We Are Spiritual Bodies
Illustration
Stories
Contents
“We Are Spiritual Bodies” by John Sumwalt
“Sense And Quotability” by Frank Ramirez
We Are Spiritual Bodies
by John Sumwalt
2 Corinthians 12:2-10
I know a person in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven — whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows. And I know that such a person — whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows — was caught up into paradise and heard things that are not to be told, that no mortal is permitted to repeat.(vv. 2-4)
I have a friend who found herself outside of her body during open heart surgery and was later able to describe the details of everything that had happened in the operating room. We have a spiritual body as well as a physical body.
My grandmother, Nellie Jane Kittle Sumwalt, fell in her apartment when she was in her middle 80s. She could not get up and no one heard her cries for help. She said she must have died there, because her late mother and sister came to her and said, "Nellie, it's not your time yet. You must go back." She was found a few hours later and lived several more years.
Millions of people have had out of body and near death experiences like this — and have lived to tell about what they have seen.
President Ronald Reagan had a kind of near-death experience as he was "...fighting for his life after being shot by John Hinckley March 30, 1981. He was having trouble breathing. His skin had turned so pale, Nancy Reagan remembers, 'He was the color of paper - just as white as a sheet, with dried blood around his mouth.' Reagan later recalled looking up from the gurney and praying. Half-conscious, he realized someone was holding his hand. 'It was a soft, feminine hand,' he writes in his autobiography, An American Life. 'I felt it come up and touch mine and then hold on tight to it. It gave me a wonderful feeling. Even now I find it difficult to explain how reassuring, how wonderful, it felt.' " Despite great efforts to find out who was holding his hand, no one in the hospital could tell him who it was. He and his family concluded that it must have been an angel.
Some have had the experience of seeing a deceased loved one who has crossed over from heaven to bring comfort. Violet Anderson, a long-time member of one of the churches I served, lost her 16-year-old son in an auto accident shortly after she came to Milwaukee in the early 1950s. She was beside herself with grief. Her family said she cried all the time. Violet couldn't stop crying. She cried so much her tear ducts dried up. The doctor had to give her a special medicine. Then one morning, Violet’s son appeared at the foot of her bed. He said, "Mother, you must stop your crying. I am where I am, and I like where I am." That was enough for Violet. She knew her son was alright. She stopped crying and went on with her life.
I remember the day I went to the hospital to visit Mavis Meyer, a long—time member of our church. Mavis had received word the night before about the death of a favorite niece. I listened as she poured out her grief, and then as an afterthought asked her if she had had any sense of her niece's presence since her passing. She looked at me knowingly and said, "Not yet, but after my husband died six years ago, he was often in my bedroom at night. One night after I had been in bed for a while trying to sleep, I opened my eyes and there was my husband and my late stepson hovering over me. I was so startled that I exclaimed, 'Go away!' "We both laughed, and then she told me that she had never spoken of this before.
Teihard De Chardin wrote: "We are not human beings on a spiritual journey, we are spiritual beings on a human journey."
* * *
Sense And Quotability
by Frank Ramirez
Ezekiel 2:1-5
Whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they shall know that there has been a prophet among them. (v. 5)
When Jane Austen died in 1817 at the age of 41, she was virtually unknown, despite the fact that during her lifetime she was the author of four fairly popular novels. It was only after her death, when two more novels were published posthumously, that the world learned the author’s name, because at last it appeared on the title page.
Since then, her novels have never been out of print. New television and film adaptations are constantly being produced, and although she focuses on a very small segment of English life during a tightly constrained period, her wit about our human foibles and her insight into the human condition is recognized as universal.
She is eminently quotable. Here are just a few quotes, but if you were to apply to a search engine on your computer, you’d find examples just as notable:
“Facts are such horrid things.”
“I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading!”
“I do not want people to be very agreeable, as it saves me the trouble of liking them a great deal.”
“Angry people are not always wise.”
“I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of rational creatures. None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives.
“Ah! There is nothing like staying at home, for real comfort.”
“It was a delightful visit;—perfect, in being much too short.”
“It isn't what we say or think that defines us, but what we do.”
“Laugh as much as you choose, but you will not laugh me out of my opinion.”
In a sense, Austen was a prophet, unafraid of speaking the truth to power. Her characters see through others, and themselves, and through her devastatingly accurate portrayal of human nature we become prophets as well.
