I haven’t blogged here in what feels like about a million years…long story, but it involves the busiest semester of my life and a 50 hour per week nanny gig. Suffice it to say, I’m back, and I think this is officially one of my new favourite songs. Enjoy!
“I Stand”–Idina Menzel
Lately, I’ve been listening. I hear single friends, still single, who are not happy with that. And I start to feel sorry for them, and then I realise: I’m still single too. Same boat. That doesn’t bother me as much as what I hear that way, way too often accompanies this state: low self esteem.
Get this straight. Get it now.
You have something to say. Your words are beautiful and valuable. I want to hear them if no one else.
You are beautiful. You may think no one wants to see your face, but I do.
You are unique, and because of that, the world doesn’t have enough of you yet. Keep bringing your unique gifts.
People may tell you you’re not smart enough, not gifted enough, not beautiful enough. Don’t listen to them. They are dead wrong.
I want to hear you. I want to see you. I want to share our hopes, our dreams, and our thoughts together. And I mean that.
You Are Loved (Don’t Give Up)
Josh Groban
I’ve been thinking a lot about compassion lately. What is compassion, anyway? How is it any different from mercy, or a bunch of other words?
I did some digging, and confirmed my hunch. I went back to the etymology of the English word compassion, and this is what I found.
“Compassion” comes from Latin roots, com-, meaning “with” or “together with”, and pati, meaning, interestingly enough, “suffering”. That’s the same word we get our related English word, passion, from.
We know a little bit about passion. Passion is strong feeling, a drive, a hunger. Passion consumes us, makes us act, makes us do things we wouldn’t do from an impartial, rational stance. Passion is what we feel for those we love, it’s emotion, deep and powerful. Passion is what motivates someone like William Wilberforce to give years of his life to fight against the evils of slavery. Passion is what motivates thousands upon millions of people to do all they can to prevent the slaughter of one more unborn baby. Passion is what motivates someone like Mother Teresa to give of herself, years of her life, and many earthly comforts to help the poor of Calcutta. Passion is what turns my stomach when I see people with ridiculous and unnessecary luxuries and remember that a child won’t eat today, and that many children will die. Passion is what makes me angry at the cavalier attitude we have toward the horrid working conditions endured by the workers who make our clothing, our housewares and many of our other purchases–workers who are, in fact, often enslaved.
But there’s another angle on the word passion. When capitalised, Passion takes on the connotation of Jesus’ sacrifice for us, His suffering. Deep feeling. Great love. Great passion.
Now we come back to compassion. Feeling together. To feel strongly right along with someone else. To identify with someone else’s hurt.
Compassion is when we see someone’s pain and feel our heart breaking, too. It’s a passion, a drive to do whatever we can to help them. It’s a creative, imaginative thing, as we dream up new ways to alleviate their suffering. It consumes us and motivates us to do whatever we can for them.
Compassion is what prompts us to fix injustice, to do right and reconcile wrong, to offer a smile, a hug, and a Kleenex. It’s essential to Christianity, and it is beautiful. And, at its heart, it’s another way to show love.
What is this whole grace thing? How do we figure out what kind of grace we’re talking about?
There’s a certain kind of movement, a kind of form and presence, that we call grace. Back in the day, there was even a game (which is, by the way, murderously hard to play) called “Graces”, supposedly designed to help train young girls to move gracefully. Usually we say women are graceful, not so much with men (which is a little silly, since it’s not like men are always klutzy). This kind of grace is alternately prized and despised by factions in our society, with those who despise it generally advocating strength rather than grace.
Grace can be moving lightly and fluidly, not making undue ripples in or marring one’s environment, tactfully talking one’s way out of an awkward social situation, gentleness, elegance, and living with a vibrant confidence. But what else does the term grace embody?
Theologically, grace is a concept found all over the Bible. One way I like to look at it is this way: The other day in my Systematic Theology class, the class was talking about the Greek concept of man (dichotomy or trichotomy) vs. the Hebrew concept of man (one united person with options presented to him). It was suggested that the Hebrew man might be seen on one level as being similar to a character in a Saturday morning cartoon: an angel on one shoulder, a demon on the other, presented with a choice to make and possessing not only the right and ability but the obligation to make his decision but the right and wrong. This view was critiqued by another student for seemingly setting good and evil as equal (dualism), when in fact God (the Source of good) has triumphed over Satan (the proponent of the distortion of good which is evil). My response to that: that’s where grace comes in. The good and evil are not equal. The good is made much, much stronger by grace. Grace comes in to strengthen the good, til the option of evil pales in comparison. It is as Shane Claiborne said in his book The Irresistible Revolution:
“I truly believe that we can overwhelm the darkness of this world by shining something brighter and more beautiful.”
~Shane Claiborne
The good is now brighter and more beautiful. It’s brighter and more beautiful to forgive someone who wrongs you…again. It is brighter and more beautiful to replace angry, hurtful words with words of love and peace. It is brighter and more beautiful to release your will in favour of someone else’s best, to support them even when all you are is crying out against their choice. It is brighter and more beautiful to give someone another chance, even when you think they’ve done horribly.
Grace is brighter and more beautiful. And it overwhelms the darkness. May we all live with more grace.
This is one of my favourites…
“The Chasing Song”
Andrew Peterson
Now and then these feet just take to wandering
Now and then I prop them up at home
Sometimes I think about the consequences
Sometimes I don’t
Well, I realize that falling down ain’t graceful
But I thank the Lord that falling’s full of grace
Sometimes I take my eyes off Jesus
And you know that’s all it takes
Well I wish that I could say that at the close of every day
I was happy with the way that I’m behaving
‘Cause Job, he chased and answer
The wise men chased the Child
Jacob chased her 14 years and he
Captured Rachel’s smile
Moses chased the Promised Land
Joseph chased a dream
David, he chased God’s own heart
All I ever seem to chase is me
Well, they say a race can only have one winner
And you know you’ve got to pull out front to win
God knows the only time I’m winning
Is when I’m chasing Him
Well I wish that I could say that at the close of every day
I was happy with the way that I’m behaving
‘Cause Samson chased a woman
and he chased the Philistines
I’m not quite sure what Jonah chased
But I know he caught the sea
Cain, he chased the harvest
While Abel chased the beasts
David, he chased God’s own heart
All I ever seem to chase is me
And Jesus chased the moneymen
And he chased his Father’s will
He chased my sin to Calvary
And he caught it on that hill
Saul, he chased the Christians
Till his blindness made him see
David, he chased God’s own heart
All I ever seem to chase is me
