Greetings Dear Reader,
“[Gandalf]: Go away and leave it behind. Stop
possessing it. Give it to Frodo, and I will look after him.’
Bilbo stood for a moment tense and undecided. Presently he sighed. ‘All right,’ he said with an effort. ‘I will'.”
Bilbo stood for a moment tense and undecided. Presently he sighed. ‘All right,’ he said with an effort. ‘I will'.”
Bilbo had possessed the One Ring of power for sixty years. He held the power to rule over many things in
his possession. In some way or another, we
all have power. Some of us crave it over
anything else. Some of us wield it
well. The most difficult thing about
power is letting go when necessary. It
is a clinging corrupting force that wishes to be used.
The One Ring exercised its power over the one holding
it. I would submit that no one but its
creator every owned it. The ring was
designed to wield power over the other rings.
The intent of its maker was always to use it to hold power over the entire
world.
Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them,
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
Power is a tool that must be used for the benefit of
others. It must never be grasped as a possession
or sought for as a treasure. The effort
to hold power is one that demands all from us and gives back only the desire
for more. When seen as a treasure it
reveals itself to be fool’s gold instead.
I have had power and wielded it poorly.
I have had it and used it well.
Only the latter satisfied.
When Bilbo voluntarily gives up the One Ring, he is the
first but not the only one to do so. He
lets go of power and is free to pursue the road to peace. Others will offer to give it up. Frodo offers it to both Gandalf and Galadriel. Sam willingly gives it back to Frodo. Only a few, including Hobbits it seems, understand
that the power the ring offers is a lie.
I no longer desire power over anything except my own choices
and only that so that I can do what is good and right. I must not seek it. I must have the wisdom to refuse it when
offered. Gandalf and Galadriel both had
the grace given them to refuse the ring.
Knowing when to refuse power is a very valuable grace to receive. We all need such grace when offered even the
smallest power if that power is unsuited for us.
As we travel the way home there will be times when we have
power over each other. What we must do
is see that only through humility, love, and grace can we use that power to
further the journey and live it out well.
When we find that we are standing in the cloak of our power demanding
things we are likely wrong. It is when
we use our power to show love even to those who are wrong that we wiled it
well. Perhaps the best use of power is
to give it up so that others see our love for them.
Wishing you joy in the journey,
Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every
writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a
homeowner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure
store.”
(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
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Thorn:
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