Hello friends,
This is Mark Glideman,
Also known as Brother Frederick James,
Welcoming you to Towards the Light,
An Advent Journey.
Today as we sit and ease into day nine,
I'd like us to spend some time thinking about the call to repentance.
Repentance is a funny word,
And perhaps rightly so,
Because for many people it's a word that brings to mind feelings of guilt and shame,
Mainly because of the way it was probably used against them by other people.
But at its very heart,
Repentance is about turning.
Not turning away in despair though,
Or in guilt,
Or in shame,
But turning towards God in hope.
It's not about contemning yourself for your shortcomings.
Repentance is about recognising the grace that meets you,
Even in your brokenness,
And that moment invites you to begin anew.
Almost every Friday,
In the Liturgy of the Hours,
We Benedictine monks pray Psalm 51,
Where the psalmist writes,
Create in me a clean heart,
O God,
And renew a right spirit within me.
This one verse is the very essence of what repentance is.
It's a prayer of renewal,
And a prayer for transformation.
In the Book of Acts,
On the day of Pentecost,
Peter famously calls the people to repentance,
Saying,
Repent,
And turn to God,
So that your sins may be wiped out,
That times of refreshing may come from the Lord.
Don't we forget that last bit?
Let me say it again.
Repent,
And turn to God,
So that your sins may be wiped out,
That times of refreshing may come from the Lord.
Repentance then is an act that clears the path for that refreshing,
And makes a way for the love of God to freely flow into our lives.
Now let's not forget that the word repentance,
In English,
Has been translated in the scriptures in the New Testament from the Greek,
Metanoia.
And that word,
Metanoia,
Means to return to the path.
To repent then,
Is to recognise that you're going in the wrong direction,
And turning yourself to return to the way that you know you should be heading,
The path of life that you should be on.
Thomas Merton reminds us,
And I quote,
To be grateful is to recognise the love of God in everything,
End quote.
Repentance then,
Is an act of gratitude.
Repentance acknowledges that the grace that calls us back,
Even when we've strayed,
Is there for us.
It's a choice to realign our hearts with God's,
Not out of obligation,
But out of love.
Love for God,
And love for ourselves as a beloved child of God.
I wonder,
Where in your life do you feel distant from God?
Perhaps it's a habit that you've clung to,
Or a wound that you're carrying that you've ignored.
Repentance isn't about punishing yourself for these things.
It's about offering them back to God,
Trusting in God's power to bring healing and restoration.
Because that,
My friend,
Healing and restoration,
Is the fullness of the word that we read in the scripture as salvation.
So as you prepare your heart in this season of Advent,
May you see repentance not as a burden,
But as a gift.
May you feel God's grace inviting you to begin all over again,
And possibly again and again.
May you trust in the promise of a clean heart and a renewed spirit.
May you turn toward God,
Knowing that each step is met with love.
As we end this time of reflection,
I wonder,
Is there a way that maybe you've turned away from God this year,
Moved off the path that you know that you're meant to be on?
Today,
As you reflect,
If you notice it,
I encourage you to name it.
But don't name it to dwell in shame,
But to recognize it,
To acknowledge it,
To offer it in prayer,
And to begin the journey back to the path that God has for you,
The path that leads to life.
And let this be an act of gratitude for the grace that meets you in your turning.
Peace be with you,
My friends.
We'll see you tomorrow as we keep walking closer and closer to the light.
Amen.
