I won't forget it.
Walking into the doors of a church that would become our new family that first Sunday of 2018. Broken, wounded, betrayed, scarred from years of cuts and just looking for a place to heal. And one of the first songs played during worship was Reckless Love. Neither of us had heard it before, but there it was, spilling out all of its truth, speaking directly to my heart and welling up in my eyes.
"Oh the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God
Oh it chases me down, fights 'til I'm found, leaves the ninety-nine"
All along, I was expecting those who had hurt us to make things right, to "leave the ninety-nine" and fight for us. It might have been right to expect that. Guys get angry when they're hurt and expect to be "righted". The reality was, God was leaving the ninety-nine to rescue the one. Rescued into another fold.
"There's no shadow You won't light up, mountain You won't climb up, coming after me. There's no wall You won't kick down, lie You won't tear down, coming after me."
And that's what God had to do in order to put us in a better place. Somewhere, as I described to friends after that Sunday, a "place that I could breath again". How often do we displace our trust and expectations onto those who disappoint us, when in fact, we know that only God can rescue, only God can heal.
Within a few weeks, a friend shared a song on Facebook that again, I had never heard before. The video that ran with So Will I reminded me so fully of our connected-ness to all things God created, my brothers and sisters around the globe. Those next door who need that simple act of compassion, all created in His image, all "immortal horrors or everlasting splendors" - C.S. Lewis.
"I can see Your heart eight billion different ways.
Every precious one, a child You died to save.
If you gave Your life to love them so will I.
....
You're the One who never leaves the one behind."
And as the flood waters rose in 2018, and I watched people act on that divine character of God, compassion, I realized that nothing else in 2018 mattered more than, well, people. As obvious as that seems, how often do we really act upon that truth?
Some of the lyrics to that song came back to mind on a short hike this fall because of a conversation I had with a friend about how we think of our lives in relationship to our Creator.
God doesn't call us to brokenness to leave us broken, He doesn't call us into submission to leave us without a mission. God calls us to live out, to be all, that He created us to be. Through every talent, in every relationship, each interaction and moment of inspiration-God is saying live in the fullness of the life He created for you. And in that-we reflect His glory, we worship Him.
"If the stars were made to worship so will I
If the mountains bow in reverence so will I
If the oceans roar your greatness so will I
For if everything exists to lift you high so will I
If the wind goes where you send it so will I
If the rocks cry out in silence so will I
If the sum of all our praises still falls shy
Then we'll sing again a hundred billion times"
On to 2019.
