Levison certainly doesn't sugarcoat life in the Spirit. Unlike many who preach the health and the wealth gospel, Levison doesn't create the expectation that because we have the Holy Spirit in our lives things will be easy or that we will experience success, at least in terms of the way the world views success. I found the following quotations bracing:
"Here is the bare-bones expression of faith: the Spirit of God inspires us even--especially--at the doorstep of death..."
"The Spirit in Job is not the power of victorious living--at leas not victorious living in the sense of escape from illness and poverty and grief. The Spirit in Job is not the source of abundant life--at least not the abundant life with a permanent smile full of bright white teeth and all the trappings of security and success. The Spirit in Job doesn't manufacture what's astonishing--miracles and healings and brilliant sermons--at least not for this exhausted human being."
I don't think that these are the kinds of words that we want to hear, and especially when we think about the Holy Spirit. We want to hear about miracles, success, amazing stories. We are tempted to think that what Job experienced, the sense of exhaustion, of barely having breath as a sign of the presence of the Holy Spirit.
Are you winded? Can you say with Job, "As long as my breath is in me and the spirit of God is in my nostrils, my lips will not speak falsehood, and my tongue will not utter deceit"?
I want to be able to live the prayer that Levison prays:
And when death around me
When heath drops away
Let me breathe out God's truth
Let me sing, soft but strongly, God's praise.
Any thoughts?
"Here is the bare-bones expression of faith: the Spirit of God inspires us even--especially--at the doorstep of death..."
"The Spirit in Job is not the power of victorious living--at leas not victorious living in the sense of escape from illness and poverty and grief. The Spirit in Job is not the source of abundant life--at least not the abundant life with a permanent smile full of bright white teeth and all the trappings of security and success. The Spirit in Job doesn't manufacture what's astonishing--miracles and healings and brilliant sermons--at least not for this exhausted human being."
I don't think that these are the kinds of words that we want to hear, and especially when we think about the Holy Spirit. We want to hear about miracles, success, amazing stories. We are tempted to think that what Job experienced, the sense of exhaustion, of barely having breath as a sign of the presence of the Holy Spirit.
Are you winded? Can you say with Job, "As long as my breath is in me and the spirit of God is in my nostrils, my lips will not speak falsehood, and my tongue will not utter deceit"?
I want to be able to live the prayer that Levison prays:
And when death around me
When heath drops away
Let me breathe out God's truth
Let me sing, soft but strongly, God's praise.
Any thoughts?
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