fulfillment

CBG: Immanuel

April 25, 2020 — Leave a comment

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).

Matthew 1:23

God with us.
God with us.
God with us.

I was recently in an amazing virtual artists gathering. We had a beautiful deep question for the night that we all took turns responding and revealing. I left with better knowledge and a more clarified language around my current situation. The following day I was in my virtual acting class. It’s not my favorite and feels irritating at times, however, I’m grateful for the adaptation of an offering I need. During one of our exercise where we were simply talking about what we see, whether physical or emotional in the other, and how we feel, I tapped into a softness that I’m always striving for in my work and in my life. A softness that lets my armor down for a moment. A softness that taps into my fragile beautiful heart full of sadness and hope. And it makes me wonder why some conversations leave me softer while others attempt to but don’t.

Immanuael.
God with us.
God with us.

Jesus in the human form was not a cerebral solution. We had enough scriptures and words, beautiful, beautiful words, before this human. Jesus wasn’t about giving us more knowledge or something new. Jesus in the human form, Immanuel, was about a visceral, emotional, heart to heart, hand to hand, in your space kind of connection. It was about giving us room to be us, messy and all, sinful and all, emotional and needy and all. His response was not more knowledge, his tales of wisdom, but rather his presence. God’s greatest solution for us was and is his presence.

May we connect with each other as if we, our presence, is enough. Less words. Less advice. Less stories to show you understand. Being there without judgement and making room IS the way to show you understand. May we tap into Immanuel for our friends and family, for this world.

Prayer: Lord help me to speak less and listen more. Help me to respond instead of react. Help me to figure out solutions. Help me be present.

Creative: A letter — to yourself, to someone else, to the world?

Brave: Practice breathing into any emotions that come to your awareness.

Generous: Ask 2-3 people if there is anything that could make their days lighter.

Day 14: Pointing to a way doper Joseph: J. Christ!

December 30, 2018 — Leave a comment

Genesis 43-45; Psalm 14

What it must have taken for Joseph to not only forgive his brothers, but to embrace them with such compassion? He moved from mere forgiveness to generous and open grace. He no longer blamed his brothers but rather saw his situation as part of God’s plans. He was vulnerable in his weeping. He didn’t forget what happened to him; he put it in context with where he is right now.

The brothers didn’t do anything but be honest. They received what they did not deserve. It was a situation and a gift too big they could not understand.

I mean this is essentially the gospel. God loves us not with just enough, but overwhelms us with unimaginable love. He doesn’t hold what we used to be against us, even though he could reaccount every last detail. Instead he rejoices at where we are in the present. We do not need to do anything, but be honest and vulnerable with where we are at and accept the love. Accepting the love is accepting that God really truly loves us to the moon and back and back again, and his greatest act of that was showing us Jesus. We are human and we needed an example, a way to see that made sense to us. Well, his death and resurrection doesn’t fully make sense because it’s both so horrific and so open. But in his life, death and rebirth, can we see the depths someone would go to affirm they love us? Can we see the non-obligatory love? Can we see an utter forgiveness, acceptance, compassion and relentless hope? Yes Jesus!