Steam Heat! (a Steve Orr Lectionary reflection)

It could be cold in that algebra class!

Mrs. Maguire could not abide attention-drift from anyone. To make certain we paid attention, she opened the windows. Winters in our little river city could be harsh. When the cold temps combined with the wind off our two rivers: bone-chilling.

What saved us were the radiators.

Lined up just below the windows was a row of steam-heat radiators blasting hot air into that classroom. You could still feel the cold air slicing in, but the radiators kept radiating enough heat to offset the worst of it.

A radiator —or “radiant” as they are called in some places— draws its heat from a central source. Without the right energy coursing through them, they could not radiate the heat we needed to offset the cold. In fact, if not connected to that source, those radiators would be just so much cold metal.

In this week’s selection from Psalm 34, the Psalmist says, "Those who look to Him are radiant....” (‭NIV‬‬) A person can be a radiant, too; a conduit for energy outflow. It certainly was true of Moses. He spent so much time in God's presence that he glowed from the exposure. He became a radiant.

We, too, are called to do as Moses. In the NRSV, that same verse reads as a command: “Look to him, and be radiant....”

Those radiants kept us warm that winter in Mrs. Maguire's classroom, but only because they were connected to the source, the generator of all that steam heat. What about us? Are we radiants? Do we spend so much time in the presence of the Lord that others cannot help but experience God's warmth and glow?

Look to Him, and be radiant.
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PHOTO: www.dreamstime.com
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A version of this reflection appeared in October 2015 as Radiant.
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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Proper 25 (30) (October 28, 2018)
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu//

Job 42:1-6, 10-17
Psalm 34:1-8, (19-22)
Jeremiah 31:7-9
Psalm 126
Hebrews 7:23-28
Mark 10:46-52
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Fall is such a busy time. I hope you can make time to come to DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast on Friday morning. We gather at 8:00 for an hour of fellowship, scripture reading, discussion, prayer; plus a few laughs along the way. Join us at the Waco "Egg and I" restaurant for a sure fire way to ensure you have a great week.

Enjoy!
Steve