jesus. Amen.
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