"Mystery is a thing not easily captured..." Make Love Stay

Oh, that Dan Fogelberg, what a way with words he has in that song. Mystery...Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy sang that song, "Sweet Mystery" and I am sure that there will never be another mysteriously beautiful couple on screen. The mystery of the mystery that happens with the glance. Uncle Barry called my attention to it. I was oblivious, when he did. He looked me in the eye and said these new movies can never beat the mystery of the old, in the romance. I said what could he be talking about? Does he want us to go back to silent films? Then, I saw the glances between Nelson and Jeanette. Amazing! They captured the reality of the mystery in that song as they sang to eachother. Uncle was not one for mystery as a rule. He had every part of his desire displayed before him at all times and everywhere. Nothing seemed left to his imagination. He had every back issue of Playboy that there ever was and here he was talking about mystery. What could he be talking about? Now, I think about Dan's catchy and significant phrase-not easily captured. Is that what we are trying to do to a man, some man, our man; catch a mystery. We try showing it and it doesn't work. We try not showing it and it doesn't work. What is it? The question is so cleverly put, by Dan in this song. How do we make love stay is not the question when you are trying to catch a mystery. But it is well meditated upon when you are thinking of how much of yourself, physically and spiritually that you want to show. RC Sproul described so poignantly his captured mystery with Elizabeth Elliott. She is a spiritual giant and there was much in their verbal interaction that he remembered because of the care that she took to be so guarded. He reiterated the conversation, nearly verbatim. None of us know how to be as guarded as she, nor do we wish to be, though we study her to learn how to mortify sin. Still, that is the thing that catches the man's attention and it is so very curious to us women. How can the same man who will put his last paycheck on the table to see as much of someone that they will show, desire to preserve the mystery. I don't want to know that much, they seem to say. Dan said, "once deceased, not easily exhumed." In other words, as we know men say- been there done that, just as easily as not. He says if the heart does become involved you become as a statue whose eyes are no longer alive. Death to your soul for the unrequited love that was experienced. What a way with words he has. This was not God's way for us. It is part of the curse that people can use and disgard people as we do. That is why He gave us the protection of oaths to remind us that we must answer to Him for our actions with the souls of others. It protects us and the other person. Passion is explosive, handle carefully, should be the stamp on the box. Still we have so much access to each other through social media, we must think twice before we open our hearts and bare our souls on social media and elsewhere. I imagine Uncle Barry looking at the difference in the mystery lost to social media. This is not a chosen few as in movies and music, it is the masses whose souls are unscripted before all. Are we strong enough to rescusitate the mystery?

I had the biggest argument with my mother before "Confirmation!"

I don't want to get confirmed. "WHAT!?" "I WILL NOT HAVE IT!" Mom, I don't feel what you feel in church. I don't want to just get confirmed to have a big party and get money from people. "What is wrong with you?" my sisters queeried. "We won't do that, when it's our turn." There were gossip and myths about what happened when you got confirmed that were floating around. Some of them were scary. I didn't really believe them, I just didn't want to pretend that I was believing, when I wasn't. I believed that I didn't believe. You will get it, everybody gets it after a while. I don't get it. We went back and forth and of course, she won. The Bishop comes and we took classes and we learned that the Bishop would be the most Holy person we may meet in our life and there was certain decorum and circumstance for such and occasion. As the day got closer, I started to get excited. I am pretty sure that it was Ronny who started the rumor that the Bishop slaps hard on the face. Should I duck? Did I want the Holy Spirit that bad that I would let a complete stranger {no matter how holy he is} slap me in the face and give me a new name? I am sure that my mom was concerned about what the Rosarians would say, if her eldest daughter was a heathen and unconfirmed in the 7th grade. Mom, you don't know what I am talking about. You sway and close your eyes in church, I am only there because Dad would beat us, if we weren't there. I hate that big picture of the fierce white old man that stares me down and the "gospel singers" and all that is in that place. I have to seek and look for God. She would have none of that. A confirmed Catholic girl gets loads and loads of opportunities that a non-confirmed girl cannot even wish for. Well, I got confirmed. I got the slap and it wasn't quite as hard as Ronny promised it would be. I, even think my mother knew the Bishop who came to give us the "Spirit". I got loads of presents and my sisters were still sure that I was crazy for even thinking about declining such a huge privilege. None of the rest of them ever questioned my mother's spiritual direction. She knew best, when it came to the Holy Spirit and gifts. {People are so generous to Catholic girls. Maybe they know that we have harder judgements on us. I don't know, but they were.} Eventually, I did come to know the Lord, personally. My mom was right that He is worthy to be praised and great and good and all of that. I learned some things about God through the types and parallels of confirmation, but knowing Him is far greater than knowing about Him through forms and shadows. I have seen alot of Protestant mothers slap the Holy Spirit into their children, taking the role of the Bishop in the Catholic service. Maybe the Holy Spirit does come through the slap in the face, I don't know what the relevance is of the slap in the face except the closeness to the cloven tongues of fire. I think encouraging the children to get to know Him is better than slapping them.

Keep the Candle Burning! Great Expectations

The flames of attraction are best submitted to God. The flame of attractiveness will, as Stella said attract all sorts of moths and creatures. Sort the true attraction through the sieve of covenant. The one who, like Pip has the sword of the Spirit that will fight the grasp of Satan upon your soul is the one to embrace and not let go. God has a way of showing you who will not be deceived by your beauty. Christ cleanses and nourishes His Church. The true man of God will be committed to nourish and cherish your soul, though he may be ravished by your beauty. You mustn't deceive him for your selfish motives. If you find this sort of love upon the earth, you are much blessed and will be used of God on the earth for God's glory. I love how Pip is motivated to greatness in the world and in spiritual exploits by the beauty and love of this wretch of a woman. Wise is the beauty who sees her wretchedness and prays and labors to use it to motivate to godliness and not to selfish gain. Pip in the end exorcises the devil of Ms. Havorsham from that woman's life and wins the damosel in distress, who has no clue that she is in distress. Her soul was tormented and stuck in sin. Her rebirth was attached to the love of that lowly orphaned boy. Christ is the author of our salvation and He will write the love story that exorcises our earthly bodies into the story that will glorify Him in our passions.