reaching
©12-25-17 hannah mclean
oh glorious longing
image and likeness reaching for their Source
raging fires cannot burn away the ache
nor cries of pain drown out the harried whisper
joyful celebration can do nothing but join it in the air
and pleasures only point heavenward as they pass
oh glorious longing
image and likeness reaching for their Source
made to draw us
lest we never meet
only when our souls touch
when the arms extended before us
enfold our fragility in unbending strength
will we finally rest
and then
this glorious longing will lead us
into depths of wonder, love and worship
meant to whet and satisfy
forever
when image and likeness reach their Source
-----
Genesis 1:26–27
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
Tuesday, December 26, 2017
Friday, December 22, 2017
The Angels Response
The girls and I have been going through a scripture reading plan this advent season called God With Us. We’ve looked at things like the promise of His coming and reason for His coming; this last section leading up to Christmas Day is surrounding the response to His coming. We’ve looked at Mary’s response (“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior...” Luke 1:46–47) and at the shepherds’ response (“And they went with haste and found the baby...they made known the saying that had been told them concerning the child...the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God...” Luke 2:8–20).
Today we looked at the angels’ response. I don’t think I have ever really sat down and considered specifically how the angels responded to God coming to earth and becoming human. What a striking meditation, and I wanted to share with you some of my thoughts.
The angels had a very unique perspective: They knew the glory of God; they had seen Him face-to-face and actively live to work out His will--They knew His holiness, His power, His beauty, His wrath, His love, His worth...His undeniable deity. And they also knew humanity’s lack of all of the above; they saw our rebellion against God, our hatred for His ways, our denial of His being. They saw the vastness of the gap between God and man.
And then they watched as the One True Living God stepped across this vast chasm and became a man to save us.
And for the first time, He was "made a little lower than the heavenly beings." (Psalm 8:5)
It says at the proclamation of His birth in Luke 2:13, “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God...” And today as I considered this unique view they held I wondered if perhaps their understanding of the utter depth of the love and meekness and wonder of God opened up to them in an astounding way; if perhaps they had awaited with utter curiosity and awe to see what the fulfilling of this promise they had had the privilege of delivering to Mary would look like; and if perhaps before the songs of praise rang out, there was a gasp.
I bet the worship burst out of them with greater force than it does in Psalm 29:9.
I can think of no greater messengers to bring the good news to humanity.
Today we looked at the angels’ response. I don’t think I have ever really sat down and considered specifically how the angels responded to God coming to earth and becoming human. What a striking meditation, and I wanted to share with you some of my thoughts.
The angels had a very unique perspective: They knew the glory of God; they had seen Him face-to-face and actively live to work out His will--They knew His holiness, His power, His beauty, His wrath, His love, His worth...His undeniable deity. And they also knew humanity’s lack of all of the above; they saw our rebellion against God, our hatred for His ways, our denial of His being. They saw the vastness of the gap between God and man.
And then they watched as the One True Living God stepped across this vast chasm and became a man to save us.
And for the first time, He was "made a little lower than the heavenly beings." (Psalm 8:5)
It says at the proclamation of His birth in Luke 2:13, “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God...” And today as I considered this unique view they held I wondered if perhaps their understanding of the utter depth of the love and meekness and wonder of God opened up to them in an astounding way; if perhaps they had awaited with utter curiosity and awe to see what the fulfilling of this promise they had had the privilege of delivering to Mary would look like; and if perhaps before the songs of praise rang out, there was a gasp.
I bet the worship burst out of them with greater force than it does in Psalm 29:9.
I can think of no greater messengers to bring the good news to humanity.
Monday, August 28, 2017
“Sometimes it is good to be sad.”
I was talking to my girls about the flooding in Texas this morning. During our conversation, Audrey said to me, “Stop talking about this, it is making me sad.”
Her words struck me and I told her, “Sometimes it is good to be sad.”
I get where she’s coming from--What a completely human thing to say. It is a painful thing to look upon the suffering in the world around us; it is uncomfortable and confronting. It can accost the quiet peace of our day and force our mind to travel roads we’d rather not venture down. I used to cling firmly to a personal policy similar to her 4-year-old request, “If I don’t see it, I can’t feel for it.” And I squeezed my eyes shut, unwilling to let other’s pain into my little world.
And then I met Jesus.
I met Jesus, and everything changed.
Everything changed because Jesus, He looks upon the suffering and He weeps with the broken-hearted; He stands before both the oppressed and the oppressor and invites them to eat at His table; He kneels down beside the sickbeds of those no one would dare to touch; He puts Himself in the dark places so that the ones who reside there could know light.
Everything changed because if I wanted to grow in likeness to my Christ, I had to entrust Him with my heart. I have to let myself feel what He feels, see what He sees, hear what He hears so that I can learn to bring His unwavering love to a world that desperately needs to feel the gentleness of His compassion, to be transformed by His burning affection and to bow beneath the astounding wonder of His delight.
And so, I look at my intensely emotional little girl and I pray that someday she would find the courage to open her eyes.
