This morning I am amazed at the fact that I am a part of the body of Christ. I am awed that He chooses broken, helpless people to be His hands and feet. So often, He feels far away. Too often when that happens, it is because I am not connecting to the people around me. They are a large channel of how I experience Jesus.
In our church service this morning, we spent some time praying for one of my sisters in Christ. I was touched by the love that was evident in our group. At the same time, I grieved for the many times I (and many others) have not experienced that kind of love and support within a church family. I'm moved to tears when I realize that there truly is a body--when one member suffers they all suffer. At the same time, I'm moved to sorrow at how many times I have neglected to be part of that body and have not cared well for the people around me.
The tricky thing is that, in order for this to work, we have to be willing to be vulnerable to those around us. We have to risk trusting them with our hearts--with our emotions. We have to believe that if they are the hands and feet of Christ, they will only want the best for us. That when we fall, they will sit in the mud puddle for a while, but then will help to pick us up and move us onward. This is a two-way street. We can only be the hands and feet of Jesus, if we are willing to also receive love and support from the rest of the body.
We long for perfection within our churches. We hold back because we know we may (and probably will) get hurt. Yet we don't stop to realize what we are missing by not embracing what we have been given; we miss out on who Christ is and what He is really about. The truth is that it is safer to be cynical; to not trust because we have been burned before. So we sit and complain about everything that has been done wrong in the church situations in our lives, and forget that we are a part of change happening.
What I saw this morning was beautiful. It was a group of ladies who were willing to love and support a hurting friend and sister. But it was also a woman of great strength who was willing to be vulnerable and trust us with her heart.
I long for what a verse of one of my favorite hymns says: "Nearer, still nearer, while life shall last. Till safe in glory my anchor is cast. Through endless ages, ever to be nearer my Savior, still nearer to Thee." I cannot wait to be with Jesus, and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He has been with me every step of the way. To know His embrace. To know His gentle voice. But, I am foolish if I do not know Him as much as I can while I live. This will require trust...am I, or are you, willing to take that risk?
