September 28, 2023: dwell in me as I dwell in you

September 28, 2023

dwell in me as I dwell in you

As I get older I dwell a bit on the thought of eternal life. I no longer believe on a God with a white beard on the roof of the Sistine Chapel. I think even referring to the word God creates such a strong impression that I avoid it. I love the idea of Divine Breath, of Divine Presence, Spirit of all Things (maybe a little too long?). Or maybe Spirit of Awe. Your thoughts?

Here's a reflection by Henri Nouwen who grapples with the concept of Eternal life which I hope you will find challenging.

- Much love from David

Eternal life where is it? When is it? For a long time I have thought about eternal life as a life after all my birthdays have run out. For most of my years I have spoken about the eternal life as the “ afterlife,“ as “ life after death“ but the older I become the less interest my “ afterlife “ holds for me.

Worrying not only about tomorrow, next year, and the next decade, but even about the next life, seems a false preoccupation. Wondering how things will go for me after I die seems, for the most part, a distraction. When my clear goal is the eternal life, that life must be reachable right now, where I am, because eternal life is life in and with God, and God is where I am here and now.

The great mystery of the spiritual life - the life in God - is that we don't have to wait for it as something that will happen later. Jesus says: “dwell in me as I dwell in you“

It is this divine indwelling that is eternal life. It is the active presence of God at the center of my living - the movement of God's spirit within us - that gives us the eternal life.