Seek the Presence of God

By Janet Morales

Rev. Doug Delp, pastor of Timber Lake Christian Church, was the featured speaker at Wednesday’s Lenten Luncheon sponsored by the Altrusa International Club of Moberly.

Delp said he did not grow up observing the Lenten tradition. However, during a sabbatical taken a few years ago, Delp said he gained a new appreciation for the season which helps believers prepare for the crucifixion and the resurrection.

Delp went away to a place that is specifically for ministers and their spouses. There, he said he had time to grow closer to God and to draw nearer to His presence.

In John 20, Mary Magdalene goes to the tomb to care for Jesus and finds the stone rolled away and the body gone.

“They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” (NIV)

Peter and the other disciples came to find a folded burial cloth and linen, but no body. They returned home but Mary stayed at the tomb crying. She looked into the tomb and saw two angels in white. She turned and saw someone standing there, not realizing it was Jesus.

“Thinking he was the gardener, she said, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.’

When Jesus called her name she instantly recognized him.

Delp said this Scripture was the inspiration of the popular hymn “I Come to the Garden Alone”. It speaks of being in a garden, alone and communing with God, in a joy “none other has ever known”.

His own time with God, combined with the influence of the Scripture and the hymn, led Delp to bring the concept of a Prayer Labyrinth to Timber Lake – to Moberly.

Delp said the idea of a prayer labyrinth came about in ancient times when people wanted to go on a pilgrimage but couldn’t go to Rome. The labyrinth provides a journey and a seeking of God. The one Delp proposes for Timber Lake would have one enter and eventually arrive at the center “claiming the promises of Scripture and symbolically embracing the presence of Christ.”

There is no “map” to the labyrinth, said Delp, you just start and walk it, just as you do in life.

“We are all at different places in our lives,” said Delp. “The challenge is to think about the fact that Mary stood at the tomb, confused and frustrated. You may be at a significant turn for you. But Jesus is there. You may not recognize him at first.”

Delp said as you prayerfully move through the labyrinth, you come to the center.

“Put God at the center of your life,” he said. “We will still struggle with death, disappointments and sin. But we must find our presence, God’s presence, in the center of who we are.”

In his closing prayer, Delp thanked God for the “reminder of Resurrection morning and the traditions that teach stopping, sacrifices and prayer.”

Rev. Don Kelley, pastor of Carpenter Street Baptist Church, will be next week’s speaker. The luncheon is held from noon to 1 p.m. at Nelly’s Restaurant. For reservations, call Dora May Crven at 269-8405.