Lent - Day Twelve - Between Heaven And Earth

BETWEEN HEAVEN AND EARTH

Second reading Philippians 3:17-4:1 © Our homeland is in heaven, and from heaven comes Christ to transfigure us My brothers, be united in following my rule of life. Take as your models everybody who is already doing this and study them as you used to study us. I have told you often, and I repeat it today with tears, there are many who are behaving as the enemies of the cross of Christ. They are destined to be lost. They make foods into their god and they are proudest of something they ought to think shameful; the things they think important are earthly things. For us, our homeland is in heaven, and from heaven comes the savior we are waiting for, the Lord Jesus Christ, and he will transfigure these wretched bodies of ours into copies of his glorious body. He will do that by the same power with which he can subdue the whole universe. So then, my brothers and dear friends, do not give way but remain faithful in the Lord. I miss you very much, dear friends; you are my joy and my crown. This morning we almost had a tragedy and it was just the luck of the Irish that kept it from happening.  One of the brothers whose turn it was to make breakfast started the fire which had gone out during the night.  He went over to the bag which held the cooking utensils and noticed that it had not been sealed properly the night before.  He opened it and reached in and got the coffee pot and the pot used for making cereal.  As was his custom he grabbed a towel and was going to dust the inside of the pot but something made him look inside it first.  Inside was one of the deserts most fearsome creatures, a deathstalker scorpion had taken up residence there during the night my companion was just inches away from getting what could be a lethal injection of the neurotoxin that this delightful desert creature uses to kill its prey.  The tiny beast was ready and willing to dispense a jolt of his special elixir but to his credit, the man holding the pot did not panic.  Instead, he went to the edge of camp and catapulted the creature out of the pot as hard as he could.  The little guy had an experience most deathstalkers do not receive, the experience of flight!  Now, in spite of the colorful name of this creature, death to a healthy human, while not unheard of, is unlikely if they are stung by this scorpion.  From what victims say it is not an act of mercy to survive the sting as the potent venom causes great pain.  Children and the elderly are most vulnerable but it is considered a medical emergency if you are stung by one of these and in our present situation, medical help and the antivenom that is required is so far away that any dying that the victim would be doing would be done by the time any help could arrive.  So it was on this cheery note that our day began and in our morning prayers, we thanked God that our friend was spared the agony of a sting from this scorpion. After breakfast, as usual, we broke camp but it took a bit longer because we were carefully checking to make sure that the little fella hadn't brought any friends of his own.  No other examples of this miniature death machine were found and as the sun rose above the horizon, we began our trek.  While walking today, I began thinking of death but not death itself with all of the pains that might be attached to it but rather what happens after death. Physically, once the blood stops pumping your body begins it's the journey back into the elements that it is made of.  Tissues break down and in no time the only thing left of bodies that are not specially embalmed such as the Egyptians of old will be our bones.  And years from now, even those bones will return to dust.  All that was "me" will be gone.  The flesh that I work so hard to keep animated, the brain that fuels my thoughts and emotions will be no more.  Yet, through this all, I survive not as a memory on a tombstone with a date of birth and date of death and if I were rich enough some clever saying to mark my time on earth. What will remain of me is any of the good that I accomplished.  My mark will not be a long obituary story nor a small death notice.  My mark will be the seeds of love I planted while I, a body and a soul, walked and talked on this earth.  My soul will be in heaven.  I will be next to those I love and those that love me and we will glorify God together in songs of worship and praise.   This reward, this new life after death is as certain as gravity and as we are counter-culture people, our ways will receive persecution for "forward thinking" men and women who only can see what is in front of them and who take no notice of God, His laws, and His rewards.  They will be furious when we point out that their way of life is contrary to the Word of God.  They will tell us to follow our God in our own way and to leave them alone.  If that was only possible.  They do not live and let live as they want us to do, they pursue through the rule of law to make their rights to sinful things the law of the land.  They will do all that they can to enforce their rights while limiting ours.  But these people who are the most pitiful creature on earth are the enemies of Christ and the Cross. They existed at the time of Christ, at the time of the early Church, at the time of the great revolt of the Protestants, and exist until today.  Our Church is built on rock and in spite of the scandals of the moment it will survive and thrive because Jesus said so.  Paul tells us that our real homeland is in heaven.  We cannot keep silent about this because God wants a bountiful harvest and wants as many as possible to join Him in the never-ending feast. So, stir up your spirit, gird your loins and announce the Good News by the way you live and by the people you love.