Prayer

"Prayer, therefore, is a great adventure because the God with whom we enter into a new relationship is greater than we are and defies all our calculations and predictions. The movement from illusion to prayer is hard to make since it leads us from false certainties to true uncertainties, from an easy support system to a risky surrender, and from the many 'safe' gods to the God whose love has no limits."

Henri J.M. Nouwen, Reaching Out

Prayer is an illusion when we think God will love us more when we pray.

I'm not called to be the Body of Christ

I'm not called to be the Body of Christ.

That’s not for me. That’s not for any of us. See, we just can’t do it. God didn’t design humans to work that way. Some people may think they can be the Body of Christ, but they can’t. I used to think that, but now I don’t. Last night God made me realize that I’m not called to be the Body of Christ.

“The pain of the world is a burden. It’s my cross to bear.” is a line from one of my favorite songs to play on guitar, but it can be misleading. All the pain of the world is not my cross to bear. I never really thought that it was, but now I’m sure that it’s not.

The Church is called to be the Body of Christ and as part of the Church I share a part of this calling, but I can’t claim it completely for myself. As one human being I can’t possibly be the entire Body of Christ. This may seem like a simple revelation or something so elementary to Christian life, but it had a huge impact on me yesterday.

In church yesterday morning there was a reflection time, which is completely normal. At The Table we are given questions to think about or activities to do or some other way to respond to the scriptures that we’ve been working with that morning. Yesterday was an ordination service for two leaders in my church and during the reflection time I was reflecting on the commitment they had made. It was a series of “Do you/will you . . .” statements to which they had responded “I do/I will”. It seemed pretty simple.

It was that list of questions that occupied my thoughts during the long reflection time. They aren’t easy questions! There’s certainly nothing simple to them! That’s not what this blog post is about though. I sat there reflecting on my journey with God these last years and contemplating the new chapter that is to come after graduation. I wanted nothing more than for someone to come over and talk with me. That would show me that others cared, that I was loved and that I didn’t have to take this journey by myself. Actually they didn’t even need to talk with me. I just wanted someone to sit with me as I wrestled with my thoughts.

Someone came over. She sat in the empty chair next to me and asked how I was doing. I lied. I said I was “fine” or “good” or something like that. She came over and was Christ to me and in turn I showed that I was some pathetic, little human wanting to put on a good front and hide what was really going on. I was torn up inside, but I denied it. She had shown me the Body of Christ at work and I hadn't embraced it.

Then later in the day, at Celebration (a student-led worship service) we were given time for prayer and reflection or whatever we needed to do. I sat by myself with my head in my arms trapped in thought about God’s trust for me and how undeserved it is. That’s not what this blog post is about though. For the second time in one day I found myself wanting nothing more than for someone to come over and show me that I was loved. My thoughts were my own and I wouldn’t be able to share them, but I needed someone to come over and be Christ to me again.

I was suddenly brought out of my own self-absorbed world when I realized that there may be other people in that room who were sharing my desire to be loved and cared for in that moment. It wasn’t a new realization, but this time I realized that I might be the only one aware that someone else might have those needs. What if the responsibility within the Body of Christ to be Christ to others therefore fell to me? The responsibility certainly couldn’t fall to people who were unaware of the need.

But I’m not called to be the Body of Christ by myself. In that moment I was a needy part of the Body and not in position to care for others. The needs of my Christian brothers and sisters are not all my responsibility, but rather the shared responsibility of us all. All the pain of the world is not my burden; it’s our burden to share. And fortunately it’s our burden to share as empowered by the love of God, as shown by the life of Christ, and as led by the Holy Spirit.

Being the Body of Christ doesn’t mean that we all have to love and care for everybody, but if we can all at least love and care for our friends (and maybe a few nearby enemies too!), then think of what a Body that will create! That’s so exciting to me! It’s lovers of Christ playing in concert to make gorgeous music heard by the rest of the world! And I get to be a part of it. We all do.

Your Love Endures

Though the treasures of this life may fade,
Your love endures forever.
They will pass away things that man has made,
But your love endures forever.
Now I can't explain, or even understand
Why you gave your life, to save sinful man,
But I know it's true, I've seen it myself
Your love endures forever.

Though the seasons change with the passing time,
Your love endures forever.
And the sun will fade if just for the night,
Your love endures forever.
Now I can't explain, or even understand
Why you gave your life, to save sinful man,
But I know it's true, I've seen it myself
Your love endures forever.

Though our pains and joys will come and go,
Your love endures forever.
Even in my fears I will always know,
That your love endures,
Yes your love endures forever.


Third Day