Peter, Pauline or Johannine?

St John

http://sacredconnections.co.uk/index.php/johannine-celtic-church/

Do the Celtic Christians focus more on John the beloved disciple because he lay his head against the chest of Jesus and by doing this heard the heartbeat of God.

In the writings of John the disciple, there is the famous scripture most will know. For God so loved the world that God gave his one and only son so the whoever’s, you and I would not perish, if we believe, we will enter into the blessing of eternal life. God is not a condemning God, but a loving God who is slow to anger and swift in love.

The hope of love now and confidence of there being an afterlife. God is Love, and God first loves us even when we are distant and unaware of God’s love. The Lord is a giving God giving our daily bread, giving us a beautiful habitation in this created world with all its wonders for us to enjoy.

God gave the inspired word of God and nature to inspire us, inviting humanity into an intimate relationship with the God of the universe. It is difficult to fathom and comprehend the well of God’s love, that deep love the God of the universe has for us.

We have to be like children again trusting and believing and enjoying being with our heavenly father. The following link is to an older blog I wrote, a snapshot of my childhood experience back in Scotland.

https://momentsofthesacred.wordpress.com/2016/07/28/the-beauty-of-creation/

“The great Irish teacher John Scotus Eriugena taught that God speaks to us through two books. One is the little book, he says, the book of scripture, physically little. The other is the big book, the book of creation, vast as the Universe.” From a book, I keep returning too and was reminded off. Christ of the Celts By J. Philip Newell, p 50. And the following book that talks about the heartbeat of God. Extracted from a previous Blog.

https://momentsofthesacred.wordpress.com/2015/06/20/the-creative-handy-work-of-the-lord/

In Celtic Spirituality, there is a “practice of listening for the living Word of God in nature as well as in scripture. This was the conviction of the ninth century philosopher John Scotus Eriugena, perhaps the greatest teacher the Celtic brand of the church ever produced. His name, a complicated one to the modern ear, simply means ‘John the Irishman from Ireland’. Eriugena taught that Christ moves among us in two shoes, as it were, one shoe being that of creation, the other that of scripture, and stressed the need to be as alert and attentive to Christ moving among us in creation as we are to the voice of Christ in scripture.” Listening for the Heartbeat of God A Celtic Spirituality By Philip Newell, p34.

“To know the creator, we need only look at the things he has created. The way to learn about God, Eriugena believed, is through the letters of Scripture and through the species of creation. He urges us to listen to these expressions of God and to conceive of their meaning in our soul.” Listening for the Heartbeat of God A Celtic Spirituality By Philip Newell, p35.

It’s all about believing that God is and will make a way for our lives to draw us ever closer toward connection. It is not about me or you making a way forward, it is about cooperating with God’s timing this is crucial. It is waiting for the timing of the Lord. There is a lesson to learn, it is for God’s glory and not my own, as everything I have has ultimately been given by God and it is not of my doing as I’m not capable of knowing what is best for my life.

There is a need to be patient, as waiting on God’s plan can bring great reward, but pushing ahead can yield the opposite effect, and result in lost or delayed opportunity. Refusing to wait can close doors, that are not ready to be opened, that can bring a lot of heartaches.

Lead the way, Lord, down the pathway of your choosing! Help me, Lord!

A prayer I turn too frequently is as follows:

You know the way for me, You know the time. In Your hands I trustingly place mine. Your plan is perfect, born of perfect love. You know the way for me, that is enough. ~ schoenstatt.

I have to “relinquish my own desires and plans in order to pursue His, and understand that we are His servants.” ~ Charles Stanley