Ted's Talk
Life’s journey is not a solo act. As infants and children, of course we cannot go it alone. But even in adulthood, even though we cling to the false notion of independence, we still need each other’s support. Certainly, we rely on well-functioning structures and systems to go about our business. Perhaps less obvious, but nonetheless real, we need each other’s nudging reminders and gentle accompaniment to be transformed from grief to joy, anger to forgiveness, sin to love, death to life.
I have often found that
the season of Lent shakes up our assumptions, squarely refocusing our attention from our egos to a new encounter with God.
It can rekindle in us a joy and responsibility to mediate God’s grace in the world. The Lenten journey helps us to break from our captivity
—
selfishness, brokenness, control
—
and surprises us with God’s invitation to join more deeply in what God is already doing! Isn’t that the ever-evolving
missio dei,
the mission of God?
Perhaps the greatest gift of our participation in God’s mission
—
which itself cannot be separated from relationship
—
is akin to this Lenten
“relearning” that we belong to a caring community in which we are here for one another
. I know this is true for our lay missioners when our expectations, anxieties or fears are turned upside down by the loving welcome and hospitality of their receiving communities.
In this Lenten season, let us explore how our relationship with God and with each other releases us from whatever holds us in captivity. We may just find God inviting us deeper into the redemptive community, the Body of Christ, where together we restore, heal, reclaim wholeness, and rise to new life.
Peace and every good,
