Several years ago, I established Mill Lake Books to help Christian authors get their books published in an affordable way. To date, this imprint has published over 30 books.

One of the most recent is Fullness of Time: Devotionals, Poems, Pictures, and Prayers by Ray Harris. On one level, this is a beautiful coffee table book. On another level, it is a rich spiritual banquet.

The book grew out of Ray’s ministry as Spiritual Care Coordinator at Tabor Village, a seniors’ home in Abbotsford, British Columbia.The contents of the book are organized to reflect the human journey through the seasons of the year. The centerpiece of the book is meditations, drawn from all 66 books of the Bible and based on devotionals Ray shared with various gatherings at Tabor Village.

And yet, in a real sense, the book is a product of the Christian community in which Ray served. In addition to Ray’s meditations, the book is brimming with pictures, aphorisms (brief thoughts), poems, and anecdotes (brief stories, most of them drawn from the life experiences of Tabor residents). The photographs and artwork in the book were also provided by Tabor residents, friends, and family members. Readers will find themselves drawn into Christian community as the contributors sing, pray, laugh, mourn, and worship together.

The result is a rich, easy-to-read, inspirational volume, ideal for personal devotional reading, as well as a good resource for chaplains, teachers, and others who may need to lead a devotion on short notice. The book includes an index to Scripture and an index to topics such as change, growth, death, and eternity. It comes in paper and ebook formats and is available through bookstores and online retailers such as Amazon, distributed by Ingram.

Showing is always better than telling. Below is one of Ray’s meditations, drawn from the book.

Meditation – The Blessing of An Elder

Scripture Text – Luke 2:25-35 (NIV): Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

I still can see him lifting our six-month-old son in the spotlight, with his eyes raised to the sky, reciting these words, “My eyes have seen your salvation…” It was our church Christmas program, and this elder pastor agreed to play the role of Simeon, and our son served as baby Jesus. Though the lines were spoken in a pageant, they were filled with sincerity and life experience. This octogenarian was a godly man who truly blessed us all that day.

When an elder Christian blesses another person, there is a sense of the presence and pleasure of God. The church has always taken blessings and benedictions (good words) seriously. The Bible is full of blessings, including this text often quoted or spoken during Christmas. Simeon blessing points ahead to Calvary and deep soul-piercing. And it also sings of light, salvation, fulfilment.

This text (Luke 2:25-35) is one of the Christmas songs, referred to as the Nunc Dimittis (now dismiss). Give and receive a blessing today.