The real you is the self which Christ could make you. You were
not made to grovel. You were not built to abide in sin. God made you for
himself, and deep-set in your heart there are longings for holiness, and
every now and then the Spirit inflames them and you long for the great
spaces in which the saint moves.
I was in the Zoo some time ago and lingered by the cages of the eagles.
Somehow or other the sight of them hurt me. I looked at the great wing-spread
of the King of Birds, and felt sick at heart that they were caged.... Made
for the skies ... and crammed in a cage.
So many of us are like that; made for the skies and imprisoned in sin.
When Jesus looks at us, he sees us as we are, but, with his double vision,
he sees us also as we might be.
He looked on Simon and saw Peter. He looked on Saul and saw Paul. He
looked on Augustine the roué [debaucher] , and saw Augustine the
saint.... If only we could see ourselves as Christ sees us! If we could
stand at His elbow and get that double vision; the men and women we are;
the men and women we might be! ... See yourself then "the man God meant."
Hold the picture in the eye of relevant imagination whenever you pray.
Dwell (on your knees) on the thought that God could make you like that
... and, as you dwell on it daily and in prayer, God will use your sanctified
imagination to pull you up. The actual will turn into the ideal. The difference
may be so marked that you will need a new name. To you, as to one long
ago, He may say "Thou art Simon ... Thou shalt be called 'Rock."
[excerpt from Daily Readings from W.E. Sangster, Frank Cumbers,
editor, Revell, 1966, Old Tappan, New Jersey, USA]
William
Edwin Sangster, a great Methodist preacher and writer, lived between 1900-1960.
During World War II, he served as senior minister at Westminster Central
Hall in London, the "cathedral" of Methodism. The basement became an air-raid
shelter as soon as the German assault began. As space in the below-ground
shelter was scarce, he and his family lived at great risk for five years
on the hazardous ground floor. By war's end 450,000 people had found refuge
in the church basement.In 1949 Sangster was elected president of the Methodist
Conference of Great Britain..
