Uncovering Joy – Within Darkness
“You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, „You shall not murder‟; and „whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.‟ But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother of sister, you will be liable to judgment; and it you insult a brother of sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, „You fool,‟ you will be liable to the hell of fire...” (Matthew 4:21 - 22)
“You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.‟ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? Be perfect, therefore, as you heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)
There are times when darkness prevails. As difficult as it might be to see the underside of life come to the surface and be displayed in the news or on the pages of newspapers, we can push that off onto others. The underbelly of life happens out there – or so we think. We can distance ourselves from evil and its many antics by isolating ourselves in places we think will keep us away from such realities. To do that, we move into other neighborhoods...we avoid that part of the city...we keep our circle of people small and well-groomed to our wants and needs...we do not allow anyone to care for our children unless they are family. The list can go on and on. These are simply some personal ways of dealing with the sides of life we would like to avoid.
Evil and the power of darkness have ways of spilling over just like unbounded joy and spontaneous laughter. It enters swiftly without much warning. I find the power of such actions to be unbelievably powerful. When we read about one incidence of a robbery in the neighborhood, people begin to take a second look at others passing through or simply by the neighborhood. If another robbery occurs – even months later – people start talking about security systems and block watch. From there, it only takes a news story about the presence of evil in a distant neighborhood or another section of town to make folks consider moving to a place that might not be “this close” to those kinds of people. Remember, nothing terrible or harmful has happened to us - we simply let it have power over us. Just the smell of evil or a comment made about that which could happen here and to us is enough to cause people to recoil and want something else – something more in control.
When darkness spills over into our lives, it is not always coming from “out there.” The stories and fear and anxieties are often more manufactured from within us than coming from outside. The news of the day or the interpretation of the news of the day gets whipped up and it all too quickly becomes something knocking at our door. Yes, there are some awful things that go on in the world and in our neighborhoods – but we each do quite a bit of spinning. We then must add onto this spin - the spin of the marketplace. One bit of reinforcement to our internal spinning accentuates our spinning. When this comes from an outside person or group that seems to have some authority - our low level fear or anxiety ignites into full-blown panic. This is one way we manufacture the need for warfare. Many times there is no need for war and all its many promises of security. Unfortunately when we sense a threat and that threat is amplified by powers around us - look out.
I want to step back though. Like that glass of water that spills over at the dinner table and creates a stir in our lives so that we might see the Reign of God around us and experience the joy of its presence, I find that darkness can spill over just as easily. I would suggest that as it spills over, it has the power to subvert any and all desire we have to be people who call ourselves followers of Jesus. Just as quickly as my mind moves from one thought to another, I can be overcome by my own brokenness. As that happens, I act out of that internal reality and let go of hopefulness and compassion and mercy and joy and loving kindness. In some way, you could say that in those instances the darkness that spills out into the room is the darkness within me and not that of the world around me.
The darkness that spills out into the day may be a part of me I never see. Darkness can be so much a part of me and the life situations from which I come that I don’t even consider the fact that I am a part of the brokenness that perpetuates unrest and fighting among us. It is in these situations that there is the great need for the stories of our faith communities. These are stories that never let us stand alone with the voices of fear and anxiety that seek to turn us onto their path through life. Yes, “love your enemy” is as real as “take up your arms.” And yet, we are more likely to arm ourselves against one another than we are able to extend ourselves as instruments of loving kindness. The stories that have been generated within the community of Jesus’ followers are stories that seek to keep bringing us home. This home is a place where we are out of control - a place of utter freedom, unending security, and joy - a peaceable Reign.
For me, the notion of urban spirituality is the discipline of knowing that we are constantly being dumped on by the powers of life around us and we do not need to be a part of the darkness that is so readily mixed in with that dumping. And yet, we do not move out or away from this often fear-filled and anxiety producing context. Rather, we stay put and we deliberately bring into our context the gift of the Good News of the Reign of God - the joy that fills the songs of angels. This is easier said than done. Then again, we are not a part of a mere intellectual discipline. Our spirituality is all tied up within a life that is being wooed into the peace of God’s Reign even as we are being urged to go to war with life around us.
This is not a “get it right” way of moving through the day. That would be impossible and it would produce nothing but frustration and discouragement. As we attempt to “get it right,” and fall short again and again, it is so easy to fall into the trap of speaking more loudly about “getting it right” and yet remaining part of the powers of darkness. Rather, as we face the day and the many ways the darkness of the world spills over onto us or is spilling out of us, the storytelling of our faith allows us room to re-view and re-engage re-form our humanity.
Once darkness has overwhelmed us or we have been an overwhelming presence of darkness for those around us, we can return home to what we often call the way of Jesus. We can explore how the Reign of God is a part of the reality at hand. The exploration happens by doing. In this moment – in the middle of everything going on around us and in us - darkness can be confronted and transformation can take place. We are able to turn around and distance ourselves from the darkness that can so easily become us. That is a part of the promise of the Holy Spirit.
This power for new life – this Spirit - is always acting...pulling...inviting us to face the promises of our God. Again and again, we are given opportunities to use darkness as a place to be a part of the light that will not stop making itself know among us even when it appear to be a small light. That light, that Good News, is forever available and forever enough to carry us through the darkest days with promises that present us with new ways to see and hear and speak and touch.
TRRR
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