Midweek Meditation: "On the Psalms II" (Athanasius of Alexandria)

"For just as one can find the themes of all the other books in the Book of the Psalms, so, too, what is special to this book is found often in the rest of the Scriptures; that Moses writes a song, that Isaiah sings, that Habakkuk prays with song and in the same way in every book we see the prophecies, lawmaking, and histories. The same Spirit is over all, and each book ministers and fulfills the grace given to it according to what is apportioned to each by the Spirit, to whom all these diverse gifts belong, and yet who is indivisible by nature. So that while the disclosures accord with the variety of gifts of the Spirit in relation to the ministry which each enjoys, yet the whole Spirit is in each book. Frequently, then, each one, in dependence on the Spirit, ministers the word as the need arises; thus, as I said before, Moses at one time or another makes laws, prophecies, or sings, and the prophets while engaged in prophetic utterance at times give commands: 'Wash, make yourselves clean' (Isa 1:16); 'Wash away the evil from your hearts, Jerusalem.' (Jer 4:14). At other times, they record history, as in the Book of Daniel, we read about Suzanna (Dan 12), while in the Book of Isaiah, we read of Rab-shekeh and Senacherib. (Isa 36:22, 37:21 LXX)" (St Athanasius in a letter to Marcellinus on the Interpretation of the Psalms)

Midweek Meditation: "On the Psalms I" (Athanasius of Alexandria)

"My child, as it is written, 'all of our Scriptures,' both old and new, 'are divinely inspired and useful for instruction' (2 Tim 3:16). But to those who devote themselves to it with special care, the Book of Psalms merits very close attention. It is true that every book of the Scriptures enjoys the ministry of its own particular message. The Pentateuch speaks of the beginning of the world, of the deeds of the Patriarchs, of the exodus of Israel from Egypt, and of the giving of the Law. The Triteuch (Joshua, Judges, Ruth) describe the allotment to the tribes of Israel, the acts of the Judges and the genealogy of David, the books of Kings and Paralipomenon (Chronicles) record the deeds of the kings, and the book of Esdras (Ezra), the deliverance from the captivity, the return of the people, and the building of the temple and the city. The prophets foretell the coming of the Savior, to call to mind the commandments, rebuke sinners, and deliver prophecies to the Gentiles.

However, the Book of Psalms, like a blessed garden bearing many different fruits, contains the themes of the other books in its songs, while at the same time its own particular ministry is clearly demonstrated alongside of what it sings of the others." (St Athanasius in a letter to Marcellinus on the Interpretation of the Psalms)

Midweek Meditation: Second Century Wisdom (Ignatius of Antioch)

St Ignatius of Antioch (c.35-c.108)

"There is only one physician, a physician who is at once fleshly and spiritual, generate and ingenerate, God in man, true life in death, born of Mary and of God, first passable then impassable, Jesus Christ our Lord."

"I am God's wheat, and I am being ground by the teeth of the beasts so that I may appear as pure bread."

"I prefer death in Christ Jesus to power over the farthest limits of the earth. He who died in place of us is the one object of my quest. He who rose for our sakes is our desire."

"Christianity is not a matter of persuading people of particular ideas, but of inviting them to share in the greatness of Christ. So pray that I may never fall into the trap of impressing people with clever speech, but instead I may learn to speak with humility, desiring only to impress people with Christ himself."

"Take heed often to come together to give thanks to God and show forth His praise. For when you assemble frequently in the same place, the powers of Satan are destroyed, and the destruction at which He aims is prevented by the unity of your faith."

Midweek Meditation: Second Century Wisdom (The Shepherd of Hermas)

"Remove every evil desire and clothe yourself with good and holy desire. For it you are clothed with good desire, you will hate evil desire and bridle it as you please." (The Shepherd of Hermas)

"Hold fast to simplicity of heart and innocence. Yes, be as babes who do not know the wickedness that destroys grown people's lives." (The Shepherd of Hermas)

"Those who are rich in this world cannot be made useful for the Lord unless their riches have been cut out of them. (The Shepherd of Hermas)

"7. When, therefore, the rich man reaches out to the poor those things which he lacks, the poor man prays to the Lord for the rich. And God grants to the rich man all good things because the poor man is rich is prayer, and his requests have great power with the Lord. 8. Then the rich man ministers all things to the poor, because he perceives that he is heard by the Lord, and he more willingly and without doubting affords him what he needs, and takes care that nothing be lacking to him.
9. And the poor man gives thanks to the Lord for the rich, because they both do their work from the Lord.
10. With men therefore, the elm is not thought to give any fruit; but they do not know or understand that by being added to the vine, the vine bears a double increase, both for itself and for the elm.
11. Likewise, the prayers of the poor to bless the rich are heard by the Lord; so their riches are increased, because they minister to the poor of their wealth. Therefore they both are made partakers of each other's good works."

