Reflecting on the Word

By Dr. Karla J. Bellinger

A writer lay in bed at 5:52 a.m. She knew that her rooster-alarm  would crow to tell her to get up and write at 6:00 a.m. She relaxed  back on her pillow . . . eight more minutes . . . Then she felt an  internal tug, a beckoning, a call: “Rise up, we have things to do.” She  was startled: “We have things to do?” 

Raised in an American individualistic society, she had often  thought of “call” as something that she was told to do, something  from afar, to which she was simply expected to respond in obedience.  That call, that “Rise up, we have things to do,” implied that the  divine Coach was a team builder and she a beloved member of the  team. She got up with renewed energy and began to write . . . 

Notice the team building in today’s call of the apostles. John the  Baptist is standing in a group of three. Jesus walks by. Two follow  him and they become a group of three. Andrew goes and gets his  brother Peter and with Jesus, they become three again. It is a dance  of threes, a gentle and quiet camaraderie of coming and going—one  points out, two follow; another points out, his brother joins in. It  almost feels Trinitarian, like the dance of the Father, Son, and Holy  Spirit, coming and going, gently and forever loving and drawing in. 

That tug, that call, is not just for a select few who are called to be  apostles or prophets or saints or clergy. That awakening is for each  of us as well. We arise to join in the dance of the Trinity, no matter  what path we walk along in life. Like young Samuel, we call out in  the night, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening!”

Consider/Discuss 

  • When we ponder our call, what is our underlying perception? Is that call  something that the divine Someone from afar imposes upon us as a task to  be done? Is that call like taking the hand of a dance partner and joining in  an already swirling dance? What difference does it make how we perceive  that beckoning? 
  • Each morning, the tug of the Trinity, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,  beckons us to rise up one more time. What, God, are we going to do  together today in this wild and wonderful life? 

Living and Praying with the Word 

God of Trinity, you tug at me to join in with what you are doing.  You call me to link my life with yours in the dance of your being.  Wherever we go together, whatever we do, shine through my eyes,  touch through my hands, and speak through my mouth. Teach me  to glorify you better through this earthly body, so that it is both  transformed and transforming. Most of all, I thank you for letting  me be a beloved member of your team. Thank you, thank you!

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