ALL POSTS

Have you ever had a moment when we've cried out to God, but it felt like God wasn't listening? Like God had forgotten about you? Like God had given up on you? When that happens enough times, it's easy to give up on God. But even though God doesn't always show up when we want God to, that doesn't mean God's not at work in your life. Because God is always at work, even when we can't see it.

When you've been hurt enough times, you learn to keep your guard up. It's how we protect ourselves. But the longer we keep our guard up, the more alone we feel. But what happens when keeping your guard up also keeps out the one person who sees you for who you really are and loves you anyway?

A lot of us have spent years going to church, reading our Bibles, and learning about God. And when you've spent that much time in church, it's easy to feel like we have God figured out. But what happens when life doesn't go the way you expected, and God doesn't show up the way you thought he would? What if God is always bigger than anything we could ever figure out?

It's easy to learn about what Jesus wants from us. We can study scripture, discuss theology, and understand what God values. We can even agree that God's kingdom has no outsiders and that we're called to move toward the margins. But knowing isn't the same as doing. Sometimes we'd rather stay comfortable in our sacred spaces than actually follow Jesus into the world. But we're not just called to know Jesus, we're called to follow him.

Jesus tells his followers, "You are the salt of the earth" and "You are the light of the world." But even though we know what salt and light are, that doesn't mean we completely understand what Jesus has to say. In the ancient world, salt preserved food from rotting and light protected people from danger. But salt only works when it gets mixed in, and light only works when you shine it. So are you willing to really be salt and light?

Salt doesn't have to wait until it's salty enough before it can preserve food. Light doesn't have to wait until it's bright enough before it can shine in darkness. And you don't have to wait until you're good enough, or smart enough, or spiritual enough, or qualified enough before you can make a difference in God's kingdom.

Walking humbly means we have to follow God instead of trying to control God. It means we have to let go of our insistence on understanding everything. It means we have to acknowledge that our ways are not God's ways and our thoughts are not God's thoughts.

Real mercy means we have to give up our need to fix people. We have to release our desire to control outcomes. We have to let go of our insistence that people earn our compassion by demonstrating they deserve it. We just have to show up, extend grace, and stay engaged even when it's hard.

Biblical justice isn't primarily about punishment. It's about making things right. It's about standing up for people who have been pushed down, speaking up for people who've been silenced, and including people who have been left out.

God isn't interested in separating our Sunday morning behavior from our Monday through Saturday behavior. God isn't impressed when we perform spiritually on Sunday and then ignore injustice, withhold mercy, and operate in arrogance the rest of the week. God wants integration, not compartmentalization. God wants our whole lives, not just our religious activities.