The apostle Paul, in our epistle lesson, tells us that “it is God who is at work in you, enabling you to will and to work for his good pleasure.” Sit with that phrase for a moment. Let it speak to you deep within. We will each hear something different, unique. I hear: “In us, here and now.” Whether we are aware of it or not, God is at work in us, refining us with Love, transforming us into the imago dei, the image of God we were created to be, enabling us, one by one, to transcend the limitations of the ego to become a compassionate, self-giving presence in the world.

One of the ways I recognize God at work in my life is through the spiritual books that come my way just when I am ready for them. I am currently focusing on a book of weekly meditations, The Mystical Heart by Edwina Gateley. This week’s (p.44) speaks to me of our scripture passage above. It opens with a quote from Angelus Silesius: “Never am I outside God; God is not outside me. I am God’s radiance and God’s light, And God adorneth me.” Edwina follows that with an original poem: We are each of us a bit of God, a scrap of divinity. If we would know it, Oh! if only we could know it, we would walk the earth in awe, eyes shining in splendor, hearts suspended in delight at the miracle of the living God gracing our days and nights.

Oh! If only we could know it deep within! Amen.