“And therefore in what manner He techith us, He will we persivyn Him wisely, receivyn Him swetely, and kepin us in Hym feithfully.”

Julian, LXX

(Whatever way He teaches us, His will is that we should be wise enough to perceive Him, gentle enough to receive Him, and faithful enough to keep ourselves in Him.)

In the second paragraph of the 70th chapter Julian speaks of how she first rejected what the Lord had shown to her. “On the very day it happened, when the vision had passed, I – wretch that I am! – denied it, and said quite openly that I had raved …”

Any revelation involves at least three phases. The first involves the preparation and context of our lives. For Julian this included an upbringing in the Church, a life of prayer, and a fervent desire to grow closer and deeper in the relationship with her Lord. The second phase is the revelation itself. The hands of the Potter work the will of God in our lives. Through direct speaking of the Spirit, as Julian experienced; or via the more subtle signposts on the Road – in either case the Shepherd shows the way. We experience the guiding and lovingly open hand of our Father in guidance, comfort or, perhaps, reproof. But what do we then do with the work of God? This is the third phase – reflection and appropriation of the Message. In many cases it is this third phase which lets us down. Like the thin soil of Matthew 13 the Word sprouts but then withers because it has no roots in our soul. We either doubt the Voice, or let it fade amongst the clamour of our daily lives.

Julian notes that her first reaction to the Revelations was denial. She thought they must be the products of a fever. “Mercifully our Lord Jesus would not let it disappear . lighting it up by his precious love.” Julian then spent many years reflecting on what she had seen and what it meant for her and others on the journey of faith. “For he at once went on to say, ‘take it: believe it: hold on to it: comfort yourself with it: and trust it. You will not be overcome.’ . For our faith is variously opposed by our own blindness and by our spiritual enemies, within and without. So our most dear Lover helps us by giving us spiritual insight and true doctrine; and gives them in different ways, both externally and internally, in order that we may know him.”

But will we listen and hold the truth close? God profoundly touches us, leads us, shows us His love and then, like Elijah, we wake the next day and quake in the face of even the smallest threat. Our eyes come off our Lord and we find ourselves sinking under the waves. We dance around the golden calves, forgetting yesterday’s signs of true faithfulness and power. “They exchanged their Glory for an image of a bull, which eats grass. They forgot the God who saved them, who had done great things in Egypt” (Psalm 106:20f).

In the 13th chapter, Hosea writes: “I cared for you in the desert, in the land of burning heat. When I fed them they were satisfied; when they were satisfied they became proud; then they forgot me.” In contrast, Julian says: “Whatever his manner of teaching, his will is that we should be wise enough to perceive Him, gentle enough to receive Him, and faithful enough to keep ourselves in Him. For there can be no goodness in this life above and apart from our faith, and no spiritual help in anything less.”

Martin & Jude de Graaf ——————————————————— The saddest thing in the world Was that people didn’t live poetically They lived mundane, prosaic lives. Judith Wright, 1915 – 25.6.2000