Friday, February 02, 2007

The Kingdom is at hand . . . but . . .

O.k., so there's no clever or profound way of saying this - sometimes life is hard. It's hard to living the kind of life that is in harmony with the reality that Jesus came to announce and inaugurate. Somehow the kind of hope that the new reality would seem to stir up within us seems to be just out of reach. People who work hard, speak peace, pray for justice, and give their lives away to others wake up cranky, discouraged, and dismayed that while the Kingdom may be "at hand," it's the middle of the night and you can't see that "hand" in front of your face.

I'm not writing this as an autobiographical confession necessarily. I certainly have my share of those feelings and experiences. But for whatever reason, over the past few months, I've spent time (phone time, electronic correspondence time, actual face to face time) with what seems to be a large (and growing) number of friends who are at a place of struggle. They/we are trying hard, looking for Kingdom ways forward, and spending time on our personal souls, and yet we're experiencing dry seasons, dark nights, and rocky soil. The Kingdom at hand isn't visible. The gospel of hope fails to stir up the life change we desire.

I write this more to just publicly admit it. I hope that among the many changes that we are seeking in the Church and in our communities is the ability to say this kind of stuff out loud. Not to get sympathy or pity from others or support from them or whatever. But just to have the freedom to say it. "Life is hard right now. I don't know how long it will last. I just know I'm not having any fun. I'm not giving up."

So if you're the praying type, pray. Pray for the assurance of hope that the Kingdom has come and will come. Pray for the courage to walk through dark nights and rocky fields. Pray for financial provision, and the wisdom to steward it well. Pray for a heart of forgivenness and forgiveness.

posted by Steve at 7:03 AM
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spirit farmer data

I'm Steve Lewis. This used to be my blogging home. My online home is now at SpiritFarmer.com. When this blog was my active online home, I lived in Seattle. Now I live in London, UK. I follow Jesus (poorly most of the time), worship simply, read a lot, watch culture, go to school, listen to music, write, enjoy art, and drink a lot of coffee.
e-mail me: spiritfarmer@gmail.com
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seattle spots

victrola coffee
zoka coffee
university of washington
church of the apostles
quest church
sanctuary church
shoreline vineyard


sites i visit

off the map
theooze
next-wave
metacritic
nt wright



a few of the blogs in the feedreader

tallskinnykiwi
jason evans
joe boyd
kevin rains
alan creech
chris marshall
bill bean
eugene cho
jordon cooper
dwight friesen
john chandler
amy palmer
ryan bolger
rudy carrasco
ryan sharp
sings in the sunshine
rick bennett
scot mcknight
karen ward
alan hirsch
dan kimball
petey crowder



i'm reading it

colossians remixed
africa unchained



i finished reading it - 2007

generation me
jesus and the restoration of israel
god's continent
glocalization
globalizing theology
gustavo gutierrez: essential writings
jesus and the eyewitnesses
garlands of grace
twenty poems to nourish your soul
the black swan
dancing in the streets
made to stick
signs in contemporary culture
hit the bullseye
revolution
the politics of jesus
readings in christian ethics
toward old testament ethics
the kite runner
principles of conduct
velvet elvis
the irresistable revolution
they like jesus, but not the church
the great omission
ishmael
charisma: the gift of grace, and how it has been taken from us
the starfish and the spider
a perfect mess
the world cafe
the new faces of christianity
leaving church
journeying in faith
the creed
creators
transforming mission
metaphors we live by
foolishness to the greeks
personal knowledge



states i've spent time: 2007

washington
texas
british columbia
oregon
california
georgia
oh yeah, denmark, too



i wrote it

managing conflict in the 'new world'
music review: over the rhine
film review: bonhoeffer
music review: fighting jacks
film review: the passion of the christ
how reality tv changes lives
the best tv article you've ever read
corks & caps: a wine lover's story of change
america's idols
random, disorganized thoughts about life after the katrina disaster
missional . . . plain and simple
on becoming post-gnostic



i blogged it

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