Midweek Meditation: Second Century Wisdom (Irenaeus)

Irenaeus (130-202)

"The glory of God is the human person fully alive."

"For where the Church is there is the Spirit of God, and where the Spirit of God is, there is the Church and all grace."

"Error never shows itself in its naked reality, in order not to be discovered. On the contrary, it dresses elegantly, so that the unwary may be led to believe that it is more truthful than truth itself."

"It was the ground God cursed, not Adam."

"Jesus Christ, in His infinite love, has become what we are, in order that He may make us entirely what He is."

"In the beginning God fashioned Adam, not because He had need of human beings, but so that He might have beings on whom to bestow His benefits."

"As long as any one has the means of doing good to his neighbours, and does not do so, he shall be reckoned as stranger to the love of the Lord."

Midweek Meditation: First Century Wisdom (Clement of Rome)

Clement of Rome (1st Century Bishop of Rome)

On Peace
"O God, make us children of quietness, and heirs of peace."

On the Love of Christ:
"Out of love our Lord took us to himself; because he loved us and it was God's will, our Lord Jesus Christ gave his life blood for us - he gave his body for our body, his soul for our soul."

On the World
"We must look on all things of this world as none of ours, and not desire them. This world and that to come are enemies. We cannot therefore be friends to both, but must resolve which to forsake and which to enjoy."

On Praises
"We should let God be the One to praise us and not praise ourselves. For God detests those who commend themselves. Let others applaud our good deeds. "

Father's Day 2016 - Scene from the Movie Courageous

Fathers' Day is here! While most people will be talking about buying stuff, getting treats, and dining out with their fathers, I thought it is also a good opportunity to remind all fathers and fathers-to-be about the responsibility of fatherhood. Here is a clip from the popular movie, "Courageous." It's one of the best productions from Sherwood Pictures and also very educational. In this moving scene, four police officers step out to make a resolution to be the father that God has called them to be.

A gentle reminder to all. Just because a father does not say out the resolution verbally does not mean he is exempt from practicing all of it. As far as believers in Christ are concerned, it is a very normal thing to be a father that does things that honour God. The resolution honours God.

Link

A Child's Changing Perceptions of Their Dads Over the Years

This is a delightful chart that shows the changing perceptions of dads from the eyes of their child at different ages. It's adapted from an article here.

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Midweek Meditation: "Chewing on the Goodness of God" (Anselm of Canterbury)

St Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109)

"Christian soul, soul raised from sad death, soul redeemed from miserable slavery and set free by the Blood of God, rouse your mind; dwell upon your resurrection from the dead, and ponder well the history of your redemption and your liberation. Consider where the strength of your salvation comes from, and what it is. Employ yourself in musing on it, delight yourself in contemplating it; shake off your sloth, do violence to your heart, bend your whole mind to it; taste the goodness of your Redeemer, burn with love for your Savior. Chew the honeycomb of his words, suck their flavor, which is more pleasing than honey, swallow their health-giving sweetness. Chew by thinking, suck by understanding, swallow by loving and rejoicing. Be happy in chewing, be grateful in sucking, delight in swallowing." (Anselm of Canterbury)

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Father's Day 2014 - A WestJet Special

This special video made me tear up. I like the way it ends: "Sometimes the best thing of being a dad is just being able to be a dad."



conrade

A Gift for All Fathers - LPC Fathers' Day 2012

I made this clip to commemorate Father's Day at Lord's Peace Chapel (LPC) this morning. It was shared with the whole congregation at around 10.10am. I have edited it slightly to give certain slides more time.

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conrade

Father's Day Video Clip

This well made video clip is for all fathers.


 


Happy Father's Day to all fathers.

conrade