In Jessamyn
West’s stories Friendly Persuasion, a
man muses as he takes flowers to a funeral for a young boy that perhaps that
simple gesture is the whole reason he was born and that in doing so he has
fulfilled God’s plan. That idea has
stuck with me for years. After all, how
do we really know what God’s plan for each of us is? Oh, we can sketch a broad outline but no one
can guess what the truth is. Wise parent
that He is, He has given us the tools and the guidelines to follow and set us
free. But it is scary out there on that
limb all by ourselves! But, wait, there
is one more gift: Jesus. With Jesus as our model, things become clearer, not
less scary maybe, but clearer.
All the
great adjectives, phrases and descriptions of good, honest, loving people apply
to him. He was compassionate and
tolerant but he was not a fool as the moneychangers in the Temple
discovered. He drew people to him
because he smiled and looked right at them acknowledging their very existence,
which didn’t happen often to the poor. Still doesn’t, by the way. He went wherever he wanted and fit in
wherever that was because he was absolutely sure the love of the Father was
with him. We have both, the love of the
Father and the companionship of the Son.
We can’t worry about what will define our purpose but live our lives in
Christ, making every encounter count for something, forgive ourselves when we
mess up and trust, trust, trust in the loving grace of God to get us through.
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