Prophet-ting with God

 

If we stay with our rage and resentment too long, we will righteously and unthinkingly pass that on in new directions, and we injure our own souls in ways we will not recognize.  Richard Rohr.

 

Today, I invite you to hold the above quote close to your heart so that it might be as sweet as the honey of the scroll Ezekiel ate.  Where is your rage roaring like a lion?  Write down where your anger causes the cheeks of your face to turn a brilliant, bright shade of red.  Where does that tiny vein in your neck pulsate when you think about an issue or person, or a situation?  Where does your heart quicken in the presence of another?

 

Where do you hold onto grievances and grudges because you believe that is the way of the world?  What hurts do you keep returning to, because you believe that if you forgive, you will forget the pain and might end up repeating the same mistake, even though the scar will always remain from the rupture?  Where do you pick at the scab of the past? This can be done individually or collectively. 

 

Rohr says that when we do this, being a victim consumes our narrative.  We trade our ability to be an agent of our own story because we believe someone else holds the editorial red pen.  To be sure, systems continue to wound, dehumanize, and discriminate.  To be sure, there are laws right now that do not reflect God’s belovedness for humans to thrive and hurt God’s holy creation.  To be sure, God is always authoring another chapter in your soul.  Do we hear what God hears? 

 

Name your rage today.  Invite your resentment over for a cup of tea.  Be honest, these voices can become dominant and take over not only what we see but also how we respond to others.  Sit with this truth that the prophets preached and proclaimed were part of the human condition.  It is when we let this truth rest and reside that we can begin to live another way.  Amen.