Tuesday, April 25, 2017
the Kingdom of light
“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to Whom belong wisdom and might. He changes times and seasons; He removes kings and sets up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding; He reveals deep and hidden things; He knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with Him...And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end and it shall stand forever.” Daniel 2:20-22,44
the light dwells with You
©hannah mclean 4-25-17
blessed be Your name
remaining constant in the changing times and seasons
unhindered by the reign of wicked rulers
undaunted by the darkness that will not relent
blessed be Your name
the unending Source of wisdom and power
the Revealer of all that is hidden
the One with whom light dwells
no matter how my heart laments the ruling powers of my day--
kingdoms raised by hands dripping evil
exploiting
deceiving
bombarding
destroying--
i find myself uplifted by the Kingdom that is to come
Your Kingdom that will crush all others
in a glorious rule of
peace
blessed be Your name
may i stand within its unbreakable shelter
hemmed in by Your overcoming light
for You know all things
and if You bid me stand in the darkness
i will stand in it with You
finding delight in seeing
Your beauty, power, wisdom and light
topple kingdoms
that by any other means or authority
would not fall
Wednesday, March 8, 2017
"...for he is..."
The sermon on Sunday was from Acts 9, where the apostle Paul encountered the Lord on the road to Damascus, where he was going to gather the followers of Jesus to be brought back to Jerusalem and punished. And as we read about this confrontation and blinding by light, we read about God sending Ananias to Paul to return his sight.
ACTS 9:10–15
Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to Your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine to carry My name before the gentiles and kings and the children of Israel...”
And I just couldn’t get past those words from verse 15, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine to carry My name...”
I marvel at the Lord--the holy, mighty, merciful, righteous, perfect I AM; whose Name is great; whose authority is over all; who is unmatched in beauty, worth, glory and power. This One True Living God made Himself known to Paul, who describes himself and his way of life at the time in these ways:
ACTS 22:3-4 “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day. I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women...” GAL 1:13 “For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it.” 1 TIM 1:12–13a,15b “I thank Him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because He judged me faithful, appointing me to His service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent...Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.”
This One True Living God looked upon Paul and called him His “chosen instrument,” deemed him “Mine,” and spoke purpose over him, “to carry My name...” How do I get past that? Here was a man hellbent of stopping the spread of the gospel and the furthering of the kingdom of God; he was violently and zealously persecuting Christ’s Church, killing and punishing God’s people; and he was doing it from a place of pride and insolence while waving the flag of religious righteousness and declaring the name of Yahweh. THIS man...THIS man God looked upon and said, “This one is Mine. I choose him. I am going to put My name on him and he will be My instrument to lead gentiles, kings and Israelites to salvation.”
When I read Paul’s words in 1 Timothy, I can hear the wonder and resinate with the magnitude of his gratitude as it drips from his testimony, “...He judged me faithful, appointing me to His service, though formerly I was...” There is much to marvel at here, and our marveling shouldn’t end with Paul. It should cause us to look beyond the pages of scripture and at ourselves--our failing, faltering, fallible selves; and it should cause us to wonder at the Lord who says to us, “You are Mine. Before you chose Me, I chose you; before you were a saint, you were a sinner, and it was THEN that I died for you. I will set My name upon you and My Spirit inside of you. You are My instrument to bring My Gospel, My light, My love to the world.” He deserves so much better; He deserves pristine, untarnished, whole, holy, beautiful vessels, and yet, He picks through the ashes and He takes us as His own.
And I can’t get past that...and neither should you.
ACTS 9:10–15
Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to Your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine to carry My name before the gentiles and kings and the children of Israel...”
And I just couldn’t get past those words from verse 15, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine to carry My name...”
I marvel at the Lord--the holy, mighty, merciful, righteous, perfect I AM; whose Name is great; whose authority is over all; who is unmatched in beauty, worth, glory and power. This One True Living God made Himself known to Paul, who describes himself and his way of life at the time in these ways:
ACTS 22:3-4 “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day. I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women...” GAL 1:13 “For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it.” 1 TIM 1:12–13a,15b “I thank Him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because He judged me faithful, appointing me to His service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent...Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.”
This One True Living God looked upon Paul and called him His “chosen instrument,” deemed him “Mine,” and spoke purpose over him, “to carry My name...” How do I get past that? Here was a man hellbent of stopping the spread of the gospel and the furthering of the kingdom of God; he was violently and zealously persecuting Christ’s Church, killing and punishing God’s people; and he was doing it from a place of pride and insolence while waving the flag of religious righteousness and declaring the name of Yahweh. THIS man...THIS man God looked upon and said, “This one is Mine. I choose him. I am going to put My name on him and he will be My instrument to lead gentiles, kings and Israelites to salvation.”
When I read Paul’s words in 1 Timothy, I can hear the wonder and resinate with the magnitude of his gratitude as it drips from his testimony, “...He judged me faithful, appointing me to His service, though formerly I was...” There is much to marvel at here, and our marveling shouldn’t end with Paul. It should cause us to look beyond the pages of scripture and at ourselves--our failing, faltering, fallible selves; and it should cause us to wonder at the Lord who says to us, “You are Mine. Before you chose Me, I chose you; before you were a saint, you were a sinner, and it was THEN that I died for you. I will set My name upon you and My Spirit inside of you. You are My instrument to bring My Gospel, My light, My love to the world.” He deserves so much better; He deserves pristine, untarnished, whole, holy, beautiful vessels, and yet, He picks through the ashes and He takes us as His own.
