Ensign: The Legacy of Walter C. Bouzard
All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye. Isaiah 18:3
AN ENSIGN ON THE MOUNTAINS 31 July 2015
A few years ago I had taken so many lines a devotional writer I had recently read to heart that the writer got title space. And the devotion I wrote coming off that started out with me questioning whether I was writing anything poignant, memorable, or inspiring. So in the three years since my last "The Legacy of ..." Ensign I have gotten better in some ways. Others, not so much.
While we sometimes may idealize the early church, the truth is that local communities of faith were frequently divided over questions of doctrine, and especially over the question of who was "in" and who was "out".
“Walter C. Bouzard, a former parish pastor, now serves as a professor at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa. His wife, Ramona Bouzard, naively married beneath her station. He encourages readers to send students to Wartburg College." That was the blurb about him at the beginning of the daily devotional I'm using, and I've peppered today's message with some insights he shared and I've (hopefully) gained from his written devotions during the last couple of weeks.
For all of that, God's rule is a peculiar one. Success is not measured by economic or military power, or by this King's abilities to coerce citizens into faithful obedience. Instead, God's kingdom is marvelous because, in it, those who are fallen and bowed down are lifted up, the hungry ones are fed, and divine justice is the basis for communal life. There is no niggling about who may or may not deserve to be lifted up. God's care is for all.
Sometimes an insight needs to come from outside you to make any sense. (But doesn't every insight come from outside you? NO, otherwise they'd be outsights.) Without the Holy Spirit working in us, it's impossible to receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior and the Word of God is so much gibberish. That's not sacrilegious to say at all, for how can you and I be expected to know all there is to know about Him? Without being Him.
The people freed by God from Pharaoh's oppressive reality, together with Jesus' disciples, are called to live in the "already but not yet" reign of God. In the land to which we are bound, God's provision for daily need is assumed. We are freed, thereby, to share our resources freely today.
And quite a while ago I made the choice to resign as general manager of the universe. (Besides, the office was way too big and it took me a year to get to the front door -- the universe is a big place.) Been hearing that quote all week on the radio, and God must know I need it.
Maybe you do too, or something else is coming to mind as your legacy.
David
P. S. I write this weekly devotional to keep in touch with you, and I hope it encourages you too. If I'm not or you want me to get lost, please let me know -- thank you!
Thank You, Lord, that we can come to You in praise and prayer and that You provide for all our needs, even the ones we don't know we have! Let us pray for the peace of Jerusalem on both sides of the fence there and around the world.
Thank You, Lord, for all of us in leadership and service here and abroad, as well as for opportunities we have and the promise of new life! I pray we all seek and have a blessed week. Amen.
A few years ago I had taken so many lines a devotional writer I had recently read to heart that the writer got title space. And the devotion I wrote coming off that started out with me questioning whether I was writing anything poignant, memorable, or inspiring. So in the three years since my last "The Legacy of ..." Ensign I have gotten better in some ways. Others, not so much.
While we sometimes may idealize the early church, the truth is that local communities of faith were frequently divided over questions of doctrine, and especially over the question of who was "in" and who was "out".
“Walter C. Bouzard, a former parish pastor, now serves as a professor at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa. His wife, Ramona Bouzard, naively married beneath her station. He encourages readers to send students to Wartburg College." That was the blurb about him at the beginning of the daily devotional I'm using, and I've peppered today's message with some insights he shared and I've (hopefully) gained from his written devotions during the last couple of weeks.
For all of that, God's rule is a peculiar one. Success is not measured by economic or military power, or by this King's abilities to coerce citizens into faithful obedience. Instead, God's kingdom is marvelous because, in it, those who are fallen and bowed down are lifted up, the hungry ones are fed, and divine justice is the basis for communal life. There is no niggling about who may or may not deserve to be lifted up. God's care is for all.
Sometimes an insight needs to come from outside you to make any sense. (But doesn't every insight come from outside you? NO, otherwise they'd be outsights.) Without the Holy Spirit working in us, it's impossible to receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior and the Word of God is so much gibberish. That's not sacrilegious to say at all, for how can you and I be expected to know all there is to know about Him? Without being Him.
The people freed by God from Pharaoh's oppressive reality, together with Jesus' disciples, are called to live in the "already but not yet" reign of God. In the land to which we are bound, God's provision for daily need is assumed. We are freed, thereby, to share our resources freely today.
And quite a while ago I made the choice to resign as general manager of the universe. (Besides, the office was way too big and it took me a year to get to the front door -- the universe is a big place.) Been hearing that quote all week on the radio, and God must know I need it.
Maybe you do too, or something else is coming to mind as your legacy.
David
P. S. I write this weekly devotional to keep in touch with you, and I hope it encourages you too. If I'm not or you want me to get lost, please let me know -- thank you!
Thank You, Lord, that we can come to You in praise and prayer and that You provide for all our needs, even the ones we don't know we have! Let us pray for the peace of Jerusalem on both sides of the fence there and around the world.
Thank You, Lord, for all of us in leadership and service here and abroad, as well as for opportunities we have and the promise of new life! I pray we all seek and have a blessed week. Amen.
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