Convicting Words

This poem appears at the end of chapter 2; a chapter that challenges the reader (at least it challenged me) to wonder about the motivation for our actions. There is a lot of truth in this poem.

Don't struggle and strive so, my child,
There is no race to complete, no point to prove, no obstacle course to conquer for you to win my love.
I have already given it to you.
I loved you before creation drew its first breath.
I dreamed you as I molded Adam from the mud.
I saw you wet from the womb.
And I loved you then.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.
Stop racing ahead at your own pace, you will only be exhausted, flamed out, and spent before the task is accomplished.
Pace yourself with me, walk alongside me.

Do you think I don't know the demands of your life?
I see you striving for perfection, craving my acceptance.
I see you bending yourself out of shape to conform to the image that you have of me.
Do you imagine that I did not know who you were when I made you, when I knit you together in your mother's womb?
Do you think I planted a fig tree and expected roses to bloom?
No child, I sowed what I wanted to reap.

You are a child after my own heart.
Seek out your deepest joy and you will find me there.
Find that which makes you most perfectly yourself and know that I am at the heart of it.
Do what delights you and you will be working with me,
Walking with me, finding your life hidden in me.

Ask me any question.
My answer is love.
When you want to hear my voice, listen for love.
How can you delight me? I will tell you. Love.
The tough, unbreakable, unshakable love. Are you looking for me?
You will find me in love.
Would you know my secrets? There is only one: Love.
Do you want to know me?
Do you yearn to follow me?
Do you want to reach me?
Seek and serve love.

Made for goodness?

After hearing an interview that featured the innocuous laughter of Desmond Tutu, I decided to start reading the book he and his daughter wrote, “Made for Goodness.”

In the first chapter, he makes the claim that goodness is the norm, that we are fundamentally good. Tutu states that the reason we hear about the bad things people do on the news is because it runs counter to our natural state of goodness. He writes, “We are made for goodness by God, who is goodness itself. We are made for and like God, who is the very essence of goodness.”

I like how that sounds, but I struggle with it in the wake of violence and injustice. Last week a homeless friend was jumped and beat up as he slept; his shoes stolen.

There is so much suffering, pain, disrespect, and addiction, I often fail to see the goodness in creation and in humanity.

Perhaps the Tutu’s can bring some light and perspective into my world.

The Cross and the Lynching Tree

Last night I finished reading James Cone's latest book, "The Cross and the Lynching Tree." This is one of the most significant books I have ever read.

In this book, Cone lays out the historical tragedy of lynching, as roughly 5,000 African American men, women, and children were openly murdered. Reading this book during the season of Lent underscored the connection between the mobs who called for Jesus to be hung on a cross and the mobs that hung innocent human beings from trees.

While the history of lynching is shocking in its own right, what struck me most in the book was the silence of church leaders. From the most prominent national theologians to local pastors, the white church either said nothing in the midst of lynching, or, even worse, offered legitimacy to the dehumanization and slaughter of people created in God's image.

This led me to wonder, how does the church today continue to deny the humanity of our brothers and sisters? When are we silent in the face of injustice? How can we, as the church, learn from the failures of our past to live more faithfully in the present and the future?

Published!

Five years in the making and our book is finally out today!

Order online at http://www.amazon.com/Institutional-Change-Theological-Education-Divinity/dp/0875654061/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331936629&sr=8-1