Searching for God

The Revd Canon Dr William Lamb

       O Thou who camest from above
       The pure celestial fire to impart,
       Kindle a flame of sacred love 
       On the mean altar of my heart.

                           - ‎Charles Wesley

Since the days of Moses, fire has been an intriguing and persistent symbol of the presence of God. When on Mount Sinai Moses discovered the bush, which burned and yet was not consumed, he came face to face with the Living God. When the disciples of Jesus sat in the upper room on the Feast of Pentecost, the Spirit of God was revealed in tongues of fire. 
 
It is not easy to keep a fire hidden, but one of the paradoxes of the Christian tradition is that the fire of God is both hidden and manifest. It is the fire that burns upon God's altar in his most holy temple. But, as Wesley suggests in his wonderful hymn, that altar is hidden in our inmost heart. It is here that we discover the hidden life of prayer, and as our prayers fill our hearts, so those same prayers are made manifest in the fabric of our lives. As our hearts are illumined by the fire of God's love, so the 'flame of sacred love' burns more brightly.
 
In the course of the next few weeks, we will be running a series entitled 'Searching for God' in the Old Library on Tuesday evenings at 8.00pm. This will be an opportunity for us to dig a bit deeper into the life of prayer, and to think about the other resources that the Christian tradition offers us to help us reflect on our desire for God. You may be exploring the Christian faith for the first time, or you may want to dig a bit deeper into the tradition - either way, you will be very welcome to join us.
 
Here is one of my favourite sayings of the Desert Fathers:
 
Abba Lot came to Abba Joseph and said, ‘Father, according as I am able, I keep my little rule, and my little fast, my prayers, meditation and contemplative silence; and according as I am able, I strive to cleanse my heart of thoughts: now what more should I do?’ The elder rose up in reply and stretched out his hands to heaven, and his fingers became like ten lamps of fire. He said, ‘Why not be totally changed into fire?’