Epiphany 4 - Year C
1 Corinthians 13:1-13
"When I was an infant at my mother's breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant. When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good." [The Message]
Isn't it good to be able to know we recapitulated the development of all people. We are not divinity wrapped in flesh. We are both at each stage along the way. Sometimes it is more evident and sometimes less, but is never one or the other.
In acknowledgement of our past we can glory in our poopy pants (Merriam-Webster online reminds us that "poop" can refer to a ship's stern/rear, defecation, exhaustion, or information - sort of like the mystery of G*D's backside) and rejoice in those who cared for us when we couldn't do so for ourselves. We will leave our past behind, in terms of not repeating it, as we incorporate it into our present approach to life (caring) and our goals (seeing more and more clearly who we are in relationship to others). Our past is not embarrassment, but instructive and encouraging.
Can you see faith/trust, hope, and love at work in your infancy? Your present? Your time to come? In your friends/congregation/context as well as yourself? To see these qualities over time helps us become more comfortable with the ambiguity of partiality and to appreciate our latest developmental plateau, even as we consolidate and prepare to move on.
the ambiguity of partiality! perfect! exactly where I am as I request a change of appointment. Consolidating and preparing to move on. Thanks so much.
ReplyDeleteBlessings on your transition. I trust you will be able to name and honor the good that surfaced and will continue to do so in your present circumstance. Likewise, I hope you will be able to appreciate and grow from those times the more-helpful was obscured.
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