And I can’t get past that...and neither should you.
Tuesday, January 24, 2017
Perfect Love Casts Out Fear: Part 3
I have found that pregnancy after a miscarriage has some unexpected twists; for example, my heart cringes every time this child is referred to as Baby #4. It took me a month longer to realize that I was pregnant with this child than with the others; it never dawned on me because I’ve been praying for another baby for two years and my body had failed in many ways that made it impossible. When I found out I was pregnant, I freaked out. Not because I wasn’t overjoyed (I was and AM), but because after I lost my last baby, I distinctly declared this statement as true about myself, “A baby put in this body will die.” My pregnancy with Evelyn scared me; it was a day-to-day assessment to determine if it was more dangerous for me to remain pregnant or to deliver a premature child into the world. And when she was finally born, the tiniest thing I’d ever held, I wept with relief that she was ok in spite of the fact that my blood pressure was slowly killing the placenta that was suppose to be sustaining and nurturing her.
I don’t think it was unreasonable to freak out. I have been waiting for 2 years for the Lord to heal my body, and I had assumed He would heal it before He put a baby in it. But He didn’t...so the same body that put Evelyn’s life in the balance and was unable to carry Theo, that body now houses a new child.
So I went and stood before the Lord and I told Him all my fears. I praised Him because I was excited, and I wondered at His curious ways, and I told Him I was confused and afraid and I didn’t know what to do about my medication or my emotions. And He listened.
He didn’t tell me what to do, or why He did things the way He did, or when He was going to heal my body...nor did He rebuke my fear. Instead He told me two things: He told me WHO He is and He gave me a hope to hang onto. He said something along these lines (this I will paraphrase), “I am the Creator and Sustainer of Life. This child’s wellbeing does not depend on your body’s performance, it depends entirely on Me.” And He also said (and this is not a paraphrase), “This child is for your joy, not your sorrow.”
And that has proven to be enough.
All the fears I walked into this pregnancy with flee before this truth--God is the creator and sustainer of life--and this promise--this child is for my joy, not my sorrow. The fear that my body could not sustain this baby fled at His words to me; the fear that my body had failed again when I started bleeding at 9 weeks--and again at 17 weeks--fled when I reminded myself of this truth and promise; the fear of heartbreaking disappointment fled with this permission to be excited; the fear that should have swelled up in me when my doctor listed off all the dangerous things she was anticipating could happen during this pregnancy could not take root in my mind; the fears that should understandably roll through my mind cannot gain momentum...and the whole things leaves me marveling at the work God has done in me over this season I am leaving. He has opened up new depth and understanding of His perfect love for me, and the result is shown in the fruit my life now bears: I have been fearless in this pregnancy. And any of you who know me well know this is no small miraculous work of God.
-------
1 John 4:10,16,18,19
In this is love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His son to be the propitiation for our sins...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...There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear...We love because He first loved us.
I don’t think it was unreasonable to freak out. I have been waiting for 2 years for the Lord to heal my body, and I had assumed He would heal it before He put a baby in it. But He didn’t...so the same body that put Evelyn’s life in the balance and was unable to carry Theo, that body now houses a new child.
So I went and stood before the Lord and I told Him all my fears. I praised Him because I was excited, and I wondered at His curious ways, and I told Him I was confused and afraid and I didn’t know what to do about my medication or my emotions. And He listened.
He didn’t tell me what to do, or why He did things the way He did, or when He was going to heal my body...nor did He rebuke my fear. Instead He told me two things: He told me WHO He is and He gave me a hope to hang onto. He said something along these lines (this I will paraphrase), “I am the Creator and Sustainer of Life. This child’s wellbeing does not depend on your body’s performance, it depends entirely on Me.” And He also said (and this is not a paraphrase), “This child is for your joy, not your sorrow.”
And that has proven to be enough.
All the fears I walked into this pregnancy with flee before this truth--God is the creator and sustainer of life--and this promise--this child is for my joy, not my sorrow. The fear that my body could not sustain this baby fled at His words to me; the fear that my body had failed again when I started bleeding at 9 weeks--and again at 17 weeks--fled when I reminded myself of this truth and promise; the fear of heartbreaking disappointment fled with this permission to be excited; the fear that should have swelled up in me when my doctor listed off all the dangerous things she was anticipating could happen during this pregnancy could not take root in my mind; the fears that should understandably roll through my mind cannot gain momentum...and the whole things leaves me marveling at the work God has done in me over this season I am leaving. He has opened up new depth and understanding of His perfect love for me, and the result is shown in the fruit my life now bears: I have been fearless in this pregnancy. And any of you who know me well know this is no small miraculous work of God.
-------
1 John 4:10,16,18,19
In this is love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His son to be the propitiation for our sins...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...There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear...We love because He first loved us.
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