a note to the dead and dieing
hear it goes…
If the goal in life was to maintain personal growth and individualistic gain then maybe we have all ready won.
The US is the icon for individuality and I am convinced community is the answer. You would think that technology and the Internet would make us a diverse understanding nation, however our value of individuality trumps all. We want too much, expect too much and demand too much of the each other and ourselves. There are to many glorified individuals who have some how reached the ultimate in success in this country. WE care too much about people who look good and make a lot of money. Like a bunch of little children during window-shopping for what looks the best we approach life from a distance.
“Ouch that hurts,” when we get to close to each other. Why? Cause we care too much about our own comfort.
I think it is time to mourn with those who mourn and rejoice with those who rejoice. I think it is time to sit on the side of the losers of this world and invite them in for dinner. I think it is time to sit with someone who is dieing and ask them what they will miss, ask them what they regret, ask them what they want to remember.
If our reality is made up of memories and relationships are made up of experiences then it is time to enter a new reality. Force our selves to view our circumstances from another perspective.
For example:
IF I have a friend who is gay, it will be harder for me to hate someone who is gay.
If I have a friend who is being persecuted and is Muslim it will be harder for me to hate Muslims.
If I have a friend who is poor it will be harder for me to rely on wealth.
If I am in real relationship with people I will not be the same as I was yesterday.
We have to become acutely aware of our selfishness and our desire for more. We have to challenge our beliefs that God wants what we want for ourselves and we have to ask the question what is right for the ones who are poor. And we have to ask them…
Life is fleeting, it is short and it is a gift. What if there is no heaven, what if there is no hell, what will we have done with this gift of life if all we did was for our own good.
All I know is, what I have scene and I am limited by my own perspective, but here is what I see.
I see churches becoming more homogeneous. I see people becoming more scared. I see the look of terror, like we might have lost control of our own destiny…
And my encouragement for all of us is this…
Let go, it has all ready be lost, we can not take over the control that has not been given, we are not the ones in charge, there is more going on than the pain we feel and the world we see.
I have felt a lot of pain over the past several months and what I have realized is that the pain I am feeling is the pain of loosing control, loosing identity and loosing hope, but gaining salvation. Salvation for a dead religion and a dead faith. Salvation for an ideal of the American dream.
This is my note to the dead and dieing
