Here we are on the precipice
of tomorrow. The start of a new year. The night we look behind to all that has
been and the celebration of all that is to come. We mourn. We celebrate. We
wonder. The season of Epiphany is approaching. The child has been born, the Son
has been given. The gifts are arriving. The hope is growing. Can it be true? Is
there one who can save us? One who can help make sense of our little worlds and
our not so little battles, disappointments, misunderstandings, fears,
confusions, betrayals and broken dreams? Is there one who can hold all these
little worlds ‘in the palm of His hand?’
I recently finished a book
by Jeff Imbach called The Recovery of Love. He unpacks four Christian mystics of the 14th century,
sharing their stories and their lives - their little worlds. In his last few
pages reflecting on Dante’s The Divine Comedy, Imbach challenges his readers on their passions and
desires, their deep-seated hopes and dreams; their longings. He dares to say
that there is a healthy, divine, sacred way to embrace our longings. A way that
leads to transformation. Is there one who can save us? Is freedom possible?
Hear some words from Imbach,
“Passion is, in it’s essence, the bubbling up of Divine Love at the centre of our
being…accepting the passion unconditionally faces one with the reality of
choice…choice becomes a real possibility when longing is accepted and
fulfillment is celebrated but not demanded. This is the place of freedom, the
place where ‘all things are yours.’”
What are you and I longing
for? What passion is waiting to break out? What life, healing, longing, hope,
dream, desire, ache, or gift is on the precipice? Is it possible to hold it
with an open hand? To celebrate the potential but not demand it? To acknowledge
the goodness, the sweetness, the opportunity and yet not crush it?
One of my favorite podcasts
is from Relevant magazine. They introduced their ‘Best of 2012’ podcast this
week with a song from Gungor called ‘Dry Bones.’ I offer these lyrics as a
reflection on the Christmas season that has passed and all the epiphanies of
the New Year that are to come. Is there one who can save us?
Here’s a YouTube link if
you’d like to listen while reading: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJWHZnZ9E6k
My soul cries out
My soul cries out for
you
These bones cry out
These dry bones cry for
you
To live and move
'Cause only You can
raise the dead
Can lift my head up
Jesus, You're the one
who saves us
Constantly creates us
into something new
Jesus, surely you will
find us
Surely our Messiah will
make all things new
Will make all things
new
Life is breaking out,
it's breaking out
Life is breaking out,
it's breaking out, it's breaking out