But though she was not afraid to portray the truth about hypocritical Christians and clergy, she had no criticism of the Christian faith itself. She was a woman of deep faith. Austen was in the habit of creating family devotionals, prayers which were to be spoken aloud, drawing upon the rich language of the Book of Common Prayer, and concluding with a unison recital of the Lord’s Prayer. Though her writings point out the foibles of others, her prayers invite us to reflect, as prophets must, on our own sins, asking for forgiveness for ourselves and for all others.
Here is an example of one of her simple prayers.
Give us grace, Almighty Father, so to pray, as to deserve to be heard, to address thee with our hearts, as with our lips. Thou art everywhere present, from thee no secret can be hid. May the knowledge of this, teach us to fix our thoughts on thee, with reverence and devotion that we pray not in vain.
Look with mercy on the sins we have this day committed, and in mercy make us feel them deeply, that our repentance may be sincere, and our resolutions steadfast of endeavoring against the commission of such in future. Teach us to understand the sinfulness of our own hearts and bring to our knowledge every fault of temper and every evil habit in which we have indulged to the discomfort of our fellow-creatures, and the danger of our own souls. May we now, and on each return of night, consider how the past day has been spent by us, what have been our prevailing thoughts, words, and actions during it, and how far we can acquit ourselves of evil. Have we thought irreverently of Thee, have we disobeyed thy commandments, have we neglected any known duty, or willingly given pain to any human being? Incline us to ask our hearts these questions, Oh! God, and save us from deceiving ourselves by pride or vanity.
Give us a thankful sense of the blessings in which we live, of the many comforts of our lot; that we may not deserve to lose them by discontent or indifference.
Be gracious to our necessities, and guard us, and all we love, from evil this night. May the sick and afflicted, be now, and ever thy care; and heartily do we pray for the safety of all that travel by land or by sea, for the comfort & protection of the orphan and widow and that thy pity may be shewn upon all captives and prisoners.
Above all other blessings Oh! God, for ourselves, and our fellow-creatures, we implore thee to quicken our sense of thy mercy in the redemption of the world, of the value of that holy religion in which we have been brought up, that we may not, by our own neglect, throw away the salvation thou hast given us, nor be Christians only in name. Hear us Almighty God, for his sake who has redeemed us, and taught us thus to pray:
Our Father which art in Heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever.
Amen.
*****************************************
StoryShare, July 4, 2021 issue.
Copyright 2021 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
“We Are Spiritual Bodies” by John Sumwalt
“Sense And Quotability” by Frank Ramirez
We Are Spiritual Bodies
by John Sumwalt
2 Corinthians 12:2-10
I know a person in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven — whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows. And I know that such a person — whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows — was caught up into paradise and heard things that are not to be told, that no mortal is permitted to repeat.(vv. 2-4)
I have a friend who found herself outside of her body during open heart surgery and was later able to describe the details of everything that had happened in the operating room. We have a spiritual body as well as a physical body.
My grandmother, Nellie Jane Kittle Sumwalt, fell in her apartment when she was in her middle 80s. She could not get up and no one heard her cries for help. She said she must have died there, because her late mother and sister came to her and said, "Nellie, it's not your time yet. You must go back." She was found a few hours later and lived several more years.
Millions of people have had out of body and near death experiences like this — and have lived to tell about what they have seen.
President Ronald Reagan had a kind of near-death experience as he was "...fighting for his life after being shot by John Hinckley March 30, 1981. He was having trouble breathing. His skin had turned so pale, Nancy Reagan remembers, 'He was the color of paper - just as white as a sheet, with dried blood around his mouth.' Reagan later recalled looking up from the gurney and praying. Half-conscious, he realized someone was holding his hand. 'It was a soft, feminine hand,' he writes in his autobiography, An American Life. 'I felt it come up and touch mine and then hold on tight to it. It gave me a wonderful feeling. Even now I find it difficult to explain how reassuring, how wonderful, it felt.' " Despite great efforts to find out who was holding his hand, no one in the hospital could tell him who it was. He and his family concluded that it must have been an angel.
Some have had the experience of seeing a deceased loved one who has crossed over from heaven to bring comfort. Violet Anderson, a long-time member of one of the churches I served, lost her 16-year-old son in an auto accident shortly after she came to Milwaukee in the early 1950s. She was beside herself with grief. Her family said she cried all the time. Violet couldn't stop crying. She cried so much her tear ducts dried up. The doctor had to give her a special medicine. Then one morning, Violet’s son appeared at the foot of her bed. He said, "Mother, you must stop your crying. I am where I am, and I like where I am." That was enough for Violet. She knew her son was alright. She stopped crying and went on with her life.
