Harmony of Grace

Image Source:  Daniil Kuzelev There is a scene in Herman Melville's famous Moby Dick where the whaling crew are pursuing the great white whale, Moby Dick, in the midst of a terrifying storm. The deck men are running around manically performing tasks, sweat mixing with sea water. Captain Ahab is screaming orders, swearing and adding to the confusion. The helmsman is battling the rough winds in order to keep the ship going true.  You can imagine the chaos. But in the midst of this chaos, there is one person on board who does nothing. No shouting. No labour. No panic. This person is the harpooner. In the middle or raging seas and terrifying winds, the harpooner remains calm amid the crashing and the cursing. He is quiet and poised, waiting. Then the author leaves us with this sentence: "To ensure the greatest efficiency in the dart, the harpooners of this world must start to their feet out of idleness, and not out of toil." Wow. How often d

Image Source:  Carina Sze I recently caught myself dozing off during a class at Seminary. It took the lecturer a couple of tries to get my attention back on the matter at hand. Once I was fully present again, I had no idea what had just been spoken about. I am sure I am not alone in this experience. The lectionary readings for this week tell an awesome story of the Transfiguration of Jesus... Jesus took Peter, John and James onto the mountain to pray. As Jesus prayed, his face was transformed, his clothing lit up and two of the great Old Testament leaders, Moses and Elijah, appeared beside Jesus. My friend and fellow Seminarian, Jaco Gerber, made an interesting observation about this text. We are told that the disciples who went on the mountain with Jesus were "weighed down with sleep" and they almost missed this awesome moment! How crazy is that? These disciples were privileged enough to be present at one of the most amazing moments in the life of Jesus and