Because farming does not bring in lots of money I have felt fortunate to know how to do a lot of mechanical things. I was replacing the engine on our 2000 Saturn Sedan about two weeks ago. The replacement engine was ready to return to the engine compartment and it would not fit. I was getting frustrated because I just had removed the same size and model of engine just days before and it had fit just fine. Every attempt to lower the engine failed. I discovered that the engine was actually 5/8 of an inch too long to get past the frame on the passenger side of the car. I struggled for a couple of hours pulling it out and trying another angle of decent to put it back in. Nothing was working. Then I noticed it. There were two alignment pins on the engine that matched two holes in the transmission. I was trying to put these two pins in the holes as I lowered the engine. If the pins were in the holes the engine would be about 5/8" shorter, just what I needed. I had to rotate the engine to a point that the pins were clear of the transmission housing, then lower the engine. After the engine was in position I had to rotate the engine back to upright and slide the pins into the transmission. Voila!
On the third day after Jesus had been killed some disciples were walking down the road toward home. Jesus who had risen from the dead that morning joined them in their walk but for some reason they did not recognize him. No I don't know why they did not know it was him. They walked and talked for quite a long way and Jesus was invited to stay for dinner when they reached their home. Something amazing happened as they sat down to eat. Here is what Luke wrote about it: "Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight." One of those spiritual "Aha" moments. I am sure that there are some times when our wonderful brains can digest a massive amount of information and then all at once spit out a brilliant solution. But I also think that some times the "bright idea" that we think we had is merely a nudge from the spiritual realm. The disciples probably had help from an outside source to recognize Jesus. They got a spiritual nudge. A moment of awakening that came from outside themselves.
That aha moment has happened to all of us I think. It has happened in my farming and it has happened during my spiritual journey. I have not written articles for this blog for quite some time for a reason. During my morning shower a few months ago I suddenly had a burst of insight about some things I had been struggling with for a very long time. I jumped out of the shower, dried off and ran to the computer to start writing them down before I forgot them. The result has become a book project about my spiritual journey and what I think are the bare essentials necessary to take the spiritual path of following Jesus of Nazareth. I hope to get everything finished in a few weeks and anyone that is interested is welcomed to read it.
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