I remember the day I went to the hospital to visit Mavis Meyer, a long—time member of our church. Mavis had received word the night before about the death of a favorite niece. I listened as she poured out her grief, and then as an afterthought asked her if she had had any sense of her niece's presence since her passing. She looked at me knowingly and said, "Not yet, but after my husband died six years ago, he was often in my bedroom at night. One night after I had been in bed for a while trying to sleep, I opened my eyes and there was my husband and my late stepson hovering over me. I was so startled that I exclaimed, 'Go away!' "We both laughed, and then she told me that she had never spoken of this before.
Teihard De Chardin wrote: "We are not human beings on a spiritual journey, we are spiritual beings on a human journey."
* * *
Sense And Quotability
by Frank Ramirez
Ezekiel 2:1-5
Whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they shall know that there has been a prophet among them. (v. 5)
When Jane Austen died in 1817 at the age of 41, she was virtually unknown, despite the fact that during her lifetime she was the author of four fairly popular novels. It was only after her death, when two more novels were published posthumously, that the world learned the author’s name, because at last it appeared on the title page.
Since then, her novels have never been out of print. New television and film adaptations are constantly being produced, and although she focuses on a very small segment of English life during a tightly constrained period, her wit about our human foibles and her insight into the human condition is recognized as universal.
She is eminently quotable. Here are just a few quotes, but if you were to apply to a search engine on your computer, you’d find examples just as notable:
“Facts are such horrid things.”
“I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading!”
“I do not want people to be very agreeable, as it saves me the trouble of liking them a great deal.”
“Angry people are not always wise.”
“I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of rational creatures. None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives.
“Ah! There is nothing like staying at home, for real comfort.”
“It was a delightful visit;—perfect, in being much too short.”
“It isn't what we say or think that defines us, but what we do.”
“Laugh as much as you choose, but you will not laugh me out of my opinion.”
In a sense, Austen was a prophet, unafraid of speaking the truth to power. Her characters see through others, and themselves, and through her devastatingly accurate portrayal of human nature we become prophets as well.
But though she was not afraid to portray the truth about hypocritical Christians and clergy, she had no criticism of the Christian faith itself. She was a woman of deep faith. Austen was in the habit of creating family devotionals, prayers which were to be spoken aloud, drawing upon the rich language of the Book of Common Prayer, and concluding with a unison recital of the Lord’s Prayer. Though her writings point out the foibles of others, her prayers invite us to reflect, as prophets must, on our own sins, asking for forgiveness for ourselves and for all others.
Here is an example of one of her simple prayers.
Give us grace, Almighty Father, so to pray, as to deserve to be heard, to address thee with our hearts, as with our lips. Thou art everywhere present, from thee no secret can be hid. May the knowledge of this, teach us to fix our thoughts on thee, with reverence and devotion that we pray not in vain.
Look with mercy on the sins we have this day committed, and in mercy make us feel them deeply, that our repentance may be sincere, and our resolutions steadfast of endeavoring against the commission of such in future. Teach us to understand the sinfulness of our own hearts and bring to our knowledge every fault of temper and every evil habit in which we have indulged to the discomfort of our fellow-creatures, and the danger of our own souls. May we now, and on each return of night, consider how the past day has been spent by us, what have been our prevailing thoughts, words, and actions during it, and how far we can acquit ourselves of evil. Have we thought irreverently of Thee, have we disobeyed thy commandments, have we neglected any known duty, or willingly given pain to any human being? Incline us to ask our hearts these questions, Oh! God, and save us from deceiving ourselves by pride or vanity.
Give us a thankful sense of the blessings in which we live, of the many comforts of our lot; that we may not deserve to lose them by discontent or indifference.
Be gracious to our necessities, and guard us, and all we love, from evil this night. May the sick and afflicted, be now, and ever thy care; and heartily do we pray for the safety of all that travel by land or by sea, for the comfort & protection of the orphan and widow and that thy pity may be shewn upon all captives and prisoners.
Above all other blessings Oh! God, for ourselves, and our fellow-creatures, we implore thee to quicken our sense of thy mercy in the redemption of the world, of the value of that holy religion in which we have been brought up, that we may not, by our own neglect, throw away the salvation thou hast given us, nor be Christians only in name. Hear us Almighty God, for his sake who has redeemed us, and taught us thus to pray:
Our Father which art in Heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever.
Amen.
*****************************************
StoryShare, July 4, 2021 issue.
Copyright 2021 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
