Living Tree Poetry

“Our Savior kneels down and gazes upon the darkest acts of our lives. But rather than recoil in horror, he reaches out in kindness and from the basin of his grace, he scoops a palm full of mercy and washes away our sin. Jesus said, “If I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash each other’s feet. I did this as an example so that you should do as I have done for you” (John 13:14-15).  Those in the circle of Christ had no doubt of his love; those in our circles should have no doubts about ours. More often than not, if the one in the right volunteers to wash the feet of the one in the wrong, both parties end up on their knees. Please understand. Relationships don’t thrive because the guilty are punished, but because the innocent are merciful.”
Max Lucado

“We must learn to regard people less in the light of what they do or omit to do, and more in the light of what they suffer.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

“Pain doesn’t listen to reason it has its own reason, which is not reasonable.”
Milan Kundera

“We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.  Each of us should please our neighbours for their good, to build them up.”
Romans 15:1-2

My prayer today is for grace, for mercy.  How would it be if we stopped crucifying one another, and how can we stop crucifying one another?  Perhaps by learning not to crucify ourselves, or learning how not to pick up our cross and wield it against others.  For we can tend to swing between excusing others and blaming ourselves, or excusing ourselves and heaping all the judgement and blame at anothers feet.  Thank God he has given us another way.  The way of honesty, of humility.  He who washes away our sin, asks that we extend that same grace to one another.  To bend low, and to wash anothers feet because he has washed ours; to turn the other cheek, though the other still stings with pain.     Why, because only he can judge fairly.  Our justice is inclined to hardness or softness, depending on our feelings, or our history or our insecurities.   Today I pray that we can give Him the mantle of judge, and justice bearer, and take the path of love, of honest and grace filled communication, of commitment to each other’s welfare, above our own anger’s demand for recompense. The word ‘honesty’ is the crux here.  Its okay to say, ‘I’m having trouble trusting you…. That hurt me greatly…. How can we move on from this?”   And to keep talking.  To value the relationship, or the other’s dignity beyond our need to punish.  For we all trip and fall, and fail and limp our way to the cross.  To deny this is to put on the pride that, not just sets us against others, but creates a cross for our own backs that is too heavy to bear.  Today, let’s put it down.  Let’s try grace….

These are drawn from daily prayers and reflections I write for my Chaplaincy colleagues.