We are four chapters into Mark and it is good to pause to catch our breath. So, far, Mark starts off with an incomplete, grammatically incorrect sentence in 1:1, wanting to tell us that Jesus is Son of God and Messiah. Jesus is the One who is God in the flesh, incarnate. Jesus is also the One who offers salvation, which is not so much about canceling out a debt...but about reorienting our lives toward God every day. Mark races through Jesus' baptism, temptation, and beginning of preaching and healing. The first few chapters shine a light on the truth that Jesus is not only interested in giving us head knowledge, but speaking to our hearts. Jesus takes us to the storms of life and challenges us with understandings of family. Behind all this, beneath the surface, is a gospel written to people in the shadow of the Roman Empire...during a time when Rome was looking to scapegoat and blame Christians for setting a fire to the city of Rome (even though some scholars say that Emperor Nero set it himself). Jesus tells parable about not hiding your light under a basket and planting seeds around us (even when the ground is frozen or inhospitable).
What I love about Mark is we are not even halfway through, we have already encountered and had Scripture read our lives in amazing ways. Mark is already helping us see that there will be storms in life, we will (like the man who lived among the tombs) face chains in life. Mark is telling us that faith is not some insurance policy for life to be all chocolate rivers and pony rides. Life is stormy. Life hurts. We need folks who listen...folks who help us name the pains that confound us in life.
What I find so fascinating in Mark is his powerful use of words. He is able much more concisely than I to tell a compelling story. So, here is my question:
What three words would you want to describe your life?
What one story do you sense represents your life?
Those are tough questions. I am coming up on 400 blog posts...and I still don't know that I have fully answered those two questions. I pray that we will take a breath and ponder prayerfully the ways we tell our story and the words that matter most to us.
Grace and peace ~
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