vulnerability, our secret sauce

“I love, therefore I am vulnerable.”

 Madeleine L'Engle,

Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art

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The greatest enemy of love

Is not hate

It is instead our unwillingness to be vulnerable

Our desperate need to protect ourselves from all

Unpleasantness

Vulernability was Jesus’ secret strength

Call it emptying (kenosis)

Call it humbling

Call it openness

Jesus did not consider emotional, physical and spiritual comfort

A thing to be grasped

He did not hide behind money or power

(although he was tempted to)

Instead he placed himself in the middle of a messy world

And screwed up people

and loved

loved even though it hurt

loved even though his love wasn’t earned

loved even though it was dangerous

loved even though that love was rejected

loved even though it killed him

he became vulnerable

and allowed people to touch him

question him

resist him

he let them in

as wounded and messed up as they were

so he could touch them with Sacred Love

it was the only way

it is the only way

When we close down, we lose love

When we close our borders out of fear, we become unloving

When we protect ourselves from what is not comfortable, and easy

When we close our eyes to poverty and homelessness

We become unloving

When we protect our interests while ignoring the needs of others

We become unloving

Whenever we move “away” because is it

Challenging

Painful

Scary

Threatening

Uncomfortable

Costly

We are moving away from love

Bottom line

The only way to follow Jesus

Is to embrace vulnerability (as Jesus did)

And Love (as Jesus loved)

Vulnerability is our secret sauce