Why "St. Cuthbert's Island"?

Saint Cuthbert was a Celtic monk who lived in the 7th century.
He received visitors at his monastery in Northumbria and was even appointed a bishop, but he yearned for the life of an ascetic. While living at the monastery on the island of Lindisfarne, he sought to spend time with the Lord whenever possible. Early on, he practiced solitude on a small island that was linked to Lindisfarne by a land bridge when the tide was low. This tiny island, known as Saint Cuthbert’s Island, was a training ground of sorts—a place to grow in faith and in love for God.

I chose to name my blog after this island for two reasons:
1) I hope that it will be a place where I can spend time alone with God, growing in my love for Him.
2) Perhaps, when the tide is low, others may find their way to this tiny island
and, by God’s grace, be blessed by what they find there.

Thursday, January 10, 2008

The God Who Gives Us Space

I've chosen to use The Renovare Spiritual Formation Bible for my Bible reading trek this year. This is a Bible I received for Christmas 2006. As I come across new insights while reading, I'd like to share a few of them from time to time. The first new insight was in Genesis 2 & 3. Although Adam and Eve walked and talked with God in great intimacy, God was not always looking over their shoulders.

God was not constantly and immediately present, even before the Fall. He "made room for them to obey or disobey." This is amazing to me. We have a God who does not constantly hover over us, breathing down our necks. He gives us space. "This space allowed by God's 'absence' is necessary. In order to move beyond unknowing innocence, we must develop a character and an identity that freely seek harmony with God."

From the very beginning, God does not impose His will on humanity. He grants us the freedom to make choices by "absenting" Himself. His constant, immediate presence would preclude such choice. Of course we need God's presence, but He allows us to choose it...to choose Him. The consequences can be disastrous, and it is God who bears the brunt of the pain. We often blame God for allowing others to make wrong choices, not realizing that He suffers the rejection perhaps most of all.

"We are formed by our reactions and choices to what God puts before us." The good news?--He keeps on putting Himself before us...if only we have eyes to see and ears to hear. And the process of drawing closer to Him, though it be slow and painful at times, is precisely what we were made for.

(All quotes are from the opening essay of The Renovare Spiritual Formation Bible, "The People of God in Individual Communion," pp. 1-5.)
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