Today is the day before my three month sabbatical begins. These devotions may take several forms for the next months.
1. Old posts from years ago - years ago.
2. Old posts plus ongoing posts as I read and have something on which I would like to reflect without it being considered work in any way.
It is my bet that we will move forward with #2. Today it is one more piece from Marcia Mount Shoop.
Christian community is no place for fear. When we cast out fear, we expect and we embody great things; an end to racism, an end to homophobia, and an end to violence. We expect and embody the day when justice flows and promises are fulfilled. We look for it, we anticipate it, and we dispose ourselves accordingly. Being informed by surrender is not easy for mainline Protestants. We are accustomed to being in control. This act of trust means that Caucasian Protestants, in particular, may need to reflect on their fears and the privileges whites in particular have secured by letting fear dictate how our communities are formed and function. Such vulnerability is only palatable when we re-member ourselves in God's hands.
When we are people who say we live by the Word of God. It is not by what we can remember of that word. It is what we re-member. That seems to be an important jump. We use important words so that our lives will be filled with the substance of those important words. Fine word thrown onto a sheet of paper or lifted high in the singing of hymns are merely decorations that can be torn down at the end of the day. We are people who are told that our words - words that share promise - move their way into the bits and pieces of our lives so that people are able to see and say - 'that is what that word means.' We say love enemy and love neighbor. Sometimes it will be lived out with lives that undo racism. Our focus is not the racism - it is the glory of the Reign of God where there is no such concept! Our words put us into such a place and time. It is not one that corresponds to the images and biases of the world. That is why we are often people who consider ourselves aliens. We are invited to embrace that word and the Land of Hopefulness and Joy from which we have been given life eternal.
Connection: We can live new lives - the words are already in our vocabulary. Therefore we never have to make up words or images. They are the gift given to us within the community of God's beloved.
You, O God, empower us to let go and listen to your word and then, the world is made open to new life that is quite beyond our expectations. Thanks be to you, O God. Amen.
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