A New Window

I feel like a kid running down the stairs on Christmas morning as the sun pushes away the darkness.  A friend sent a gift that I retrieved from the post office yesterday and while I knew it was coming and while I knew what it was, there was still such excitement and anticipation.  Some would look at its nearly 3000 pages and declared it to be a "bookworm's delight."  It bears the title, "Prayer Book Offices" and says about itself in the introduction that it "has been designed for personal use in praying the Daily Office of the Church as is set forth in The Book of Common Prayer."   

It is filled with an orderly system of Scripture reading, prayers for morning, noon, and evening, orders for worship, and more than enough ritual and liturgy than I will likely read.  I receive it as a new means of creating order in my personal spiritual life.  I see it as a new window to be opened as I seek a deeper understanding of what it means to walk and live in Holy Presence.  Of course, it will provide none of these spiritual blessings if it simply sits on the book shelf as a book to admire and impress.   

Like any spiritual growth resource such as the sacred Word or a favorite devotional reading, it will do  little good if it simply collects dust on the shelf.  I remember an old gospel song from my childhood which had the words, "...get that dust off the Bible and redeem your poor soul."  Over the years I have been blessed with gifts of books from others who shared the journey with Christ.  Even as those gifts nurtured my soul so shall this new book which sits here before me on my desk.  It makes the road ahead all the more exciting!