Recently, one of the Sunday Adult Education groups read and discussed The Shack by William Paul Young, a novel that is intended, among other things, to stretch one’s picture of God, of the persons of the Trinity, and the way God works in our lives. In the story, Papa, a black woman cook and the Father figure of God, tells Mackenzie, the protagonist, that: “Jesus is fully human. Although he is also fully God, he has never drawn upon his nature as God to do anything. He has only lived out of his relationship with me, living in the very same manner that I desire to be in relationship with every human being. He is just the first to live it to the uttermost, the first to absolutely trust my life in him, the first to believe in my love and my goodness without regard for appearance or consequence.” (p.101) Pause for a moment and think about what that means—the first, not the only, not the last. That’s the kind of relationship our gospel for today refers to when Jesus tells his disciples, “I am in the Father and the Father is in me,” incarnating God’s love in the world. That is the same relationship we have with God; as Paul points out, we are temples of the Holy Spirit (I Cor.3:16). We are all sons and daughters of God whether we realize it or not. God indwells us as Source and Essence of all, and we are called to live into that relationship and to incarnate God’s love in our world today. Jesus goes on to say that God will “do greater works” through us. How can that be? That seems incomprehensible for most of us—Jesus raised people from the dead, gave sight to the blind, cleansed the lepers, fed the 5000, changed water into wine—all those miracles we read about in the Bible that don’t happen anymore. Or do they? Consider for a moment how God uses those in the medical profession, for example, to be the healing hands and feet and voice here and now. We see miracles every day, yet we seldom recognize or acknowledge the Source. Just imagine what the world would be like if we, each and all, lived our life in God to the uttermost as did Jesus, incarnating Love with every breath.