“Disappointment is a sort of bankruptcy - the bankruptcy of a soul that expends too much in hope and expectation.”
Eric Hoffer
___________________________________
Wow!
That is incredible!
I love the way it is all coming together, finally!
Ah, those spikes of hope
A person who has been struggling seems to be getting it all together
Yay!
A new family shows up in worship
The church finally seems to be gaining some momentum
You leave a worship service going “Wow, that worked! That was powerful”
You go online to find a good person has won an election
And then
The old patterns emerge
The new family disappears
The church feels mired in “old stuff”
The Senate confirms a corrupt creep into a key role
And you end up feeling
Bankrupt
Empty
Tired
Hopeless
Perhaps it was easier when I was younger
35, 45, not 75
Perhaps it was easier when I wasn’t fighting chronic pain,
Two shoulders full of torn tendons that don’t work
An energy level that never faltered
A mind that was sharp
But now?
Can these dry bones live?
Can this nation recover?
Can the church not just survive but flourish?
Can I continue to live a life of productivity and meaning?
No, I am not a pessimist (am I?)
Leland Val Van de Wall once said
“The degree to which a person can grow is directly proportional
To the amount of truth he can accept about himself without running away”
The same might be said for nations and churches
I believe there is always hope
The Kingdom of God is near
It lingers around our hearts
And we see glimpses of glory
Near but not yet
So close, but yet so far
I don’t think
Those moments of “Wow”
Will ever be more than fleeting
They will be followed, too quickly by “Ugh”
But they come, and come, and come again
And for that I give thanks
No comments:
Post a Comment