Thy Kingdom Come on Earth - I

“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come,
your will be done,
    on earth as it is in heaven."

(Matthew 6:9-10)

I participated in a discussion on Friday night with a colleague at a social gathering concerning how do we, the people of God, reach outside the comfortable church worlds we live in to those who are needy in this world.  Although he comes from a Catholic tradition and I a Protestant tradition, we both agreed that this is vital.  As we talked on, I realized that Corinne and I have helped a couple of needy women who have entered our circle in the last 10 years.  In both cases, I honestly felt that our financial, emotional and spiritual support made a difference in their lives. And I know that they both feel God's love for them.

At the worship service we attended today, the person leading the prayer time prayed the unusual prayer "Lord, help us to ponder the question "How do we make the invisible kingdom visible on earth?" So during this coming week one of my general prayers will be to seek opportunities to make God's invisible kingdom visible on earth.

Squeezed between these two events, we spent a good deal of Saturday remembering the life of Don Bergmann, the founder of Bergmann, at a memorial service and also reconnecting with his children and meeting their grandchildren at a reception that followed.  Remembering Don's life and my interactions with him and how they almost always lifted my spirits, was an uplifting kingdom-like experience.  I remembered when Don had his first surgery for some brain disorder, I gathered some of by colleagues together and we prayed together for Don in one of our conference rooms. He came through the surgery well and was back to work before long.  

So, I will have a full week of work this week, where there will be some opportunities to share in and experience the making of God's kingdom visible to those on earth.  Will my heart be prepared?  Will my spiritual eyesight be keen?  Will I be willing to take the necessary risks to be an avenue for kingdom of God coming into the world this week?