We return to "The Prophetic Imagination" by Walter Brueggemann.
...prophets are not magicians. Their art and calling is only with words that evoke alternatives, and reshaped hardware will not overcome despair in any case.
... Remember not the former things, nor consider things of old.
Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
(Isaiah 43:18-19)
What is new within the Reign of God is new. Therefore we are never merely left with what is, even if that is all we want to have. The most difficult piece of this prophetic word is that it is not a concrete reality -- just yet. It pulls us in by drawing on our imagination that is shaped by the vision of God's Reign as the prophet lays out its beauty through words and images we have yet to experience. I cannot see the new thing...and yet, it is being proclaimed and there are glimpses of it that are not available to us in the shape of things as their are. Geez...how do we leap into such a life?
Connection: Dream on and anticipate what is not even if it means taking steps across boundaries and through borders that have been set up to divide us. God continues to invite us into a new day. Unfortunately, it can be so easy to stay put. We really need some new eyes, even if they are the eyes of others who help us see beyond what is already familiar to us.
Come and take us along the way, O God, so that we may embrace what you promise and take the risk to leave behind what is known. This may not be an easy journey and yet, your promises are so bold they pull us into them. Help us to let go of today and fly off into your blessed Reign. Amen
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