new church life: jan uary/february 2016
He loves us, no matter what, and He can help us, no matter how difficult
or compelling our problems may seem. He is not, in His perfection, a God far
removed from us, but a Divinely Human God much more intimately concerned
for us and much more deeply aware of our needs than we can possibly know.
Let us be careful not to think of Him as limited or even in His childhood as
subject at any time to the evils and falsities of the world which He confronted
one by one, more and more profoundly as He grew in the knowledge of the
Word. He knew He would overcome all these challenges. (Arcana Coelestia
1812) What was in question was whether we would accept and benefit from
His work. In short, let’s remember that His whole life right from birth was all
about just one thing: helping us find our way to our “place” in heaven. (John
14:3)
Amen.
The Rev. Michael D. Gladish is pastor of the Washington
New Church in Mitchellville, Maryland and regional pastor
for the Southeastern United States. He has been a pastor in
Hurstville, New South Wales, Australia; Los Angeles, California;
the Calgary New Church in Alberta, Canada; and the Dawson
Creek Society in British Columbia, Canada. He and his wife,
Ginny (de Maine), live in Mitchellville. Contact: mdgladish@
gmail.com.
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