Archives by: Gary Hoag

“Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.” Psalm 50:14-15

“He who created nature sustains it; nature is so constituted that its Maker is its Protector for ever. Without Him nature could not have begun to be; without Him it could not subsist at all. That we might not be ignorant of this, or vainly attribute to ourselves the beneficence of our Creator, God has determined in the depths of His wise counsel that we should be subject to tribulations. So when man’s strength fails and God comes to his aid, it is meet and right that man, rescued by God’s hand, should glorify Him, as it is written, ‘Call upon Me in the time of trouble; so will I hear thee, and thou shalt praise Me’ (Ps. 50.15). In such wise man, animal and carnal by nature, and loving only himself, begins to love God by reason of that very self-love; since he learns that in God he can accomplish all things that are good, and that without God he can do nothing.”

Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153), excerpt from Chapter Eight in his classic work: On Loving God.

Have you experienced times of plenty as well as lean times?

In times or plenty we must remain thankful, and in lean times we must not fear or worry. We must follow the example of the psalmist and sacrifice thank offerings while fulfilling our vows. That means we do our part and trust God to be our Protector and Sustainer.

I feel like I experiencing such times right now.

I am praying for God’s provision for GTP. We have hired new staff with dedicated funding but lacking supply for our core operations. I thank God for His faithful provision over more than 3.5 years and pray He will continue to supply through His people. Click here to give.

For my part, I am mapping my faithful work this week related to this and trusting God.

If you serve in a leadership position of a ministry, you can probably relate to this. I pray today’s post encourages you to remain faithful in your work while trusting God in your real time of need. May He deliver and sustain us and be the object of our praise, both in times of plenty and lean times.

And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 1 Thessalonians 5:14

“You have placed me in charge of souls, assigning to me so many beloved sons, that I should love them with singular love and direct them to You by the way of Life, but I have been to them nothing but a mirror of human weakness; I have had no care of them; I have not helped them with continuous and humble prayer in Your presence, nor have I given them sufficient examples of the good life or the warnings of salutary doctrine. Oh, mean creature that I am! With how little reverence have I received Your innumerable gifts, the graces of such sweet torments and labors which it pleased You to accumulate on this fragile body, nor have I endured them with that burning desire and ardent love with which You sent them to me…For the love of Christ crucified, absolve me of all these sins which I have confessed in the presence of God, and of all the others which I cannot remember.”

Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) in The Dialogue of Catherine of Siena (London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co, 1907) 139.

I came upon the last words of Catherine and found a keen insight for my own journey of generosity.

She acknowledges herself as a mirror of human weakness who has received innumerable gifts from God. Perhaps you can relate? I know I can. You’ve been blessed so much, even given the charge of many souls, but you feel in the end you’ve done a mediocre job at best to form them.

She reveals a secret here, namely, what she wishes she had done differently.

She says that she wishes she would have helped them with continuous and humble prayer, examples of the good life, and warnings of salutary doctrine. It causes me to ponder the role of prayer, example, and teaching in my own care of souls as GTP has grow to have ten total staff.

Consider what stirs within you in the care of souls God has entrusted to you.

God forgive our human weakness despite your love and gifts. May our care of souls be nurtured by continuous and humble prayer, by sufficient examples of the good life, and with warnings of healthy doctrine so those we serve know how to live. Hear our prayer in your mercy in the name of Jesus. Amen.

A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. Luke 6:45

“Whoever has this knowledge, let him lament and weep with me. For the chosen children of God frequently take God’s body, receiving it in a holy manner. But I have to go to my chapter room accompanied by my burning conscience.

Then my unworthiness comes and chides me. Then my indolence comes and accuses me. Then the frivolousness of my personality comes and points out my capriciousness to me. Then the wretchedness of my useless life comes and saddens me. Then fear of God comes and scourges me.

Then I crawl forward like a tiny worm on the ground and hide myself under the grass of my many various omissions all my days. There I sit and cry to heaven: “O merciful God, grant me that I might today share in the grace that your chosen ones have now received.”

Thereupon our Lord replied: “Take two golden pennies that weigh the same and go shopping with them. If they are of equal value, they are equally good.”

