When you ascended on high,
you took many captives;
you received gifts frompeople,
even from the rebellious –
that you, Lord God, might dwell there.
Praise be to the Lord, to God our Saviour,
who daily bears our burdens.
We Play and Bleed
We are a network of relationships, some close, some distant, some acquaintance-like. We bleed and play, pray and breathe; nothing new. We are looking for the sweet undergrowth of the awareness of God in ourselves, each other, and the world, which is His.
And we are His, to different extents and in different ways. As might be predictable, the way we hurt each other most is by holding in our hearts judgments of those that are ‘far off’ or ‘less His’. We are looking for a mission, marching orders or a sword upon which to die. We are reasonably sure that we will find these things and about as sure that we already have. We are academics and carpenters, business-people and mystics, counsellors and pastors, though if we were honest, we probably couldn’t tell you which ones were which.
We live down the street, down the highway, and across the country from each other, we vote conservative and liberal (though we consider this no feat of ecumenism), we have barbeques in the summer and kitchen parties in the winter; most of us like beer. Our hearts are mainly at home.
We want to proclaim joyfully the truth of Jesus as we understand it … without being asses. Though historically this has often not been accomplished, we pray and act that we may all be siphoned through the narrow way of Jesus’ humility and live to tell the tale. To the extent that you are curious or can perhaps relate to the experiences of Christian community, we invite you in: take off your shoes … cup of tea?
- Celtic Daily Prayer Book Two: Farther Up and Farther In, 2015, p. 1526.
Prayer
Gracious God, in whom we find our being. Aid us as we seek to live through the narrow way of Jesus’ humility. May we do more than live to tell the tale, but inspire others to also seek the narrow way. May our lives be examples of your love and grace. Forgive us our follies, for stumbling as we follow you. Encourage us that we might make the world of your creation a better place for all people. In Jesus name, Amen.