These Days

I’ve been waiting for the right time - an inspirational moment - to get back into the swing of things with my blog entries. Between last night and today, I’ve been apprehended by two seemingly intertwined “blog worthy” reflections:

#1
Today we celebrated and baptized two of our youngest members at Common Table Church: Madeline and CJ. This beautiful, interactive service really touched me. Among other things, some of the words Mike spoke as a blessing over CJ struck a chord in my heart: “And like Jacob, may you wrestle with God and all of the questions that a genuine relationship with God brings. May you bring your whole self to God, to bathe naked in the stream of God’s grace, and to learn to flow with that love and energy. And too, may you welcome others into these same waters.”

#2
As I was going through my mail last night, I was thrilled to open a large envelope from my friend, Naomi, containing a copy of a beautiful piece she had painted. I can’t even begin to detail the shit that Naomi has been through in her life, suffice to say, her brother is currently in prison awaiting trial; he will receive either life or a death sentence. Perhaps it’s because I know some of the back story on this painting that I am so touched by it:




Naomi included a note:
“Jen, I’m so glad my painting has touched you…The painting is titled, “Arms of Love”. I hope that whether in good times or bad that you will often feel the Lord’s loving arms tighten around you and hold you close…”

1 + 2 =
Indeed, wrestling with God and questioning seems, to me, to be a vital part of trying to live out a genuine relationship with Him. In the absence of answers and in the midst of wrestling, sometimes it’s comforting to simply know that “God weeps too”.

I know this is such a melancholy note on which to re-enter the blogging scene, but it’s real, and it’s what I’m thinking about these days.