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Simeon’s Ecstasy

December 30, 2018

Luke 2:25-32

“Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, ‘Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.’”

CONSIDER THIS

I imagine Simeon’s prayer could have continued something like this:

“Yahweh, you have proven yourself as a faithful, ever-present, and self-giving master. I have been your servant for these many years, and it has been the pleasure of my life. Long ago the bright fire of your Spirit came to consume me. Since then, my eyes have looked in every direction for a single reality. You have filled my heart with a love for your Presence, and you have broken it over the plight of my people, who were your people first. You have given me few words with which to console them. My gifts from you were not words for your people, but tears for your people. I have offered you my mouth to speak through, but you preferred to weep through my eyes. I have been a man of prayer, and I have been a man of fasting. Even in my eating, I have never lost my longing for the Great Fulfillment.

From the time that I became a man, my life has been as a single prostration before you. I am a man, and as such, I am subject to the same temptations as other men. I have dropped my shoulders and allowed the energy of my natural impulses to wash over me. I have offered no resistance, yet I have succumbed to no indulgence. I have felt the separation of heaven and earth within my body, and now my eyes at last fall upon the agent of connection . . . the One by whom you hold all things together. And now all things will be more held together than ever before. The tension of separation that I have carried like a brother in the center of my chest is finally released. There is no need for me to see anything else. Take me now, while my gratitude exceeds my expectations.”

The Prayer

Creator and Sustainer, remind us that you act only in response to our longing. Intensify our longing for that which is Real, and birth in us an intolerance for anything less.

The Questions

  • In an ultra-materialistic society, how do you keep your most sacred longings alive?
  • Simeon risked humiliation in identifying a baby as the embodied hope of his people, and he did so in public. When you see Jesus, are you willing to speak it?

Josh LeRoy

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WHAT IS THIS? Wake-Up Call is a daily encouragement to shake off the slumber of our busy lives and turn our eyes toward Jesus. Each morning our community gathers around a Scripture, a reflection, a prayer, and a few short questions, inviting us to reorient our lives around the love of Jesus that transforms our hearts, homes, churches, and cities.

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