Reflections
A Thought
I went out one afternoon for a walk alone. I was in the empty unthinking state in which one saunters along country lanes, simply yielding oneself to the casual sights around, which give a town-bred lad with country yearning such intense delight. Suddenly I became conscious of the presence of someone else.
I cannot describe it, but I felt that I had as direct perception of the being of God all round about me as I have of you when we are together. It was no longer a matter of inference, it was an immediate act of spiritual (or whatever adjective you like to employ) apprehension. It came unsought, absolutely unexpectedly.
I remember the wonderful transfiguration of the far-off woods and hills as they seemed to blend in the infinite being with which I was thus brought into relation. This experience did not last long. But it sufficed to change all my feeling. I had not found God because I had never looked for him. But he had found me.
Joseph Estlin Carpenter
Unitarian Minister; Principal, Harris Manchester College, Oxford.
1906 - 15
A Hymn
O Living God, that bringest all to birth,Thy power sheds its brightness on the earth;
All living things alike thy glory praise,
And trees and plants adorn the golden days.
The winter's cool and summer's heat fulfil
The purposes of thy almighty will;
The sun in splendour shines upon our land,
And all is nourished by thy loving hand.
The breath of life, to creatures high and low,
Thy everlasting bounty doth bestow;
To all thou givest freely of thy grace,
And makest one the members of our race.
And when the sun sets in the western skies,
In peaceful sleep thy children close their eyes;
The world is in thy hand as day departs,
Yet is thy habitation in our hearts.
O thou sole God, no other can possess
Thy power to uphold our lives and bless:
Majestic as the sun above us shines,
So excellent, O God, are thy designs.
John Andrew Storey
after Akhenaton, c. 1400 BCE
From Hymns for Living
To hear a musical setting of this hymn, just click here.
A Prayer
In the holy quiet of this hour, let us draw near to the One who hears our prayer; and let us remember
that He listens more to our hearts than to out words. Let each of us make an offering of love if not of holiness,
of penitence if not of purity, of teachableness if not of wisdom, of devout resolution for the time to come
if not the fruits of well-doing in the time that is past. For so may we gain strength, and find grace to help us
in time of need.
Amen.
A Thought
By far the most common and important way in which we can exercise our attention is by listening. We spend an enormous amount of time listening, most of which we waste, because on the whole most of us listen very poorly.
An industrial psychologist once pointed out to me that the amount of time we devote to teaching certain subjects to our children in school is inversely proportional to the frequency with which the children will make use of the subject when they grow up. Thus a business executive will spend roughly an hour of his day reading, two hours talking and eight hours listening. Yet in school we spend a large amount of time teaching children how to read, a very small amount of time teaching them how to speak, and usually no time at all teaching them how to listen.
I do not believe it would be a good thing to make what we teach in school exactly proportional to what we do after school, but I do think we would be wise to give our children some instruction in the process of listening - not so that listening can be made easy but rather that they will understand how difficult it is to listen well. Listening well is an exercise of attention and by necessity hard work. It is because they do not realise this or because they are not willing to do the work that most people do not listen well.
M Scott Peck - The Road Less Travelled
A Hymn
When the summer sun is shining
Over golden land and sea,
And the flowers in the hedgerow
Welcome butterfly and bee;
Then my open heart is glowing,
Full of warmth for everyone,
And I feel an inner beauty
Which reflects the summer sun.
When the light of summer sunshine
Streams in through the open door,
Casting shadows of tree-branches,
Living patterns on the floor;
Then my heart is full of gladness,
And my soul is light and gay,
And my life is overflowing
Like the happy summer day.
When, beneath the trees of summer,
Under leafy shade I lie,
Breathing in the scent of flowers,
Sheltered from the sun-hot sky;
Then my heart is all contentment,
And my soul is quiet and still,
Soothed by whispering, lazy breezes,
Like the grasses on the hill.
In the cool of summer evening,
When the dancing insects play,
And in garden, street and meadow
Linger echoes of the day;
Then my heart is full of yearning,
Hopes and memories flood the whole
Of my being, reaching inwards
To the corners of my soul.
When the summer clouds of thunder
Bring the long-awaited rain,
And the thirsty soil is moistened,
And the grass is green again;
Then I long for summer sunshine,
But I know that clouds and tears
Are a part of life's refreshment,
Like the rainbow's hopes and fears.
Sydney Henry Knight, 1923- Used by permission
From Hymns for Living
To hear a musical setting of this hymn, just click here.