No. 84 Trees and Wings

How can you say to your neighbor, 'Friend, let me take out the speck in your eye' when you yourself do not notice the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor's eye.

Judge yourself by the fruit you bear, words that come out of your mouth. Luke 6:42, John 15:2,4

The horizontal arms of the Cross remind me of the horizon from which the sun rises to extinguish the darkness of the night, and to give us warmth, and food to eat.

With our feet firmly fixed on this muddy earth, and our arms tucked into our long bodies or raised high, we can look up at the stars all day, worshipping and chanting, praying and weeping, and never be able to ascend. To ascend to the land of holy immortality, we must first stretch out our arms and grow wings.

How we relate to others either makes us wings, or anchors our feet to this deeply chaotic old earth. 

God-the Holy Spirit, is the Head Coach. Coaching others to hit the Mark is an honor and an obligation. Coaching is another of God's jobs (e.g. blessing) that we can do. To be a good assistant coach, sit firmly, not wobbly, erect, and comfortably on the Mark. Being hypocritical (read:hyper-critical) makes for lousy coaching, and thwarts wing growth.

How does anyone ever know if (s)he is qualified to coach? There is only one way. The aspiring immortal should look down and imagine him or herself as a tree.  Are our feet surrounded by the ripe fruit of Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Mildness, Fidelity, Modesty, Continence, and Chastity? Are we willing to be long-suffering? The fruit we bear is reflected in the words that come out of our mouths; our actions and our attitudes. This is the kind of fruit that makes strong wings grow. 

With outstretched wings, like the bar of the cross, we form a clear horizontal line behind which the Son of God can rise to illuminate this world, to warm it, and to feed one person at a time