Keep fresh before me the moments of my high resolve.
Despite the
dullness and barrenness of the days that pass, if I search with due diligence, I
can always find a deposit left by some former radiance. But I had forgotten. At
the time it was full-orbed, glorious, and resplendent. I was sure that I would
never forget. In the moment of its fullness, I was sure that it would illumine
my path for all the rest of my journey. I had forgotten how easy it is to
forget.
There was no intent to betray what seemed so sure at the time.
My response was whole, clean, authentic. But little by little, there crept into
my life the dust and grit of the journey. Details, lower-level demands, all
kinds of cross currents — nothing momentous, nothing overwhelming, nothing
flagrant — just wear and tear. If there had been some direct challenge –a
clear-cut issue — I would have fought it to the end, and beyond.
In the
quietness of this place, surrounded by the all-pervading Presence of God, my
heart whispers: Keep fresh before me the moments of my High Resolve, that in
fair weather or in foul, in good times or in tempests, in the days when the
darkness and the foe are nameless or familiar, I may not forget that to which my
life is committed.
Keep fresh before me the moments of my high resolve.
For The Inward Journey
by Howard Thurman
