From my book Daily Prayer a session exploring a glorious mystery: the puzzling but inspiring concept of the Holy Trinity, and what it means for us today.
Read
Now there are various gifts, but the same Spirit; various ministries but the same Lord; different types of service but the same God working through all of them. 1 Corinthians 12:4-6
Ponder
Mention Advent, Christmas, Holy Week or Easter to most Christians, and you will see a sparkle of interest in their eyes, for these are well-loved festivals that speak in innumerable ways. Mention Trinity Sunday and you are more likely to witness a blank expression or complete lack of interest. It is an occasion that few people warm to, and one that in many nonconformist churches passes completely unnoticed. Why? You only need to look at the so-called Athanasian Creed to find out the answer. It goes like this: ‘I believe in God the Father incomprehensible, God the Son incomprehensible, God the Holy Spirit incomprehensible’ and so on, at great length. For many people the word ‘incomprehensible’ sums up both the Creed and the ideas about God it is trying to express. When it comes to the doctrine of the Trinity, we are out of our depth, struggling with concepts that baffle us, for how can it make sense to talk of three persons who are at once wholly distinct yet wholly one? It is, indeed, incomprehensible.
Yet that is the whole point, the very reason why Trinity Sunday is so important, for it reminds us of a truth we cannot afford to forget: that God is beyond the human intellect, defying expression, greater than we can ever conceive. We encounter him as a loving Father who is yet sovereign over all; as a human being who lived and died among us yet rose again and is exalted at the Father’s right hand; and as an inner reality that fills us with peace, joy, hope and power. We cannot explain how the pieces fit together but we know that they do, for we have experienced the truth for ourselves. If we imagine that we have solved the mystery and that the full wonder of God is firmly in our sights, then it is time to think again, for if we ever think that, then the truth is that we have lost sight of him altogether.
Ask yourself
Do you still have a sense of the mystery and wonder of God? Does the doctrine of the Trinity make sense to you as an experience, if not intellectually?
Pray
Mighty God, beyond all space and time, greater than my mind can grasp, ruler over all that is, has been and shall be – I worship you. Loving Father, kind and merciful, full of goodness and compassion, constantly watching over me and directing my steps – I praise you. Saviour Christ, flesh of my flesh yet the living image of God, sharing my humanity yet one with the Father, loving to the point of death yet bringer of life – I acknowledge you. Holy Spirit, free and mysterious, source of guidance and inspiration, filling my heart and mind – I welcome you. Mighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, with awe, joy and thanksgiving I celebrate all you mean to me and everything you have done in my life. To you be glory and honour, this and every day. Amen.
Remember
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. 2 Corinthians 13:13
Close
Sovereign God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, teach me to live with mystery, and simply to celebrate each day my many experiences of your love. Amen.