Feb 24 - Time In The Furnace

Your throne, O God, endures for ever and ever, *
a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom;
you love righteousness and hate iniquity.
Psalm 45:7

Let us consider, then, how we ought to sing the psalms in such a way that our minds are in harmony with our voices.
Benedict's Rule 19:7 (Chittister, Pg. 130)

Prayer ... becomes a furnace in which every act of our lives is submitted to the heat and purifying process of the smelting fire...
Chittister, Pg. 131

Do I allow myself to be submitted to the fire? Do I spend the time needed to become pure? Or do I want the quick fix, just like I want my fast-food lunch, my microwave dinner, and easy relations with family without ever having to talk about hard topics and disagreements? Smelting and purifying are not instant, nor is change. Both take time. I need to take time to sit back and think, not just move from "In" to "Out", not just snapping back when called...

May I remember that as important as I think the next five minutes are, pausing and taking my time may well bring better results.

A Note To Readers:

This entry is part of a series that is developing as I read The Rule of Benedict, A Spirituality for the 21st Century, Joan Chittister, OSB, Crossroads, 2010. I am offering this both to those at St. George's Episcopal Church, Arlington VA, that may be reading this book and to anyone that is interested.

Unless stated otherwise quotes from St. Benedict's Rule are from the translation in this same book.

Psalms are from The Book of Common Prayer, The Episcopal Church, 1979 unless otherwise noted.

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