In God's Love We Abide


 

As the sun rose on a clear, bright morning, I was intrigued by a red glow as I turned onto a new block. As I drew closer, I found this gazing ball in a little garden near the sidewalk. I had never noticed it before. The light was at just the perfect angle to make it appear that the ball glowed from within. It seemed to have its own energy and source of power. It was an other-worldly image.
Whenever I see one of these gazing balls I remember how, as a boy, I thought of them as a crystal ball used by a fortune teller. You remember the stories, don’t you? The person with a special gift would gaze into the ball and literally watch future events unfold. Sometimes good, sometimes bad. Then they would pronounce the fate of the seeker.
As much as I may think I would like, at times, to know the future, I think in truth that I would rather roll with life unfolding as it does. How differently would I live if I already knew the rest of my story? What choices would I make that are different from those I make now? Would I still have a sense of adventure or anticipation if I knew the ending before I lived the journey? I think probably not.
But in a way, I do know the most important thing about my future. However my story goes, wherever my journey takes me, it all unfolds within the circle of God’s presence, love and grace. One of my favorite scriptures puts it like this, “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” This is enough to know of the present moment of our lives. This is enough to know of the future. God is love, and in that love we abide.
Peace.

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