Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Let Go of the Rope and Stare at the Sun



the tug of war of truth is getting old
heals dig in and the rope leaves teethmarks
that sting after we walk away
but its not all just fun and games
the mud pit in the middle
is deeper than we think
some pull with heroic strength
hoping to reel in justice like a drowning child
others grip tighter with a lust for beauty
biting their lips as if planning the first brush on a canvas
determination furrows the brows of some
or maybe it's the questions
as they wrench for balanced equations
all the while knowing someone must win in the end
others heave and draw for a connection to the opposition
like the end-of-the-movie kiss when the war is over
But I can't record Your still small voice
just like you can't see a toothache
And I can't hand out Your presence
like mittens on the sledding hill
So today, I'm letting go of the rope
loving them all like You do,
and looking up to smile and
stare at the sun



"No one wants to deal with these facts. But anyone who examines this evidence will come to stake his life on this: that God himself is the truth." John 3:31b

“We’re disconnected from each other and we know it. It’s not how things are supposed to be. Even people who would say they have no faith in God or in any sort of higher being or supreme power still have a sense that there is a way things are supposed to be. And that way involves us as human beings being connected with each other.” Rob Bell, Sex God

"Over the last generation in Western culture, truth has been like the rope in a tug-of-war contest. On the one hand, some want to reduce all truth to "facts" . . . some believe all truth is relative . . . Ordinary mortals, dimly aware of this tug-of-war, and its social, cultural, and political spin offs, may well feel some uncertainty about what truth is, while still knowing that it matters . . . we must take a deep breath and plunge into the center of the story which, according to Christian tradition, makes sense of our longing for justice, spirituality, relationship, and beauty, and indeed truth and love. We must begin to talk about God. Which is like saying that we must learn to stare at the sun . . . it's dazzling. It's easier, actually to look away from the sun itself and to enjoy the fact that, once it's well and truly risen, you can see everything else clearly." N.T. Wright, Simply Christian

1 comment:

Sarah (Koutz) Johnson said...

I will be calling or emailing you soon. You are never going to believe what happened to me tonight at our school concert.