The Light of One Lamp

 St Luke's Little Summer, the Hawk & Dove story that was published just at the beginning of this month, is really one of a pair. They are both part of the Hawk & Dove stories in the usual way, but in these two books I particularly wanted to address some of the spiritual discipleship issues arising out of the very challenging times we're passing through.

I think these issues broadly fall into two subject areas. The first is about holding our light steady in times of turbulence — trusting in God's provision for occasions when we are out of our depth, worried or afraid. For such times we need to understand how to initiate and develop a steady practice, so we are not tossed about on the stormy waves. It also helps for us to understand that we can in effect create our own world: we don't have to live in the one served up by social media and the daily news. It's about realising (making real, bringing into reality) that we are made in the image of God, and God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit — Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer.

So we can create (by our initiatives and decisions) the reality we want to see in the world, because we are made in the image of God who is Creator. Then we can sustain that reality to establish and grow it on, because we are made in the image of God who is the Sustainer. But there's an important third aspect/possibility that arises from the Incarnation of God in Jesus. Because Jesus is our Redeemer, we also have the capacity to forgive and redeem by virtue of being made in the image of God. That means when things go awry, we have an innate corrective power — we have the capacity not only to initiate and establish, but also to correct and put right what has gone adrift.

This is activated in us by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on all flesh at Pentecost, after Jesus took all humanity up to heaven and rooted us there at the ascension. All we have to do is ask him, turn to him, put our trust in him, and his power is enabled in our core being. Until we ask, it is there (because we are made in the image of God), but not activated (because God made us free). He respects our boundaries.

So the book we recently published, St Luke's Little Summer, is about these things, the dynamic flow of power that allows us to envision and initiate something new by our choices, hold it steady by our discipline and practice, and correct for mistakes and disasters by the constant power of renewal within us (the risen Christ who makes us more than conquerors).

But there's a second issue very potent in present times — the matter of polarity and antagonism. The world seems everywhere to be dividing into oppositional factors; and, as you know, Jesus prayed that we would all be one, so it isn't him doing it!

Wherever I look, I see people of conviction and good faith at loggerheads with one another, unable to see each other's point of view, and severing friendship connections for the sake of antagonistic ideological stances. We can do better than this.

So I have written a second story into this time of fights and arguments, about the discipleship qualities necessary for us to hold the line and maintain unity. It's all the usual things of forbearance, kindness, humility and the willingness to apologise and put things right, but if you have a story about it then it's easier to get it into your imagination — and your imagination is the compost in which ideas can put down roots and grow.

Because I wanted them both out for this Now moment, I wrote the second book absolutely lickety-split to get them both out together. I've been working on it with my best focus for the last few months. And now it's written and been edited, and gone to Jonathan for formatting. The cover copy is ready, all we're waiting for is the cover art, and the artists assure me it's next on their list, they're stretching the paper for the background colour wash this weekend.

Once it comes back from Jonathan and the cover is made, Tony and I have to proofread at this end, and then the proofs will have to be corrected before uploading for publication. 

I'm hoping that before the end of May we'll have this next Hawk & Dove story ready for you.

It's called The Light of One Lamp, and it will be the last Hawk & Dove book of all — the conclusion of thirty-six years' worth of writing this series of novels!

I'll let you know when it's done. Meanwhile don't forget to review St Luke's Little Summer on Amazon if you can manage to do that.

x Pen