they actually did what they had promised and helped you without hesitation.
They do that because they want to model for you that the Lord’s love is
constantly available. They want to encourage you to hear the Lord’s invitation
to accept His love, and so feel loved, just so you can pass that love on by being
a messenger of the Lord’s love.
This world view – that the Lord God Jesus Christ loves us all indefinitely
and unceasingly, and that the Divine Love is communicated through our
experience of all t he emotions – has formed an educational philosophy and
style of teaching that supports your spiritual growth. That is a rare and special
experience.
So here is our suggestion: Begin now to imagine the world you will create
when your righteous anger is directed at removing barriers from all people’s
experience of the Lord’s love.
Imagine the world you will create when your fear reveals to you the next
opportunity for you to stand up for goodness, justice, morality, truth.
Imagine the world you will create when your sadness becomes a powerful,
motivating, inner urge to create emotional connection and spiritual presence.
And, after all that, continue to imagine the world you will create when
the joy of the Lord’s love is experienced by those who hear your laughter. God
bless!
The Rev. J. Clark Echols was born and raised in Bryn Athyn. He
graduated from the Academy Boys School in 1970 and received
an Associate Degree from Bryn Athyn College in 1972. He
graduated from Dickinson College in 1974 and was ordained
as a General Church minister after graduating from the Bryn
Athyn College Theological School in 1978. He has served five
General Church congregations: Glenview, Illinois; Denver,
Colorado; the Sower’s Chapel in Sarver, Pennsylvania; Lake
Helen, Florida; and Cincinnati, Ohio; and also has been visiting
pastor throughout the United States. He and his wife, Margie (Cranch), who passed away
in 2008, had eight children, all of whom have graduated from the Academy Secondary
Schools – the youngest this year. In 2011 Clark married Janice Marie Mappin. In 2010
he earned a Master’s in Counseling from Xavier University and is a licensed mental
health counselor at the Professional Pastoral Counseling Institute in Cincinnati. Contact:
[email protected]
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