Success

Today I achieved success. It came in the form of a Facebook post by a friend and member of the moms’ coffee church I lead on Wednesday mornings. Her post was about this article by John Pavlovitz on a modern Christian tendency to minimize the suffering in the world by saying God is in control. Pavlovitz writes that the true role of Christians is to be co-creators with God. He sees the role of Christians as makers of peace, agents of goodness, and bringers of justice. The best line is this, “Jesus… is incarnated in the flesh and blood of those who believe that other people are worth sacrificing for, that mercy is the greatest gift, that love is revolutionary.”

My friend who shared the post tagged me in it, saying reading it reminded her of my way of being. And this is success. This tells me I have fulfilled what I understand God to want of me. The entire reason we started SFC, the purpose of my life, the call of my heart is to share God’s love and light in the world. I do this by showing up, listening, asking hard questions, and speaking out loud the truth of Jesus as I understand it. I define this moment as success because it affirms this is what I’m actually doing, not only in my mind but in the mind of at least one other person.

And while this moment is great I don’t live this way for the Facebook love (which is good because the next thing I was tagged in was an instructional video about how to walk near cows). And I don’t live this way because it’s easy.  My next hundred interactions might end in frustration.  It turns out success is fleeting. I live this way because I truly believe it is the only authentic way to live for someone who has faith in a God who put on flesh, was born in poverty, dwelt among us, caused a ruckus, hung out with the marginalized, prayed a ton, died, and then showed us that death is nothing to be feared. I’m going to keep doing this work of showing up, loving, and listening. I’ll do it at SFC, Trinity, moms’ coffee, in the neighborhood, at the school, in the grocery store, over the backyard fence, at the art museum, and everywhere I am. And I know, like Pavlovtiz says this way of life helps will eventually tangibly change the story we find ourselves in these days.

-Eilidh