“Alas, dear Lord, how can my wretchedness be equal to your goodness? For I am not the person who could well offer you honor. I have nothing that is suitable for you, and for consolation my soul clings to worthless nothings in the world. And so I am rejected, alas, corrupt. I am not at all what I have long desired to be.”

Our Lord said, “With good will and holy desire you can make good whatever you want.”

Mechthild of Magdeburg (1207-1282) in Mechthild of Magdeburg: The Flowing Light of the Godhead (Classics of Western Spirituality; Paulist Press: Mahwah, 1998) 280.

We can bring good out of our hearts, we can exhibit generosity, because of God’s work in us. Because we share in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

Most of us, however, know how unworthy, indolent, frivolous, and wretched we are, so we think we can’t play a part in the work of God around us.

We crawl along like a worm. Notice what Mechthild says at that point. That God sees us and wants us to take the two gold pennies he gives us and go shopping with them.

That means that even though we may feel we have little, we can do good things with them. What do you have? What can you do with what you have to spread God’s goodness?

“With good will and holy desire you can make good whatever you want.” This is true because, as Jesus put it, a good person really can bring good things out of the good stored up in his or her heart.

Even if you only have two pennies, and you have been corrupt and not what you have long desired to be, you can do a lot of good. Go do it.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

“And after this He shewed a sovereign ghostly pleasance in my soul. I was fulfilled with the everlasting sureness, mightily sustained without any painful dread. This feeling was so glad and so ghostly that I was in all peace and in rest, that there was nothing in earth that should have grieved me.

This lasted but a while, and I was turned and left to myself in heaviness, and weariness of my life, and irksomeness of myself, that scarcely I could have patience to live. There was no comfort nor none ease to me but faith, hope, and charity; and these I had in truth, but little in feeling.

And anon after this our blessed Lord gave me again the comfort and the rest in soul, in satisfying and sureness so blissful and so mighty that no dread, no sorrow, no pain bodily that might be suffered should have distressed me. And then the pain shewed again to my feeling, and then the joy and the pleasing, and now that one, and now that other, diverse times—I suppose about twenty times. And in the time of joy I might have said with Saint Paul: Nothing shall dispart me from the charity of Christ; and in the pain I might have said with Peter: Lord, save me: I perish!

This vision was shewed me, according to mine understanding, [for] that it is speedful to some souls to feel on this wise: sometime to be in comfort, and sometime to fail and to be left to themselves. God willeth that we know that He keepeth us even alike secure in woe and in weal. And for profit of man’s soul, a man is sometime left to himself; although sin is not always the cause: for in this time I sinned not wherefore I should be left to myself—for it was so sudden. Also I deserved not to have this blessed feeling. But freely our Lord giveth when He will; and suffereth us [to be] in woe sometime. And both is one love.

For it is God’s will that we hold us in comfort with all our might: for bliss is lasting without end, and pain is passing and shall be brought to nought for them that shall be saved. And therefore it is not God’s will that we follow the feelings of pain in sorrow and mourning for them, but that we suddenly pass over, and hold us in endless enjoyment.”

Julian of Norwich (1343-1416) in Revelations of Divine Love (Grand Rapids: CCEL) Seventh Revelation, Chapter 15, Page 18.

While this is a long post and articulated in ancient English, there’s beautiful modern application that links to today’s Scripture. And it’s fitting to post this today, on my mom’s birthday. She loves this Scripture and exhibits the ghostly pleasance in her soul in both woe and weal, hard times and good ones. Happy Birthday mom!

Notice what Julian speaks about. She says it must have happened 20 times. Perhaps you can relate? She experienced perfect peace and then left to herself, she had heaviness and weariness nearly sweep her away. I know I experience this sometimes! And then she reports that she found endless enjoyment when focused on God.

What’s the lesson for those of us who want to exhibit generosity in woe and weal, hard times and good ones? We must remain focused on God, give Him our cares in prayer, so that we experience incomprehensible peace. That’s what the world needs most. Our generosity comes into view as showning them how to grasp the endless enjoyment their heart seeks.

God help us all with this. Lest we experience heaviness and weariness 20 times a day. As our faith grows, it seems like our challenges grow too and tempt us to worry or fear. We want the ghostly pleasance in our soul all the time. Thank you that we can trust you with everything and rest in your peace. Hear our prayer in Jesus name. Amen.

Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. Hebrews 13:1

“If we love one another truly, our love will be graced with a clear-sighted prudence which sees and respects the designs of God upon each separate soul. Our love for one another must be rooted in a deep devotion to Divine Providence, a devotion that abandons our own limited plans into the hands of God and seeks only to enter into the invisible work that builds His Kingdom. Only a love that senses the designs of Providence can unite itself perfectly to God’s providential action upon souls. Faithful submission to God’s secret working in the world will fill our love with piety, that is to say, with supernatural awe and respect. This respect, this piety, gives our love the character of worship, without which our charity can never be quite complete. For love must not only seek the truth in the lives of those around us; it must find it there. But when we find the truth that shapes our lives we have found more than an idea. We have found a Person. We have come upon the actions of One Who is still hidden, but Whose work proclaims Him holy and worthy to be adored. And in Him we also find ourselves.”

Thomas Merton (1915-1968) in No Man is an Island (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1955) 9.

This is one of those quotes that it is best for me to suggest you just read it again. When you do, see the function of the deep devotion to Divine Providence.

We can give love to others generously when we know that God will care for us, and for our every need. Then we need not expect things of other souls that only He can supply.

We can only find ourselves when we have faithfully submitted ourselves to the Person who wants us to grow and understand our place in community with others.

If this sounds lofty read it again, and pause with the Spirit to reflect. Then go give love to others and build His Kingdom as an act of worship and adoration. You got this. God’s got you.

But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 1 Timothy 6:6-8

“A man must be penetrated with the divine presence, and be shaped through and through with the shape of the God he loves, and be present in Him, so that God’s presence may shine out to him without any effort. What is more, in all things let him acquire nakedness, and let him always remain free of things. But at the beginning there must be attentiveness and a careful formation within himself, like a schoolboy setting himself to learn.”

Meister Eckhart (c.1260-1328) in The Essential Writings (New York: Harper & Row, 1941) 12-13.

What do you have? It’s a simple question, and yet, not really. It queries where or not we are free of things. From there, the questions only get more complex. The reality for most people is that over time they acquire more things and a larger residence to store them.

What if you a different approach regardless of what everyone else is doing? What if you sat like a schoolboy setting yourself to learn? To be generous is to be penetrated by the divine presence and shaped by the God of love.

When this happens we start living different, giving different, serving different, loving different than those around us. God, help us acquire nakedness so that we remain free of things to live, give, serve, and love different from the world, just like you. Amen.

To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ. Ephesians 3:8

“The incomprehensible riches and exaltation and the mildness and liberality with which the Divine nature makes itself common: all this makes man to be astonished. And particularly and above all things man is astonished to see how God makes Himself common, and the liberality of it: for he perceives that in this incomprehensible nature of God consists the enjoyment of Him which He shares with all the saints. And he perceives in the Divine Persons a common flowing-out and working, in grace and in glory, in nature and above nature, in all states and in all times, in saints and in men, in heaven and in earth, in all creatures, rational or irrational or inanimate, according to each one’s worth and need and capacity to receive.”

Jan van Ruysbroek (1293-1381) in The Spiritual Espousals (London: Faber and Faber, 1952) 125.

Jan van Ruysbroek helps us get a glimpse of the unsearchable and incomprehensible riches of Christ toward us. They come to us by God’s grace. They are just what every person needs. And they link to our capacity to receive.

It inspires me today to tell anyone who wants to grow in generosity to increase their capacity to receive. But how you ask? Let’s consider what Jan van Ruysbroek might say in reply.

If we focus on the generosity “flowing-out and working” between the Divine Persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) we get a glimpse of boundless love, matchless care, and unceasing vigilance.

This causes us to live differently. We act in light of the fact that God always has our needs sorted and invites us to show such care to others. When we contemplate this “flowing-out and working” we grow in faith.

In so doing, we increase our capacity to receive. Think on these things and see what happens for you, in you, through you, for the glory of the Father, empowered by the Spirit, and in the name of the Son.

Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. Jude 1:21

“Since the philosopher’s interests are mainly objective, and the artist seldom cogitates on his own processes, it is, in the end, to the initiate of religion that we are forced to go, if we would learn how to undertake this training for ourselves. The religious contemplative has this further attraction for us: that he is by nature a missionary as well. The vision which he has achieved is the vision of an intensely loving heart; and love, which cannot keep itself to itself, urges him to tell the news as widely and as clearly as he may. In his works, he is ever trying to reveal the secret of his own deeper life and wider vision, and to help his fellow men to share it: hence he provides the clearest, most orderly, most practical teachings on the art of contemplation that we are likely to find.”

Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941) in Practical Mysticism (Project Gutenberg, 1915) 25

One day a philosopher and a religious contemplative went into a sports bar. Actually, that was me and my wife last night. We got a late dinner in downtown Littleton after her last soul care session.

On the way home I said I had been reading Underhill (who reminds me of my wife, as Jenni is also a religious contemplative). When I got home I kept reading and came on this part about sharing the love of God and the deeper life.

Don’t miss the message if you want to grow in generosity, and if you want to attract people to our Lord Jesus Christ. Focus on growing an intensely loving heart. That’s my wife.

For my part, I am the philosopher whose interests tend to be mainly objective. Whereas she’s tasted the love of God so richly, she can’t help but invite others to taste it.

So, what’s the lesson for us? We find it in Jude: keep yourself in the love of God. Do that and it will form an intensely loving heart in you, and you will give yourself to wanting others to share it.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

“Those who have none to share in their good fortune or their grief, none on whom they can unload their troubles, no one to whom they can communicate some sudden glorious illumination are like brute beasts. ‘Woe unto him who is alone, for when he falls he has none to lift him up!’ … But what happiness, security, and joy to have another self to talk with!”

(1098-1179) in Hildegard of Bingen: Selected Writings, translated with an introduction and notes by Mark Atherton (Penguin Books) 12.

I’ve returned to Denver and am captivated by the changing colors of the trees against the blue sky on walks with Grace. And since I am revisiting my word for the year, share, I thought I would share a glimpse of the beauty in this new header photo.

Today’s reading from Hildegard of Bingen reminds us that God never intended any of us to go through life alone. It’s my tendency. Perhaps yours too? But we find happiness, security, and joy when we share good fortune and grief with others.

This post surprised me and met me right where I am at. GTP is having a time of good fortune. We have making an impact in the lives of many people and shaping ministry in many countries. Sure there are financial needs, but things are going great!

And yet, I come off a time of grief, mourning the passing of my mentor and friend, Dan Busby. So imagine my joy, yesterday, when I woke to find numerous emails filled with encouragement and gratitude for orchestrating the memorial service.

Honestly, it was a tall order to fill. Dan was a giant of a man, who never wanted the spotlight on him, only on Jesus. He loved funny stories and baseball and serving others humbly. He wanted his three friends to keep it simple, so we did.

It should be available online in the next day or two. In the meantime, please, wherever you are, share good fortune and grief with those around you. If you do, you will experience the generous gift of happiness, security, and joy in the process.

Now about the collection for the Lord’s people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with your income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. 1 Corinthians 16:1-2

“Giving doesn’t just happen. Most of us don’t give as much as we should because we don’t plan our giving. You may need to make some financial decisions in order to have the freedom to give more. You may need to reduce your debt load or opt for a simpler lifestyle. You might need a budget. It will certainly mean having a priority list, planning and keeping records. Remember you are handling God’s money.”

Dan Busby (1941-2022) in Giving from the Heart: A Legacy that Last Forever (Winchester: ECFA, 2008) 3.

I have returned safely home from facilitating the memorial service for Dan Busby in New York. So, when I thought about my daily office today, I was reminded to go back to this little book he wrote.

It provides wonderful insights on giving. This one is key for every steward to remember: “giving doesn’t just happen.” We must plan for it. It requires diligent decision making.

The Apostle Paul gave the same instructions on giving to the church in Corinth as he gave to the churches of Galatia. He wanted each person to set aside a portion of their income for giving.

That means we must follow suit. Let’s opt for the simpler lifestyle, set aside funds for giving every week or month, and see what God does. We have found he often grows our income.

This positions us to live and give more generously. Thanks God for Dan’s example of modeling this and inspiring so many people to diligently and thoughtfully steward Your resources. Help us follow His legacy. Amen.