Mystery

Paul’s second and final prayer for the people in Ephesus asks them to see that the highest ambition of our faith is to know and experience the limitless love of God. While beyond our ability to fully comprehension, God’s love holds the power to transform us at the very root of our being.

How do we deal with discouragement? How do we make sense of our suffering? Paul interrupts himself in this very autobiographical and pastoral segment to share the secret to these age-old struggles.

“Grace has a grand laughter in it,” writes the novelist Marilynne Robinson. If we’ve experienced the marvelous and mysterious love of God, we can’t help but find shock and even laughter to think that the God of the universe has gone to the very ends of himself to win us back for himself.

How does Paul open his letter to the Ephesians, which he wrote while chained in a Roman prison? Not by complaining, arguing, or reflecting on his circumstances in a well-reasoned manner. Instead, he opened with a surprisingly emotional outburst of praise. What caused this? Are there lessons we can learn to help us face our own challenges?

When life feels out of control, what are we to do? In Mary’s song, The Magnificat, we discover not only what can stabilize us, but what can fill us with soul-satisfying joy.

Have you ever been so moved by music that it seemed to heal something deep inside you? David’s musical talent had a medicinal-like power that soothed the ailing king Saul.