In high school my basketball coach in seeking to motivate us would tell us to leave everything on the court; he wanted us to empty our selves on the basketball court in hopes for a good outcome. Many times we did just that and in deed we were empty; in our emptiness we discovered our true strength, our true ability, our true identity as a team.
Abram prostrates himself before God; Abram empties himself before God; he leaves everything on the desert floor; in his emptiness he waits; in his emptiness God speaks to him; in his emptiness he discovers who he is meant to be, his true identity; Abram becomes Abraham and he shapes his life by the words God speaks.
In his emptiness God speaks to him and he finds new life.
On Sunday, we will pray the passion of Christ, Palm Sunday. Prior to that we will hear the words of St. Paul in regards to the condition of Christ, letter of Philippians, he directs our attention to Christ, who though was in the form of God deemed not equality with God but rather emptied himself, being found in human estate, and thus became obedient unto death, even death on a cross.
Jesus leaves it all on the desert floor to cavalry; he empties himself completely.
In His emptiness God speaks; in his emptiness God speaks to us. We discover who we are in the emptiness of Christ, for we discover true love in such emptiness of self. In his emptiness our true identity is revealed, we are sons in the son and our new name is Christian.
Every time we celebrate the Eucharist we re enter that emptiness that brings life; every time we pray the words, "take this all of you and eat, this is my body given for you; take this all of you and drink it, this is my blood shed for all for the forgiveness of sin," our identity and true dignity is revealed, we are loved and thus we have new life.
It is in emptiness do we discover who we are called to be.
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