who have made their bed in hell and spares no effort to lift them up.
The angels, following His example, also bend down to be with us even
in our low states of contrariness, doubt and despair – to touch and awaken
whatever there is of innocence in us. They know that the Lord in His providence
preserves grains of goodness in everyone, and they are very good at finding
them.
It is important to remember that the angels were once earth-dwellers like
us, and that if we look to the Lord and respond affirmatively to the truths of
His Word, then we can join with them as instruments of His peace when they
bend near the earth to touch their harps of gold.
(WEO)
the call to humility
We live in a culture that glories in power and scorns weakness. A man who
projects confidence and strength is hailed as a hero; a humble man may be
seen as a wimp. But we pray that all power be given to the Lord: “For Thine is
the kingdom, and the power, and the glory.” And what does the Lord require of
us but “to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with our God.”
The Lord asks us to humble ourselves before Him not to exert power
over us but because this is the way we open ourselves to be lifted by Him into
heaven. His love flows only into humble, repentant hearts that shun evil and
willingly follow Him. But it isn’t always easy to answer the call to humility.
Consider the many examples in the Word of people asked to change their
lives to serve Him:
• Moses became the greatest leader in the Old Testament but he was a
simple man tending his father-in-law’s flock when the Angel of the Lord
appeared to him in a burning bush, which was not consumed by the
fire. He was called by the Lord to appeal to the Pharaoh and lead his
captive people out of Egypt. Moses protested that he was not the man for
the job. “They will not believe me, nor harken unto my voice.” But the
Lord gave him signs and said He would teach him what to say. Moses
reluctantly agreed, changed his life, and came to be the great leader of
the Children of Israel.
• The young child Samuel heard his name called in the night and went
to the elderly priest Eli, whom he served. Eli said he had not called and
by the third time realized it was the Lord calling Samuel. He told the
boy that if he heard the call again he should say, “Speak, Lord, for Thy
servant heareth.” In the morning Eli summoned Samuel to ask what had
happened in the night, then said: “It is the Lord; let Him do what seems
to Him good.” So Samuel willingly accepted his role, knowing that the
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